In this month’s issue of Tech Time, we share updates to CAST’s technology selection tools and a look ahead to CAST’s policy priorities for the coming year. We also review member news and the latest tech trends.
Updated Telehealth and RPM Tool
Please check out CAST’s updated Telehealth and Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM) Selection Tool, which includes five new telehealth products/vendors in the Selection Matrix and Online Selection Tool and two new case studies that show benefits of telehealth.
We update the tool every year so that it stays relevant and useful to long-term and post-acute care (LTPAC) provider organizations, who can use this tool to identify and select the telehealth system that best fits their needs. Older adults, caregivers, and other consumers also can use it to understand and select telehealth technologies.
Users can pick the basic requirements they need in a telehealth or RPM system from a set of 12 major categories of functionalities and get a shortlist of only products that meet those requirements. Please explore this tool to see how it can help you and those you serve.
Register Today for the LTPAC Health IT Summit
I hope you have marked your calendar for the 2017 Long-Term and Post-Acute (LTPAC) Health Information Technology (IT) Summit, which takes place June 25-27 in Baltimore, MD
Co-sponsored and co-organized by LeadingAge and CAST, the LTPAC Health IT Summit is designed to help providers address challenges and take advantage of opportunities encountered as they deliver technology-enabled services and supports to older adults.
Over the past 13 years, the LTPAC Health IT Summit has become the premier conference for health IT leaders, key policymakers, providers, representatives of federal and state agencies, and other professionals working in the LTPAC field. You won’t want to miss it! Please see our article to learn more about the Summit and register today.
CAST Commission Meeting
CAST also has released a report with highlights from the latest CAST Commissioners Meeting. Potential Public Policy Changes and Their Implications on Technology in Aging summarizes CAST’s next steps as we turn our focus toward social engagement, connectedness, and quality of life for older adults and seek ways to partner with others and influence policy.
The full proceedings will be shared with CAST Commissioners. Please email me if you’re interested in joining the CAST Commission.
CAST and Cybersecurity
CAST will be working on a Cybersecurity benchmarking tool, guidance, and resources for members. To learn more about these issues and contribute to this work to improve the Cybersecurity of your organization and our sector, join the new CAST Cybersecurity Workgroup by contacting Scott Code.
CAST Member News
In member news, LeadingAge Silver Partner with CAST Focus MatrixCare was the first long-term post-acute care health information technology vendor to sign a pledge promoted by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia M. Burwell to make electronic health records work better for residents and providers. Now, more than a year later, MatrixCare remains committed to those principles and has released a white paper, A Corporate Commitment to Openness, Data Access, and Industry-Leading Interoperability, which describes the foundation for creating a truly interoperable health care environment that supports the health and wellness of United States seniors.
Larry Jorgensen, a CAST Commissioner and Vice President and Chief Information Officer at LeadingAge and CAST Member Ecumen, has shared a guest article to help you determine if your organization is doing enough to protect its data.
CAST Business Associate LG CNS is offering Innovation Challenge for Telehealth grants to providers that wish to take new approaches to improve, integrate, and innovate their processes and methods of caring. Examples include telehealth-driven health care delivery innovation, such as leveraging remote monitoring, video visits, risk surveys, medication management, wound care, and more virtual care modalities. Letters of Intent are due June 1, 2017, at 5 p.m. CST.
Dennis Stufft, president/CEO of CAST Business Associate Prelude Services, has published two recent articles: one on stopping cyber threats and one on Payroll Based Journal reporting requirements. One Little Click is All It Takes, which appeared in a recent issue of Provider Magazine, identifies the concerns—what a security breach may cost, who an organization will need to notify, and the like—as well as common ways a hacker can get into a system and how to prevent an attack. His second article, Human error and PBJ reporting appeared in McKnight’s and discusses new Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) requirements for its Payroll Based Journal (PBJ).
Policy and Tech News
In policy news, reimbursement woes are limiting telehealth use and remote patient monitoring among beneficiaries of Medicare and other federal programs, says a new report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO). The report pointed to payment and coverage restrictions as potential barriers. Beneficiaries of Medicare, Medicaid, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), and U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) programs were affected.
Finally, the future is here as Waymo opens a pilot for its self-driving cars to residents in Phoenix, AZ. The pilot will be accepting hundreds of people with diverse backgrounds and transportation needs. Participants can use Waymo’s fleet of self-driving cars every day, at any time, as their primary or secondary vehicle. The technology is especially beneficial for the more than 16 million people with disabilities, including those with hidden and developmental disabilities, who are unable to drive.
Feel Free to Contact Me
If you have news to share with CAST or if LeadingAge CAST or if I can be of assistance in any way, please don’t hesitate to contact me.