TRICARE Data Added to Medicare’s South Carolina Test
of Electronic Health Records
Beneficiaries with original Medicare and TRICARE
benefits can add TRICARE data to personal health records
Sept. 23, 2008 - Medicare’s test program that
enables Medicare beneficiaries in South Carolina to collect and then
access information about their health and health care services
electronically will be expanded to offer personal data from TRICARE, the
worldwide health care program for uniformed service members and their
families run by the Department of Defense. The information will be added
for those in Medicare who also receive TRICARE benefits.
Part A deductible for hospital care boosted $44 to
$1,068
Sept. 19, 2008 – While most of the country is worrying about the devastating
blows being suffered by the U.S. economy, senior citizens find something to
smile about in their financial outlook for 2009. Medicare announced today
the standard Medicare Part B monthly premium will stay the same next year -
$96.40 per month.
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more...
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
today announced this expansion of MyPHRSC, the name for the Personal
Health Record pilot running only for South Carolina.
CMS said the agreement between CMS and DoD will
enable beneficiaries who have original Medicare and also receive TRICARE
benefits to be offered the option of adding TRICARE health data to their
MyPHRSC personal health records (PHRs). This data has only been
available to the beneficiary through the DoD Medical Information
Technology systems until this point.
"This exciting pilot expansion will be a major step
forward for Medicare and DoD. We believe that collaborations of this
sort will provide more complete information and better tools to empower
consumers to manage their health," CMS Acting Administrator Kerry Weems
said.
“We expect this pilot, which brings data together
from multiple sources, can be combined successfully to provide the
beneficiary with access to more complete personal health records.”
PHRs generally are electronic health records that
individual patients maintain or control, which can include clinical,
laboratory and claims data, among other types of medical data. PHRs are
tools that can help consumers manage their health and health care
services. Beneficiaries who elect to participate in the South Carolina
initiative can also add other personal health information manually if
they choose.
Having this information available at their
fingertips will help them better manage their health care needs and
medical care, according to CMS. Currently, beneficiaries can authorize
CMS to send their individual Medicare health data to the PHR.
Under this expansion of the pilot, an eligible
beneficiary may authorize the DoD to provide TRICARE data from the DoD
systems directly to their existing MyPHRSC record. Initially, active
medications will be made available. Other data may later be made
available for existing MyPHRSC records, as they become available, and
upon request by the beneficiary. Additional data may be made available
for existing MyPHRSC records and could be requested by the beneficiary.
TRICARE beneficiaries, regardless of age, who are
entitled to premium-free Medicare Part A and who have Medicare Part B
coverage may use TRICARE For Life (TFL). With TFL, Medicare is the
beneficiary’s primary insurance, and TRICARE acts as secondary payer
minimizing out-of-pocket expenses. TRICARE benefits include covering
Medicare's coinsurance and deductible.
"The Department of Defense is delighted about the
opportunity MyPHRSC will provide to TRICARE beneficiaries," said Dr. S.
Ward Casscells, assistant secretary of defense for health affairs.
“Since they will now have easy access to and ownership of their own
medical information, in a way that allows them to better understand and
manage their conditions."
This collaboration with DoD will be the first time
additional data from another electronic source other than Medicare will
be available in MyPHRSC.
“At CMS, we strive to find innovative ways to
better serve our beneficiaries," Weems said. "This pilot is designed to
provide additional value for Medicare beneficiaries by giving them
better access to information and more tools to help them improve their
health and at the same time giving CMS valuable experience with personal
health records."
The PHR tool selected for the MyPHRSC was created
by HealthTrio, which currently offers PHRs to thousands of individuals
through employer contracts. The Medicare data is provided through
Palmetto GBA, a Medicare contractor serving the region that includes
South Carolina. The pilot is being managed by QSSI, a company that
specializes in information technology solution development and
headquartered in Gaithersburg, Md. The pilot is accepting enrollment
online at
www.MyPHRSC.com.
Keep up with the latest news for senior citizens, baby
boomers
Sept. 23, 2008 - Medicare’s test program that
enables Medicare beneficiaries in South Carolina to collect and then
access information about their health and health care services
electronically will be expanded to offer personal data from TRICARE, the
worldwide health care program for uniformed service members and their
families run by the Department of Defense. The information will be added
for those in Medicare who also receive TRICARE benefits.