Blues & AHIMA on med-priv costs

[Peter Marshall <techdiff@ix.netcom.com>]

> _________________________________________________________
> PXNEWSFLASH
> December 17, 1999
> _________________________________________________________
>  AHIMA Calls $43 Billion Price Tag For Confidentiality Overblown
> 
> The requirements of healthcare confidentiality proposals currently being
> debated in Congress could cost the industry $43 billion over the next
> five years. A recent study conducted by the Robert E. Nolan Company for
> Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association (BCBSA) estimates that the price
> tag for universal health privacy standards would exceed the costs of the
> Children's Health Insurance Program ($24 billion) and the Medicare
> prescription drug benefit ($37 billion). The report has fueled
> resistance among those in the industry who believe the proposals
> represent an overly bureaucratic, potentially damaging solution to a
> small problem. "While we believe that privacy protection is important,
> we do not believe it must be unduly complicated as to put quality at
> risk," said Allan Korn, MD, Senior Vice President and Chief Medical
> Officer of BCBSA. The report's figures -- including the $9.1 billion in
> projected costs for tracking and disclosure and $23.4 billion for
> infrastructure changes -- have been disputed by the American Health
> Information Management Association (AHIMA), an industry group
> representing health information management professionals. AHIMA's
> President-elect, Margaret Skurka, says healthcare organizations are
> already investing in information systems that carry out multiple tasks,
> confidentiality being just one. Ms. Skurka believes the study measures
> the costs of entire systems rather than just the components related to
> confidentiality. She also points out that most states require healthcare
> providers to grant access to medical records and permit organizations to
> charge a fee to cover costs. Any proposal passed by Congress would
> likely follow this model, reducing the $9.1 billion figure cited by Blue
> Cross. "There is no doubt that implementing confidentiality legislation
> or regulations will cost some money, though less than what Blue Cross
> estimates," said Ms. Skurka. "In any case, a price tag should not stop
> us from doing what is right for our patients." December 5, 1999.
> 
> The full text of the report is currently available for download at:
> www.renolan.com/healthcare/privacy.htm
> 
> The AHIMA statement may be found at:
> www2.ahima.org/media/releases/99.1111.html
> 
> Sources:
> "Blues Lambaste Cost of Confidentiality Proposals: AHIMA Challenges
> Estimates, Assumptions," IT Health Care Strategist, Vol. 1, No. 12,
> December 1999.
> "Confidentiality Costs Dwarf Costs of Major Health Programs, Report
> Says," Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, 10/19/99.
> www.bluecross.com/cgi-bin/netpr.pl?dir=/capitol_hill&article=1999-10-19-10-01-73&action=show-article-contents&show-archive=no
> "The Bill of Rights is One Page; Why Does it Take 600 Pages to Provide
> Confidentiality Protection, BCBSA Asks," Blue Cross and Blue Shield
> Association, 10/29/99.
> www.bluecross.com/cgi-bin/netpr.pl?dir=/capitol_hill&article=1999-10-29-16-05-76&action=show-article-contents&show-archive=no