SUBSCRIBE                                                                                                     Summer 2016

 

GaHIN has added new members to its Board of Directors, which provides governance and insight to the non-profit organization. Joining the GaHIN Board are:

  

Rena Brewer
CEO
Global Partnership for Telehealth

Jeff Fusile
President
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia

Tony Marshall
President & CEO
Georgia Health Care Association

Annette McMullen
Chief of Health Information Technology
Department of Community Health

Lisa Walker
Division Director
Governor's Office of Planning and Budget

Congratulations
to Tara Cramer Cramer

Tara Cramer, executive director of the Georgia Regional Academic Community Health Information Exchange (GRAChIE), was recently announced as a winner of the 2015 Health IT Outcomes Change Agent Award by Health IT Outcomes . The award was established to recognize the personalities and providers that are promoting positive change when it comes to leveraging health.

GRAChIE is one of GaHIN's connected regional health information exchanges, serving providers across Georgia. 

GaHIN 2015 Annual Report Available AnnualReport 

  

The 2015 GaHIN Annual Report is now available online and can be viewed or downloaded. This progress report provides an overview of GaHIN's successes for 2015 and long-term goals, and contains a wealth of information.  
 
Georgia Health Information Network (GaHIN) is now connected with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), facilitating information exchange between VA and non-VA providers in Georgia.
 
The VA's program, called Virtual Lifetime Electronic Record (VLER) Health, shares important components of a veteran's health record. However, the veteran must sign up (opt in) for the program using a VLER Health Exchange Authorization. Once the authorization is signed, you and VA healthcare providers can securely access and share information through the eHealth Exchange and GaHIN.
 
Ask your patients if they are veterans! If so, direct them to www.va.gov/VLER for more information and the sign-up form (VA Form 10-0485).

GaHIN continues to grow rapidly. Would you like to see all of our connections? Click here.

GaHIN Receives Top Awards from TruvenAward

GaHIN recently received the prestigious Truven Health Advantage Award for Overall Achievement as well as a Truven Health Advantage Award for Strategy and Growth.
 
"We were thrilled to receive the Advantage Award, it's such an honor," said Denise Hines, Executive Director of GaHIN, who was on hand to accept the award. "I was so surprised and excited when they called me back to the stage for the top award of the evening for Overall Achievement. This is a tribute to our talented team and dedicated partners who are making a difference in the health of Georgians."
 
The Truven Health Advantage Award program recognizes organizations in two categories-Provider and Payer-that have achieved outstanding results in building greater value in the healthcare system.
 
Results can include improved health and clinical outcomes, more effective consumer outreach and communications, performance and efficiency improvement, and strategy and growth. All winners used data and analytics to drive a substantial part of their results, and the achievements of Advantage Award winners are documented and quantified.
 
Advantage Award winners are selected by provider and payer panels that include prior winners and Truven Health subject matter experts. Each panel reviews all nominations in its class. This discussion leads to consensus on the winners - a maximum of four per panel.

Each of the two panels then identifies one nominee for the Truven Health Advantage Award for Overall Achievement. Truven Health assembles a panel of internal experts representing providers, payers and government to evaluate the two nominees. For 2016, their unanimous choice was GaHIN.
There's Still Time!
Medicaid EHR Incentive Program Medicaid
 
Procrastinators rejoice! There's still time to participate in Georgia's Medicaid EHR Incentive Program and receive up to $63,750 during six years of program participation. Eligible Hospitals receive incentives based on volumes and other factors.
 
The focus during 2016 is on AIU - Adopt (acquire and install), Implement (training) and Upgrade (expand functionality with new version, etc.). Alternatively, you can demonstrate meaningful use of certified EHR technology during your first year of program participation.
 
One Georgia resource to help you make the transition to an electronic health record is GA-HITEC, the state's Regional Extension Center. GA-HITEC assists with the selection, implementation and meaningful use of certified EHR systems. Group purchasing plans and technical assistance are available to all eligible providers participating in the Medicaid Incentive Programs.
 
It's Official - GaHIN Named the
State-Designated Entity for HIE   SDE
 
Earlier this year, Governor Nathan Deal approved the designation of GaHIN as the State-Designated Entity for the State of Georgia Health Information Exchange. The request was approved at a national level by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services/Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
 
Denise Hines, executive director of GaHIN, said, "We appreciate the confidence shown in GaHIN by Governor Deal and by DCH. With our new status, we will be able to more aggressively pursue grants that allow GaHIN to deliver a broader range of services to healthcare providers throughout the state of Georgia."
New Rural HIE Coming Soon RuralHIE  
  
  HealtHIE Georgia Corporation , established in September 2014, is a network of rural Georgia hospitals and their physician communities working to improve patient care through health information technology. The new HIE, an initiative from HomeTown Health , is in the process of connecting to GaHIN.
 

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