IBM to provide $2 billion in high-tech IT funding to aid e-health implementation
IBM Global Financing plans to offer up to $2 billion to finance high-tech information technology projects tied to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), in an effort to help increase companies’ eligibility for incentive payments, the company announced. ARRA will provide incentives to hospitals and physicians who demonstrate “meaningful use” of health IT, but they will receive the payments only after they have adopted the technology, and no earlier than 2011. Implementation cost has been cited as a major reason many facilities are not considering IT programs. According to John Callies, general manager of IBM Global Financing in Armonk, NY, the bulk of the IT project financing money will come in the form of enhanced low rates and flexible payment options, deferred payment plans, financing facilities that offer structured lines of credit, and specialized project financing packages. http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/27368.wss

Stimulus funding may not stimulate overall EHR adoption, but rate should increase
Health information technology funding included in the federal stimulus package may not be enough to encourage all healthcare providers to make the transition to electronic health records (EHRs), but it will accelerate the process, according to medical care experts. Healthcare providers will receive higher Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement payments if they implement EHR systems by 2011 and face declining reimbursements if they aren’t on board electronically by 2015. But 90 percent of healthcare offices are still using paper files because the cost of implementation is too high. There are also questions about ease of use, maintenance, compatibility with other systems, data security and exactly which systems will qualify for reimbursements, according to John Morrissey, spokesperson for the Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology. “It’s too soon to tell whether the stimulus plan is getting more providers to make the switch,” Morrissey said. http://www.philly.com/philly/wires/ap/news/state/...

Australian Capital Territory budgets record $68 million for e-health initiatives
The Australia Capital Territory (ACT)’s annual budget for 2009-10 includes a record $68 million [USD] for electronic health initiatives – including developing electronic health records (EHRs) for all 340,000 residents of the region in New South Wales. Territory treasurer Katy Gallagher said the investment would fund a suite of initiatives that would put the ACT “at the forefront of e-health technology in Australia” and would give all residents an opportunity for an EHR. She added that the funding would help improve safety and quality of care in hospitals. The news comes as the e-health agenda appears to be gaining speed in Australia, with many states having recently flagged projects to finally dump paper records in favor of e-health systems to store and make patient records available between facilities. http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/software/...

Hackers demand $10 million to return Virginia patient and prescription medical records
Hackers are asking for $10 million for the return of more than 8 million patient records and 35 million prescription records that were recently stolen out of Virginia Department of Health Professions computers. An extortion note posted on WikiLeaks, a Web site that publishes anonymous submissions – often about leaks of sensitive government information – demands the money within seven days, but does not give an “as of” date. After that, the writer threatens to “go ahead and put this baby out on the market and accept the highest bid.” Last week, all 36 computer servers storing the state agency’s records were shut down once the hacking was apparently detected. State and federal law enforcement officials are investigating the authenticity of the note and the disruption to computer service, according to M.A. Meyers, a spokesperson from the FBI’s office in Richmond, VA. Health Professions Director Sandra Whitley Ryals said she does not know when the complete VDHP site will be back up and running.  http://www.timesdispatch.com/rtd/news/...

University of Wisconsin-Madison PHR project awarded $5.3 million by Johnson Foundation
Project HealthDesign, a national program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Nursing to help health and information technology pioneers create a new generation of personal health record (PHR) systems, has been awarded a $5.3 million grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The grant, coupled with an earlier one from RWJF, increases the project’s overall funding to $10 million and will allow the program to run through 2012, according to National Program Director Dr. Patti Brennan. Project HealthDesign’s initial goal was to design and test a suite of PHR tools and applications that work together to help people achieve specific health goals in an integrated fashion, Brennan said. With the next round of funding, observations of daily living will be emphasized as an important addition to the PHR, testing a broad spectrum of innovations in how consumers can use IT to better understand how they experience their health. http://www.son.wisc.edu/news/pioneering_phr.html

University of Cincinnati researchers create ‘lab on a tube’ monitoring device
Researchers at the University of Cincinnati have developed a multitasking “lab on a tube” or smart sensor that can continuously monitor multiple physiological parameters and also deliver medications to patients. The prototype unit, which could be ready for testing on an animal model in the next few months, can also drain excess cerebrospinal fluid from an injured brain, according to Raj Narayan, M.D., chairperson of the UC department of neurosurgery. The smart sensor could benefit patients through real-time monitoring, which allows changes to be identified instantly. The current standard of care is intermittent monitoring, which reveals undesirable changes after they have occurred, Narayan notes. The “lab on a tube” also reduces from two to one the number of holes that must be drilled into the skull for the insertion of sensors, improving patient safety. http://healthnews.uc.edu/news/?/8507/

New Ontario Medical Association president calls for expansion of e-health
Expanded use of information technology and e-health is a crucial element to an improved healthcare system – and one of the areas to be focused on by the Ontario Medical Association, according to OMA President Dr. Suzanne Strasberg.  Strasberg, the association’s new president, said Ontario’s healthcare system has “made good strides” toward improving patient access to services, but more work needs to be done. She cites initiatives such as collaborative care models, which have helped more than 630,000 patients find a family physician; and electronic medical records, which have enhanced patient safety and improved the quality and continuity of care, as examples of where further expansions should be made immediately. http://www.oma.org/media/news/pr090503.asp

Aquilonis, Clinical Solutions enter mobile product distribution agreement
Medical device contract research firm Clinical Solutions International LLC and mobile software products maker Aquilonis have entered a partnership to provide their mobile units to the telemedicine community, the companies announced. The primary markets will be home healthcare and mobile applications of customized software solutions for devices designed for pre-hospital emergency medicine, the companies note. “With the rapidly growing demand for dependable data transfer as home based healthcare increases and hospital stays decrease, the need for professional care post-discharge becomes critical,” the companies state. “Telemedicine and compatible mobile software platforms for medical devices has become the new age of medicine.” http://www.1888pressrelease.com/strategic-partnership...

Most U.S. adults consider EHR use a necessity by healthcare providers
Three of every four adults believe it is important for healthcare providers to use electronic health records (EHRs), according to a joint survey by NPR, the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Harvard School of Public Health. In contrast, 22 percent of respondents feel it’s not important for healthcare providers to use EHRs, according to “The Public and the Health Care Delivery System,” conducted in March among 1,238 randomly selected adults. Also, nearly 6 in 10 respondents are not confident that their electronic health information will remain confidential, compared to 41 percent who feel the opposite. Thirty-four percent of respondents believe the cost of healthcare will go up if records are stored electronically nationwide, while 22 percent say costs will go down. Thirty-six percent say healthcare costs will not change. http://www.npr.org/documents/2009/apr/nprpoll_topline.pdf

TELUS Health, Microsoft to bring HealthVault PHR service to Canada by 2010
TELUS Health Solutions has signed an agreement with Microsoft Corp. that gives TELUS exclusive license to host and operate the HealthVault platform to develop a first-of-its-kind, consumer-focused personal health record (PHR) service in Canada, the companies announced. The e-health service, to be called TELUS Health Space, will be powered by Microsoft HealthVault, according to TELUS Health Solutions President Francois Cote. Canadians will be able to “manage and store their personal health information and have access to applications like [PHR], chronic disease management, pediatric care and wellness products that will allow better management of their health and the health of their family,” Cote said. The agreement marks Microsoft’s first international deployment of its HealthVault system, according to Microsoft Canada President Phil Sorgen. The service should go online in six to 12 months. http://about.telus.com/cgi-bin/media_news...

Government’s free EHR system has few takers among U.S. hospitals
The Veterans Health Administration’s no-cost, open-source electronic health records (EHRs) system is striking out with U.S. hospitals, many of whom are opting for higher-cost private systems or sticking with paper records. Experts note that the Veteran’s Health Information Systems and Technology Architecture (VistA) system is not catching on due to issues regarding installation, billing, product promotion and a better-known private commercial marketplace. “It’s really insane that we have a fully developed health information technology system that is bought and paid for and free to anybody who wants it, and used widely around the world by other governments running their healthcare systems,” said Phillip Longman, Schwartz Senior Fellow at the New America Foundation, “and yet we don’t have any take-up in the U.S., or not much to speak of.” http://www.boston.com/news/health/articles/2009/...

Florida electronic prescription-tracking bill awaits signature by state’s governor
A bill that would create a statewide prescription tracking database in Florida has been sent to Gov. Charlie Crist, who is expected to sign it and end a seven-year effort to implement a narcotics monitoring program. The bill, an attempt to curb prescription drug abuse in Florida, passed the Florida House of Representatives by a vote of 103-10. State legislators have been attempting to implement such a law since 2002, but have been hindered by patient privacy concerns. Florida is one of only 12 states without a prescription monitoring law, which makes it popular with narcotics dealers, according to law enforcement officials. Prescription drug overdoses kill more than 2,000 people a year in the state, more than triple the number of deaths attributed to illicit drugs such as cocaine and heroin.http://blogs.tampabay.com/buzz/2009/...