APMA News Brief

Wellness programs are growing in popularity among employers as a way to curb rising healthcare costs. In fact, about half of U.S. companies with 50 or more employees have adopted some kind of wellness program. Click here to continue reading.

Editor's note: Visit APMA's healthcare reform page for more resources and information on how the ACA affects the profession.

Alarm fatigue, incomplete electronic health-record data and poor care-coordination due to over-reliance on healthcare IT are among the top 10 patient-safety concerns for healthcare organizations.

Visit http://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20150406/NEWS/150409941 to view the full article online.

To provide context, eligible professionals and hospitals must attest to demonstrating meaningful use of certified electronic health record technology to qualify for incentive payments through the Medicare and Medicaid EHR Incentive Programs.

Visit http://www.foley.com/CMS-Releases-Stage-3-Meaningful-Use-Proposed-Rule-04-02-2015/?utm_source=Mondaq&utm_medium=syndication&utm_campaign=View-Original to view the full article online.

Medicaid expansion. Changing systems of payment. Electronic health record conversion. The phrases float at the bottom of a TV screen or flash in headlines, but what do they really mean? Click here to continue reading.

Editor’s note: Review APMA’s EHR resources for more information on purchasing an EHR system.

The ACA, while imperfect, has been a success for our nation’s health security — a conclusion of nonpartisan, objective experts who have crunched the numbers and studied the data.

Visit http://www.theslateonline.com/article/2015/04/facts-show-affordable-care-act-works to view the full article online.

The vast majority of healthcare costs are associated with and driven by the type 2 diabetes epidemic, the sheer proportion of which is almost certainly greater than we can imagine. And those costs are rising faster than we think. Click here to continue reading.

Editor’s note: APMA’s free diabetes awareness campaign materials are still available to members on APMA.org.

Your feet could tell you a lot about your health. Blisters, redness and swelling can be a sign of much larger health issues.

Visit http://www.keloland.com/newsdetail.cfm/taking-care-of-your-feet-/?id=178269 to view the full article online.

As the April 15 tax deadline nears, people who got help paying for health insurance under President Barack Obama’s law are seeing the direct effect on their refunds – hundreds of dollars, for better or worse.

Visit http://www.pressherald.com/2015/04/06/taxpayer-refunds-vary-under-aca/ to view the full article online.

A new epidemiology paper on the effects of sedentary or 'sitting' time on diabetes risk matched the curves of television watching and obesity and correlated each hour spent watching TV daily with a 3.4 percent greater risk of developing diabetes.

Visit http://www.science20.com/news_articles/each_hour_of_tv_daily_linked_to_34_percent_greater_diabetes_risk-154509 to view the full article online.

As its detractors predicted, Obamacare’s implementation led to a large, immediate rise in health insurance premiums. This is hardly surprising: The law required that a broad swath of treatments be fully insured, thus deepening the moral hazard problems that have long plagued the American health insurance system.

Visit http://dailysignal.com/2015/04/05/obamacare-has-led-to-higher-insurance-premiums/ to view the full article online.

Bunion correction surgery is an operation to improve the position and alignment of the big toe. Click here to continue reading.

Editor’s note: APMA’s free "Beat Bunion Blues" campaign materials are still available to members on APMA.org.

If your foot or lower leg hurts, start by strengthening the foot – or at least ensure that you’re actually making full use of the muscles you’ve got.

Visit http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/health-and-fitness/fitness/how-the-feet-run-the-show-in-a-healthy-body/article23790241/ to view the full article online.

Poultry, fish, and shellfish as the main sources of dietary protein led to an increased risk of gout, according to a study from Singapore, while plant-based proteins reduced the risk.

Visit http://www.medpagetoday.com/Rheumatology/Arthritis/50792 to view the full article online.

Foot problems can be painful and can affect one’s whole body because any problems with the feet can move upward and affect one’s legs, back and even shoulders and neck.

Visit http://highlandstoday.com/hi/local-news/this-month-is-a-good-time-to-look-down-20150404/ to view the full article online.

On Oct. 1, all U.S. medical and billing codes will migrate from ICD-9 to the new global standard ICD-10. For the health-care industry, it's a technology changeover on par with the so-called Y2K system upgrades in the late 1990s.

Visit http://www.cnbc.com/id/102566505 to view the full article online.

This article describes the impact of ICD-10 delays on coder training, knowledge, and accuracy. It also provides practical tips and techniques to get coder knowledge back on track in 2015. Click here to continue reading.

Editor’s note: APMA’s ICD-10 Resources will help you prepare for the transition to happen Oct. 1, 2015.

Lean healthcare leaders will gather at the sixth annual Lean Healthcare Summit in Dallas, to hear results from leading-edge experiments for reforming healthcare around three essential elements: designing care around patients not providers; making treatment quality and cost transparent; and paying providers for outcomes.

Visit http://insurancenewsnet.com/oarticle/2015/04/07/lean-healthcare-summit-will-address-the-3-keys-to-sustainable-reform-a-610952.html#.VSU-CeFfCYw to view the full article online.

Slow and steady appears to be the financial mantra echoing forth within the healthcare industry.

Visit http://revcycleintelligence.com/news/has-the-affordable-care-act-led-to-a-slowdown-in-premiums to view the full article online.

Since the advent of the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act of 2009, "meaningful use of electronic health record (EHR) systems" has become a household phrase among physicians.

Visit http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/842297 to view the full article online.

In a landslide vote of 392 to 37, the House of Representatives passed legislation last week to permanently repeal the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) designed to limit the increase of Medicare physician payments that has proven highly problematic for healthcare providers throughout the past decade. Click here to continue reading.

Editor’s note: Don’t miss APMA’s latest reporting on the SGR Repeal.

Since ICD-10 budgets and time frames are shrinking, tough decisions need to be made about prioritizing testing initiatives, including selecting who should be involved, how much testing should occur, and when to test.

Visit http://www.icd10monitor.com/enews/item/1401-tackling-tough-icd-10-testing-choices to view the full article online.

Clinicians report that they feel hindered by old or underused technologies, wasted exchanges and concerns about privacy and security.

Visit http://health.usnews.com/health-news/hospital-of-tomorrow/articles/2015/04/06/only-a-third-of-health-providers-use-technology to view the full article online.

Foot ulcers are common for diabetics as they often suffer from reduced sensation on the skin and are more prone to cuts becoming infected. Over time this can lead to an amputation. Click here to continue reading.

Editor's note: Studies prove care by a podiatrist helps prevent diabetes complications and saves healthcare dollars.