Your EHR vendors may have to make sudden changes -- or even lose their certification -- if the Office of the National Coordinator of Health IT (ONC) finalizes its new proposed rule, which gives ONC a more active "direct review" of electronic health record (EHR) products and relationships, more control over lab testing of products for certification and power to post quarterly "surveillance results" for the public.

Considering throwing your name into the Accountable Care Organization (ACO) applicant pool? Curious to see what type of coordinated efforts across multiple providers CMS has in mind?

You can now read HHS’ list of 32 inaugural ACOs, all of whom were chosen due to being established partnerships with “experience offering coordinated, patient-centered care, and operating in ACO-like arrangements,” according to a CMS Innovation Center statement.

If you thought Highmark Medicare Services (HMS) was taking over as your new Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC) next year, not so fast.

TrailBlazer Health Enterprises, which was set to lose its four-state Southwest jurisdiction to HMS, protested the MAC Jurisdiction H transition to the Government Accountability Office (GAO), leading the GAO to issue a stop work order to HMS on Nov. 28.

What this means for you: If you reside in Jurisdiction 4 or 7 – both set to transition over to HMS – you will continue to bill your current MACs until the GAO issues a ruling on the protest. The GAO must rule by March 1, 2012 at the latest.

HHS released three proposed rules Aug. 12 on establishing Affordable Insurance Exchanges (AIEs) as part of a team effort with the U.S Treasury department to increase patient access to care, according to a CMS news release.

Remember: AIEs were created by health reform and will begin coverage in 2014. To date, HHS has granted $185 million to 13 states and Washington, D.C. to go toward constructing AIEs.

“Today we’re laying the foundation to provide tax incentives to help working families purchase health insurance,” said Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner.   “This new tax credit brings us a big step closer to achieving one of the signature goals of the Affordable Care Act – to provide tens of millions of Americans with access to affordable health insurance coverage.”

CMS has designated June 15 as National Testing Day to ensure your practice will be HIPAA 5010 compliant come January 2012.

The decision came as a response to the Medical Group Management Association’s (MGMA) letter to HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius from October 2010.

“Designating a national testing period in advance of the compliance date will focus the industry’s attention to prepare internal systems for the move to Version 5010 and begin testing electronic transactions with trading partners,” MGMA wrote in its letter.