Montana Governor Funds HIE, CO Supreme Court Rules on Surprise Billing
The Governor of Montana leveraged $20 million in funding to boost the statewide HIE system, and the Colorado Supreme Court ruled against a Colorado hospital that charged a patient $229,000.
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By - Montana’s governor plans to utilize federal and private funds to increase access to a statewide HIE system. The effort is considered a critical investment for the largely rural state. Also, in the west, the Colorado Supreme Court sided with a patient in a surprise billing case where one patient was charged $300,000 for a single surgery.
Meanwhile, the NIH invests $577 million across 15 companies to develop next-generation drugs for pandemic-causing diseases.
Montana Governor Invests $20M in HIE
Governor Greg Gianforte of Montana announced a $20 million investment in the statewide health information exchange (HIE) coined Big Sky Care Connect (BSCC). BSCC would connect providers across Montana’s vast expanses allowing for high-speed transmission of patient information. “This critical investment in Montana’s health care IT ecosystem will support ongoing efforts to improve the overall experience for patients and clinicians across the state,” said Gianforte. The $20 million investment comprised $15 million in federal funds, $4 million in private contributions, and $800,000 in state funds. Currently, 75 provider organizations are connected to the HIE. READ MORE.
OIG Finds Undocumented Care in VA EHR
The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) conducted a report that found undocumented patient care in a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) EHR system. The report indicated that a chiropractic consultation was not recorded in the system’s EHR until eight days after the interaction between patient and doctor. The OIG issued recommendations to the Chillicothe VA Medical Center director, calling for clinician reeducation to ensure timely data entry into the EHR. READ MORE.
FDA Approves Pfizer Booster for Children 5-11
The FDA amended its emergency use authorization for Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine to allow for a third dose in children as young as five. The extended approval was granted after a trial in 67 participants showed efficacy against the COVID-19 virus. “The Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine is effective in helping to prevent the most severe consequences of COVID-19 in individuals 5 years of age and older,” Peter Marks, MD, PhD, director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said in the announcement. READ MORE.
NIH Awards AI Company $68M for Antiviral Drug
The National Institute of Health (NIH) awarded PostEra, a biotechnology company, $68 million to use machine learning as a part of a drug discovery campaign. The funding will support nine antiviral drug discovery centers for pathogens of pandemic concern. PostEra was one of 15 companies awarded $577 million to establish antiviral drug centers. Drugs developed will target diseases like COVID-19 and other viruses, including Ebola, Zika, and yellow fever. READ MORE.
CO Supreme Court Rules Against Hospital in Surprise Billing
The Colorado Supreme Court sided with a patient in a case where the patient received a surprise bill worth $229,000 after receiving a spinal surgery at St. Anthony North Hospital. Initially, the patient received an out-of-pocket estimate totaling $1,337 for a $57,601 surgery; the hospital ended up billing the patient $300,000 for the procedure, $73,597 of which was paid by the insurance company. After losing a previous trial in a lower appeals court, the patent took the case to the supreme court, which sided against the hospital. READ MORE.
