Federal regulators struck hard toward improving interoperability and information sharing between skilled nursing facilities and other providers.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced it was releasing a request for input on how the agency could promote interoperability between hospitals and post-acute settings.
In addition to that, federal officials announced an anticipated rule that would require public reporting of instances when doctors or hospitals have blocked requests for patient information from nursing homes or other providers.
“For far too long, electronic health information has been stuck in silos and inaccessible for healthcare consumers,” CMS Administrator Seema Verma said in a statement. “Our proposals help break down existing barriers to important data exchange needed to empower patients by giving them access to their health data.”
All told, the sweeping announcement included two proposed rules and two requests for information.
Additionally, CMS wants to require that all Medicare Advantage and Medicaid managed care plans share electronic medical claims information by 2020. Another requests seeks insights into the role of patient identification in encouraging better coordination across care settings.
From the March 1, 2019 Issue of McKnight's Long-Term Care News
