California Watch reports that a bill working its way through the state Legislature would make it more difficult for health care providers to modify or delete electronic medical records and leave no record of the change. Changes to an EHR (electronic health record) can go unnoticed and can be harder to trace than changes made to paper records,” said Sen.  Mark Leno, D-San Francisco, the author of SB 850, in a hearing last month.  The bill passed the Senate on May 31.  It will be heard in the Assembly's Health and Judiciary committees in the next few weeks.  Click here to read the full article. Source: http://californiawatch.org/dailyreport/bill-would-require-track-changes-electronic-medical-records-10694

By Amy Berlin, MD

If you are thinking about adopting an EHR in your practice, there is one thing you cannot do enough of: Plan. Here are some (free) resources to get you started.

• The American Academy of Family Physicians Center for HIT (health care information technology) has a host of online tutorials and articles created with the office-based physician in mind. Topics include workflow redesign, EHR vendor selection, and implementation.

• Other AAFP articles of interest include: Practicing Without Paper Charts: One Clinic’s Experience Strategies for Better Patient Flow and Cycle Time How to Select an Electronic Health Record System.

• The California Health Care Foundation publishes thoughtful articles and reports on a wide variety of health care IT issues and strategies. Highlights are: Electronic Medical Records: A Buyer’s Guide for Small Physician Practices Physician Practices: Are Application Service Providers Right for You?, Clinical Documentation: EHR Deployment Techniques, Open-Source EHR Systems for Ambulatory Care: A Market Assessment.

• AMA Practice Management resource center including worksheet 15 questions to ask before signing an EMR or EHR agreement.

• Medical Insurance Exchange of California (MIEC)'s publication on important questions to ask EHR vendors

For more on the HITECH Act

• Dr. David Blumenthal’s article in the February 4, 2010 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine
• The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) fact sheet on meaningful use
• CMS fact sheet on Medicare Incentive Program
• CMS fact sheet on Medicaid Incentive Program CMS HITECH FAQs (sign up for updates when answers change)
• Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology blog – HealthIT Buzz 
• CalHIPSO – California’s Regional Extension Center
• KLAS publishes independent research on EHR and other HIT vendors. Practicing physicians can obtain selected reports at discounted rates.