28 Jan Health Data News Roundup: Health IT Spending and Big Data Analytics; Direct Message Usage Up; and Top Data Predictions from Gartner

Welcome to the Health Data Weekly News Roundup from IMAT Solutions. As the power of data continues to grow in the healthcare arena, today’s care organizations need to be on the forefront of all news and trends to help ensure that their data analytics efforts deliver accountable and informed care. Each week, we will provide you with the actionable news you need to meet these goals.

Healthcare IT Spending Priorities Include Big Data Analytics, AI
Top IT spending priorities for healthcare executives are accelerating digital transformation, investing in big data analytics and artificial intelligence, and modernizing IT infrastructure, according to a new study.

Health Data Exchange Grows, Direct Message Use Jumps 63 Percent in 2018
Health data exchange continues to grow nationwide as Direct message transactions increase by 63 percent in 2018, according to DirectTrust.

CMS Approves Arizona Medicaid Community Engagement Requirement
CMS has approved Arizona’s request to add a community engagement requirement to its section 1115 Medicaid demonstration project, called “Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System” (AHCCCS).

Bipartisan Bill Suggests Another Health Insurance Tax Delay
Senators from both sides of the aisle have sponsored a bill that would delay implementation of the ACA’s health insurance tax (HIT) once again, this time for two years.

Hospitals Outline Agenda to Accelerate Interoperability
Hospitals and health systems are making progress in sharing health information, with 93 percent making records available to patients online, but collaboration across many private and public sector entities, including technology vendors and policymakers, is necessary to achieve comprehensive interoperability, according to a new report.

HASA HIE Leverages IMAT Solutions for Improving Population Health in Texas
Last week, IMAT Solutions announced that it is helping Healthcare Access San Antonio (HASA), the non-profit, community HIE for North, South and West Texas, to liberate health data for enhanced population health efforts.

Gartner’s Top Data and Analytics Predictions for 2019
The use of analytics to improve operations is growing, and healthcare organizations are on the cusp of deriving increasing value from the data they have. As such, Gartner has issued a set of predictions for the implications that data and analytics will have across all industries.