La. health programs called boost to getting medical funds

• By TED GRIGGS
• Advocate business writer
• Published: Mar 11, 2008 - Page: 1D - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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Louisiana’s health information technology efforts give the state a number of advantages in applying for a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid program that could pay 200 physician practices up to $58 million over five years, CMS acting administrator Kerry Weems said Monday.

The advantages include a Regional Health Information Exchange, a network that allows physicians and other providers to access patients’ electronic health records; a Chartered Value Exchange, a collaborative effort of health plans, employers, providers and consumers to push for the adoption of health information technology and provider price and quality data; and state money for health information technology projects.

“Gov. (Bobby) Jindal is willing to put up some money also,” Weems said. “That helps a lot.”

In late February, the Jindal administration and CMS held a joint news conference. The announcements included the CMS program, and the inclusion of $18.6 million for health IT project’s in the governor’s proposed budget. Of the total, $11.1 million would go to the Louisiana Rural Health Information Exchange, which would help rural hospitals acquire digital technology that would allow them to communicate electronically.

Jindal’s budget also calls for:

• $4 million for further development of the statewide Louisiana Health Information Exchange. The state used a federal grant to create the exchange after Hurricane Katrina. The prototype allowed providers to access the medical records of people who evacuated New Orleans and came to Baton Rouge.
• $3.5 million to provide financial incentives to doctors who use recognized electronic medical record software. Less than 20 percent of the software on the market includes the three things shown to improve quality: patient registries, reminder systems for preventive and early detection studies, and just-in-time information systems.

“If we can have that money work together with the money that we have here, that’s going to help a lot,” Weems said.

Only a dozen communities will be chosen nationally for the program, Weems said. The program is looking for a community that can recruit 200 physician practices of three to five doctors apiece.

Alan Levine, secretary of the state Department of Health and Hospitals, has said that Louisiana is one of only 12 states adopting the statewide information exchange technology.

Under the CMS program, a physician who uses electronic health records and performs highly on quality measures can earn a Medicare bonus of as much as $58,000 over five years, Weems said. The maximum bonus per practice is $290,000 over the five-year period.

Some doctors question whether $58,000 will cover the cost to adopt the electronic health records. But Weems said CMS estimates the cost, including lost productivity because of a dip in workflow, at $25,000 to $30,000.

The winning communities will have to show they have the infrastructure in place and that stakeholders can work together, Weems said.

The Louisiana Health Care Quality Forum, a nonprofit partnering with the state Department of Health and Hospitals to improve health care, will lead the state’s effort to land the CMS grant.

The forum was recently certified as a Chartered Value Exchange, one of just 14 nationwide. The forum has been the source of some controversy. Last year, the Legislature passed a law exempting the forum’s records from public view. The Public Affairs Research Council criticized the secrecy provision, saying the forum, which got $1 million in state funding, would not have to share its findings, research or recommendations with the public.

Louisiana Health Care Quality Forum officials have said the group met in closed sessions early on because the information being gathered was  sensitive. But officials said the forum will publish its recommendations and that members of the public are welcome to attend meetings.