CEO Corner
In 2004, under Ms. Chapin's leadership, the Hudson Center for Health Equity and Quality (Hcheq) was formed. Hcheq's role is to act as a regional voice on issues of health policy and the use of health information technology to streamline eligibility for state-sponsored insurance and to improve the services delivered under these programs.
Ms. Chapin earned her B.A. in Anthropology from Barnard College, and her M.A. and M.Phil. degrees in Sociomedical Sciences from Columbia University. In 2003, she received a J.D., cum laude, with certificates in Health Law and International Law from Pace University School of Law. Ms. Chapin also has taught at Pace as an adjunct professor of law; her courses include Health Care for the Disabled and Disadvantaged, and Bioethics and Medical Malpractice.
June 30, 2008
Less Paper, More Healthcare
Georganne Chapin, President and CEO of the Hudson Center for Health Equity & Quality, explains how information technology can be used to cover the uninsured in a Webcast Video Editorial posted on The Medscape Journal of Medicine, June 2008.
Transcript:
Everybody -- even the politicians -- is talking about the importance of sharing health information electronically. Less discussed, but equally important, is using information technology to streamline eligibility, enrollment, and retention in public health insurance like Medicaid or the Child Health Insurance Program.
But it's not easy. For starters, enrollment in these programs is often done with pen and paper. Second, the paperwork is forensic in detail -- proof of income and legal residency, proof of address and citizenship, household size, child care costs, and recent job-related insurance status.
Third, you're never done: All states review eligibility at least once a year and some require a monthly renewal process.[1] Too often, calculations are done manually, on paper, in duplicate or triplicate, and then repeatedly keyed in by government employees. Paper goes back and forth among agencies and applicants with calculation errors, illegible handwriting, or missing data, causing delays or, worse, wrongful denials of coverage.
In New York, where I'm from, nearly a million people who are eligible for public programs remain outside the system because of problems like these.[2] Now that we're finally talking seriously about universal healthcare, we have to make enrollment easier.
The big hurdle in New York is upgrading the systems belonging to various government agencies and getting them to talk to each other. Several states are moving forward with "ex parte" enrollment efforts -- if you get food stamps, you're likely to need health insurance, too -- but such innovations are not possible without addressing system interoperability.[3] In early May, stakeholders from New York, along with representatives of programs in Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and California, [met] to discuss these issues and learn from each other's efforts.[4]
Until we're ready for a single national health system, we need to streamline policies to reduce the churning in public programs and adopt automated systems to speed up information exchange and give everyone access to healthcare.
Despite the difficulties, this isn't rocket science. Banks, retailing, and manufacturing have automated. We can do it in healthcare, too.
That's my opinion; I'm Georganne Chapin, President and CEO of the Hudson Center for Health Equity & Quality.
References
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