Industry Insight

Transcription Company Awarded Disability Determination Documentation Contracts

The states of Maine and Vermont have each awarded contracts to Binghamton, N.Y.-based Reporters Transcription Center (RTC) to provide medical transcription services. The Maine Office of Disability Determination Services contract is for a 12-month term with two optional renewal periods. The Vermont Department of Children and Families Disability Determination Services award is a 24-month contract with one optional 12-month renewal period.

RTC just completed a three-year term of service with the Maine office. During the first contact period, RTC was successful in moving 100% of document delivery to the Social Security Administration’s Electronic Records Express. This Web portal allows healthcare providers a secure platform for sharing medical information and decreases the overall time for claims processing.

The Vermont contract calls for a similar type of transcription service. Dictation from providers across the state will be recorded into a telephone-based dictation system provided by RTC. Between the two contracts, RTC expects to transcribe about 1.2 million lines annually.

— Source: Reporters Transcription Center

 

MTEC Approved to Train Military Spouses

MTEC, an online medical transcription and editing school, was recently approved by the U.S. Department of Defense to train military spouses using the newly expanded Career Advancement Account (MyCAA) funding program. As of October 25, the MyCAA program will provide up to $4,000 of financial assistance over two years for military spouses who are pursuing degree programs, licenses, or credentials leading to employment in portable career fields.

MTEC has been involved in the MyCAA program since the initial launch in 2007. “The portable nature of medical transcription and editing makes it the ideal match for military spouses who need the flexibility of working from home and the ability to take their career with them when their partner is deployed or reassigned,” says Kim Buchanan, CMT, AHDI-F, director of education for MTEC. MTEC’s mobile learning solution enables students to take their coursework with them wherever they go without having to transport text books and materials.

MTEC was the first medical transcription school to be approved by the Approval Committee for Certificate Programs, a joint committee established by the Association for Healthcare Documentation Integrity and the AHIMA. Graduates of the MTEC Premier Medical Transcription course have a higher than average pass rate on the industry entry-level credentialing exam and are highly sought after by industry employers.

— Source: Medical Transcription Education Center

 

Practice Fusion Teams With Microsoft to Support Health Research

Practice Fusion’s Research Division has teamed up with Microsoft’s Windows Azure MarketPlace to offer a set of deidentified health information to researchers for free.

The clinical data set provided by Practice Fusion’s research division includes insight on vitals, diagnoses, medications, prescriptions, immunizations and allergies in a deidentified, HIPAA-compliant format. The data set can be combined with other Microsoft research partners to answer pressing public health questions around obesity trends, drug efficacy, disease outbreaks, and treatment outcomes.

Researchers can access the clinical data set on the Windows Azure MarketPlace website or can learn more about the research partnership at www.practicefusion.com/research.

— Source: Practice Fusion