Representative Suzan DelBene (D-WA) https://delbene.house.gov on June 5, 2018 introduced the “Ensuring Patient Access to Critical Breakthrough Products Act of 2018” (H.R 5997) to guarantee Medicare beneficiaries access to cutting edge medical innovations. (more…)
Technology Helping the Disabled
According to remarks by FCC Chairman Ajit Pai at the “M-Enabling Summit” held in June, “The FCC http://www.fcc.gov has forged ahead with research and development efforts to better understand the communications challenges encountered by people with disabilities. As a result, the FCC has approved a new way to provide relay services”. (more…)
DOD’s Plans to Curb Opioid Abuse
Vice Admiral Raquel Bono, MD, Director, Defense Health Agency https://www.health.mil/dha and Captain Mike Colston MD, Director for Mental Health Programs, within the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense Health Affairs, appeared before the House Armed Services Committee’s Subcommittee on Military Personnel on June 20, 2018 to discuss the Defense Department’s current state and future aims in curbing opioid use and abuse. (more…)
Detecting Drop in White Blood Cells
NIH’s National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering https://www.nibib.nih.gov helped fund researchers to develop a portable non-invasive monitor. This device can determine in just one minute and without drawing blood, whether chemotherapy patients have a reduced number of white blood cells that could lead to infections. (more…)
CMS DEL Supports Interoperability
CMS https://www.cms.gov has produced the agency’s first Data Element Library (DEL), a new database https://del.cms.gov to create a comprehensive, electronic and centralized resource. For the first time, the public can view the specific types of data that CMS requires from post-acute care facilities such as nursing homes and rehabilitation hospitals to help assess the health of their patients. (more…)
CMT Helps with Authorizations
Today, ten new genetic and molecular diagnostics tests are introduced every day. The “Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine” calculates that the time spent figuring out insurance coverage for genetic and molecular testing costs a physician between $2,000 to over $3,000 annually just for the physicians time alone. (more…)
Expanding Access to Virtual Care
Capital BlueCross https://www.capbluecross.com located in Pennsylvania in partnership with American Well https://www.americanwell.com has launched a new and expanded Virtual Care App to allow members to visit a physician at any time via their smart phone, computer or tablets. (more…)