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January 2019
Governor’s Council to Address Aging in Massachusetts Releases Final Blueprint Recommendations
In December 2018, the Governor’s Council to Address Aging in Massachusetts released its Final Blueprint Recommendations. This report provides a roadmap to promote healthy aging in Massachusetts and to achieve the goal of making the Commonwealth the most age-friendly state for people of all ages. The Final Blueprint integrates input from the Council’s five workgroups - Housing, Transportation, Caregiving, Employment, and Innovation and Technology - with the Council’s initial blueprint recommendations released at the end of 2017. The Final Blueprint Recommendations consist of 28 recommendations and 67 action steps, which will be included as part of the Age-Friendly Massachusetts state action plan.

Among the initial priorities for the Council was to “Become the Silicon Valley for innovative technology, products and services related to aging”. MeHI’s sponsorship of AGENCY , an aging-focused incubator in Kendall Square and the headquarters of a global network of related incubators, is designed to advance this priority.
New Data Report: 2018 Massachusetts Healthy Aging Data Report
The 2018 Massachusetts Healthy Aging Data Report is now available. The Tufts Health Plan Foundation funded the report with research led by the Gerontology Institute of the John W. McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies at the University of Massachusetts Boston.

The report provides a comprehensive examination of older adults living in the Commonwealth. It is designed to help residents, agencies, providers, entrepreneurs, and government organizations better understand the makeup of Massachusetts’ older residents and to inform the development of policies, practices, and digital health solutions that give every resident an opportunity to experience healthy aging. The report includes Community Profiles for all 351 Massachusetts cities and towns, 16 Boston neighborhoods, six Worcester neighborhoods, and six Springfield neighborhoods, as well as 179 statewide health indicator maps and variations by zip code. 

The Tufts Health Plan Foundation funded the report with research led by the Gerontology Institute of the John W. McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies at the University of Massachusetts Boston.
In Good Company Optimal Aging Challenge Announces Winners
Winners were recently announced from the In Good Company 2018 Optimal Aging Challenge, a $20,000 global competition to improve healthy aging by leveraging breakthrough technologies, community resources, and other solutions to reduce social isolation and loneliness and increase engagement among older populations. The Challenge was a collaboration between the Governor’s Council to Address Aging in Massachusetts , MIT’s AgeLab, Benchmark Senior Living, and GE Healthcare. Four winners were announced at the event in Cambridge, MA on December 17 th . These organizations each received a cash prize of $5,000 and the opportunity to collaborate with Challenge sponsors to mature their solutions addressing social isolation.

Congratulations to the winning organizations: Share Kitchens, FriendshipWorks , HelpAroundTown , and Care.Coach . 

The Challenge was a collaboration between the Governor's Council to Address Aging in Massachusetts, MIT's AgeLab, Benchmark Senior Living, and GE Healthcare.
Spotlight Story
Reliant Medical Group uses HIE to Improve Continuity of Care for Patients
Reliant Medical Group is an independent multi-specialty medical practice that partners with several hospitals in Central Massachusetts. As Reliant focuses on outpatient ambulatory care, it is common for their patients to transfer to an Emergency Department (ED) at a partnering hospital when they need emergency care. In the past, these transfers were complicated by inefficient methods for sharing Reliant patients’ existing health records with the hospital’s ED.

Supported by a Connected Communities grant from MeHI , Reliant worked to develop a new process for information sharing between its practice and partner hospitals. When a patient being cared for by one of Reliant’s providers goes to the ED, the hospital’s EHR sends an Admissions Discharge and Transfer message (ADT) to Reliant’s EHR. Upon receipt, Reliant’s EHR automatically generates a Continuity of Care Document (CCD) containing the patient’s medications, allergies, medical conditions, immunizations, and recent test results. The CCD is then sent to the hospital via the Mass HIway, the Massachusetts statewide health information exchange.

The new process has allowed the project's partners to largely move away from relying on physical documents, significantly improving patient care.
Medicaid Updates
Complete your 2018 application now!
The Program Year 2018 deadline is April 3, 2019 ! CMS has not extended the 2018 deadline. You cannot create a 2018 application while a prior year application is still active. Please log into MAPIR to see if you have a prior application that is incomplete. If you intend to attest for 2018 and have an incomplete prior application, upload the requested supporting documentation and resubmit by February 8th . Avoid missing the opportunity to attest for 2018. If you need assistance, call us at 1-855-MassEHR (627-7347) to speak with a Technical Assistant (TA) or Provider Enrollment and Verification Analyst (PEVA) as soon as possible. 
Program Year 2018 CHECKLIST
As you prepare for the PY 2018 attestation process, make a CHECKLIST of the following items: 

  • Confirm that the dashboards of attesting Providers show that thresholds are met
  • Confirm your organization conducted the Security Risk Assessment within CY 2018
  • Check that at least 5 clinical decision alerts were enabled for your attesting EPs
  • Verify that the CQM dashboard reflects 365 days if the EP has attested to Meaningful Use at least once before, or 90 days if this is the first time
  • Visit the MeHI website to stay informed of critical deadlines and obtain the most current forms
  • Review the 2018 Supporting Documentation Requirements (SDR)

If you have any questions or need clarity regarding the attestation process don’t hesitate to contact a Technical Assistant or Analyst at 855-627-7347 .
Earn Extra EHR Incentives!
Do you employ Eligible Professionals (EP) who participated in the Medicaid program with a previous employer? You can attest and earn EHR incentives for them too!

According to recent data analysis performed by MeHI, many organizations have not attested for EPs hired after these EPs successfully attested at another organization.

Do you want to know if this applies to your EPs? There is no need to guess. Forward a list containing EP names and NPIs to us and we will let you know who qualifies, including:

  • The EPs who previously attested with the Medicaid program;
  • The last year these EPs received an incentive; and
  • The remaining EHR incentives you can earn for these EPs

Call 855-627-7347 for additional information or send the list directly to MassEHR@MassTech.org .
Events
Upcoming Webinar: Mass HIway 101
The Mass HIway is the state-sponsored Health Information Exchange (HIE) that can be used by care providers to securely transmit patient health data electronically in accordance with applicable state and federal laws. Mass HIway enables the connected organizations to coordinate patient care, or to report patient health information to public health registries to achieve Meaningful Use.

The Mass HIway Account Management team assists providers to get enrolled and connected to HIway 2.0 and can advise in regulations and attestation compliance. The team can also assist in developing HIE Use Cases to get optimal use from your cost-effective subscription to HIway 2.0. 

In this HIway 101 webinar, we will provide an introduction to Mass HIway 2.0, including: 

  • HIway 2.0 Benefits and Services
  • HIE Use Case Development
  • How to enroll and connect to Mass HIway 2.0
  • The Mass HIway Regulations and Connection requirement

Tuesday, February 5, 2019, 12-1 pm
MeHI Sponsoring a Caregiving-Focused Event
MeHI and AGENCY: The CIC Global Longevity Collective, are collaborating with d.health to host Transforming the Way We Care , a special caregiving-focused event on June 10 th in Kendall Square, Cambridge, MA. This event will:

  • Focus on identifying key opportunities for the digital health industry to support the unique challenges of informal caregivers
  • Provide a forum to hear from experts and network with fellow d.health attendees prior to the main conference.
The 2019 World Medical Innovation Forum -
Where AI Meets Clinical Care
Dates:  Monday, April 8, 2019 - Wednesday, April 10, 2019

Location:  The Westin Copley Place Boston, 10 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02116
The World Medical Innovation Forum is a global gathering of more than 1,700 senior healthcare leaders in the heart of Boston. It was established to respond to the intensifying transformation of health care and its impact on innovation. The forum is rooted in the belief that no matter the magnitude of that change, at the center of health care needs to be a shared fundamental commitment to collaborative innovation by industry and academia working together to improve patient lives.  
Opportunities
Still Open: Healthcare Payment Transparency Challenge
MeHI and the Center for Health Information and Analysis (CHIA) are teaming up to sponsor the inaugural “Massachusetts Healthcare Payment Transparency Challenge.”
 
Earlier this year, CHIA released an unprecedented public dataset which broke down the cost of medical procedures in the Commonwealth. Through the Challenge, CHIA and MeHI hope participants can identify innovative ways to use this data to provide healthcare cost transparency to educate consumers and inform Massachusetts policymakers. Entrants are encouraged to use this data to help people understand issues outlined in existing research on the subject of healthcare pricing and leverage other relevant datasets.      
 
The open call for submissions will close on Thursday, February 28, 2019.
InteropSelect Review Opportunity
InteropSelect invites you to help launch an open online resource that uses crowdsourced reviews to improve transparency for purchasing interoperability services. InteropSelect is being developed under a cooperative agreement between UCSF and ONC.

Purchasers of interoperability services can leave a review and they, as well as others, coming to the site will be able to view reviews.

InteropSelect is at the start of this exciting effort and success depends on the willingness of the community to leave reviews. If you have purchased any of the following interface services, please take a few minutes to complete an (anonymous) review:

  • Admit Discharge Transfer (ADT HL7v2)
  • Continuity of Care Document (CDA HL7)
  • Lab Results (ORU HL7v2)
  • Notes or Documents (MDM HL7v2)
  • Scheduling (SIU HL7v2)
If you know others who may have made a relevant purchase,  please forward this email to encourage them to leave a review. 

After leaving a review, you will have the opportunity to select whether you would like to be a part of the beta testing. InteropSelect will be formally launched once it has sufficient reviews to be of value to the community. 

If you have any questions, feel free to contact the Principal Investigator, Dr. Julia Adler-Milstein ( Milstein@ucsf.edu  or 415-476-9562) or the Project Manager, Crissy Thao ( crissy.thao@ucsf.edu  or 415-476-3217).
Mass HIway Updates
2019 Connection Requirement
For 2019, the  Mass HIway Regulations  (101 CMR 20.00) require all Acute Care Hospitals, all Community Health Centers, and Large and Medium Medical Ambulatory Practices to connect to the Mass HIway. These organizations must meet the requirements by January 1, 2019, and must attest that they met the requirements by July 1, 2019.

Large Community Health Centers and Large and Medium Medical Ambulatory Practices are entering the Year 2 connection requirement and must implement a Provider-to-Provider Communications use case. The following resources can help your organization implement a care coordination use case with a trading partner and be prepared to meet this requirement:
Click  here  for the PDF
 With Use Case Development Tools and Examples
HAUS Services Website
Upcoming Webinar: Mass HIway Requirements and Attestation

Tuesday February 26, 2019 , from 12-1pm
HIway 2.0 Migration Update
The HIway 2.0 migration continues to progress. If you haven’t initiated your migration, please do so as soon as possible. Time is running out as Mass HIway 1.0 will be discontinued in early 2019.

Mass HIway participants need to initiate their migration by sending a completed Declaration of Identity (DOID) Form and Healthcare Organization (HCO) Form. Visit the  HIway 2.0 Migration website   for an overview of the process, with instructions for these forms.

Important note:  Carefully follow the instructions below to submit your DOID and HCO forms:

  • Send Direct message to: HIway2.0Migration@direct.hieadmin.masshiway.net
  • Note: Send this message from a Direct message account, such as a HIway Webmail account. It will not arrive if you send it from an email account.
  • Email to: HIway2.0Migration@state.ma.us 
  • Note: Send this email from a secure or regular email account. It will not arrive if you send it from a Direct Message account.
  • Note: Standard security measures apply when sending by regular email.
  • Regular mail to:
Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Executive Office of Health and Human Services
Attention: HIway 2.0 Migration Office
100 Hancock Street, 9 th  Floor
Quincy, MA 02171
 
If you don’t receive confirmation that your forms have been received within 3 days after your form submission, please follow up with an email to  HIway2.0Migration@state.ma.us

For more information and instructions:
If you have questions about the HIway 2.0 migration process or completing the DOID and HCO forms, please email us at HIway2.0migration@state.ma.us .