Highlights from Noblis' ICD-10 Insights Panel: "Risk or Opportunity? Healthcare Leaders on Preparing for ICD-10"
To help bring attention to the upcoming transition to the medical coding system ICD-10, Noblis held a panel discussion on the issue in the Noblis Innovation & Collaboration Center. The discussion was broadcast on Federal News Radio and is available for download.
The forum titled, “Risk or Opportunity? Healthcare Leaders on Preparing for ICD-10,” was developed to exchange information and ideas among public and private sector stakeholders. The panel discussed the risks and opportunities of the ICD-10 transition and how it relates to other healthcare initiatives such as healthcare reform and the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH).
The panel’s moderator was Robert J. Clerman, former Noblis’ Vice President of Corporate Mission Development. Along with Couts, the panelists were Sonja Racke, Provider Outreach and Education Lead for National Government Services; Jacqueline Gibbons, Assistant Dean, Health Information Management, Northern Virginia Community College; and Marcia Insley, Deputy Director, Office of Health Data and Informatics at the Veterans Health Administration.
Each panelist discussed how the ICD-10 would affect their segment of the industry; a common concern was the difficulty of the transition. Noblis’ ICD-10 Implementation Program Manager and panelist, Todd Couts, called the issue a potential “perfect storm” that can be avoided through planning.
Panelist Racke said, “The need for education and awareness is monumental and it needs to be addressed now.” Gibbons agreed and stated that Northern Virginia Community College has already created new timelines and training curriculums in preparation for the transition to ICD-10. One of the biggest changes,” said Gibbons, “is the need for more anatomy training.” The old ICD-9 codes required a limited amount of biology, but ICD-10 requires that coders have a far better understanding of anatomy and physiology. ICD-10, however, is just one of many changes coming to healthcare. Gibbons said, “All of these changes must all be addressed together, because they are all connected. None of them work in a silo.”
Even for a federal government agency such as the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) that has information systems that were built in-house, the changeover will be substantial. Panelist Insley said that the VA has over 50 different IT applications that will need to be modified; many of these are integrated applications that are driven off of the ICD-9 codes and analytical processes. They also have billions of vital signs that must be protected. “The sheer magnitude of the problem is the issue,” says Insley. “In addition to upgrading IT systems, there needs to be organizational awareness. Many people don’t realize the scope and impact that ICD-10 will have across the organization.”
Racke called the challenges “monumental.” “Many smaller providers still use paper claims,” she said. “Even when they want to make the change, they do not have the resources. Mapping the new codes is expensive, time consuming, and difficult.” Large hospital systems are better able to address the change because they “have the cash flow,” said Racke.
Racke says that organizations should approach ICD-10 as an opportunity. They should “push fear to the back burner” and perform an impact assessment and gap analysis to “begin to figure out the differences in the systems. Being prepared will put you in the best position,” concludes Racke.
For more information on the Insight's Panel discussion, visit Federal News Radio. To learn more about Noblis’ ICD-10 methods and solutions, visit http://www.noblis.org/icd10