Feds Approve $44K Doctor Reimbursement for Using Drchrono (YC W11) iPad App • Hacker News Board

Re: Feds Approve $44K Doctor Reimbursement for Using Drchrono (YC W11) iPad App

#11

Post by cma » Thu, Jul 28, 2011, 5:29 PM UTC

theclay wrote: post #8

thesis wrote: post #2

Wow... incentives for making the doctors life easier? What a deal. Just what the medical industry needs... more breaks.

I can't tell if this is serious or not. Either way, it seems like we all benefit from devices that make doctors more effective.

> Either way, it seems like we all benefit from devices that make doctors more effective.

The problem with your statement and approval is in no way justifies the magic $44K number. Why not a $2 billion incentive for each doctor that switches?

Re: Feds Approve $44K Doctor Reimbursement for Using Drchrono (YC W11) iPad App

#12

Post by Skeletor » Thu, Jul 28, 2011, 5:37 PM UTC

dr_ wrote: post #6

Personally I don't think the 44K incentive has ever made any sense. All it has done is allow existing EMR providers to charge more for their poorly designed software. Physicians would have switched over on their own, if the reason were compelling enough - and that reason would be user friendly software at a reasonable price. Startups would have had more opportunities without the incentive. Now they have to offer it j…

One aspect of getting government certification is that all vendors are required to support government approved standards like HL7/CCR/CCD for the exchange of health information.

So forcing all vendors in the space to get certified has forced all of us healthcare IT vendors to cooperate and adopt a fixed set of standards for exchange of data. Without the government stepping in and forcing vendors to adopt these standards, the disparate vendors would never have agreed on any standards and followed them.

Re: Feds Approve $44K Doctor Reimbursement for Using Drchrono (YC W11) iPad App

#13

Post by tzs » Thu, Jul 28, 2011, 5:39 PM UTC

jemfinch wrote: post #7

Why is my tax money subsidizing software that should have to fight in the free market like the software most other developers write?

I think you might have misunderstood the article. Doctor's aren't being paid to use this particular software. Doctor's are being paid to convert to electronic records. To be eligible for that payment, they have to use systems that have been certified. Drchrono has been certified.

Anyone else is free to write a competing application, get it certified, and compete in the same market.

Re: Feds Approve $44K Doctor Reimbursement for Using Drchrono (YC W11) iPad App

#14

Post by mrkurt » Thu, Jul 28, 2011, 5:39 PM UTC

jemfinch wrote: post #7

Why is my tax money subsidizing software that should have to fight in the free market like the software most other developers write?

Medical service providers work in something that's only vaguely like a free market.

Re: Feds Approve $44K Doctor Reimbursement for Using Drchrono (YC W11) iPad App

#15

Post by Alex3917 » Thu, Jul 28, 2011, 5:40 PM UTC

jemfinch wrote: post #7

Why is my tax money subsidizing software that should have to fight in the free market like the software most other developers write?

Why should I have to pay for-profit pharmaceutical companies, hospital companies, and insurance companies for worse quality healthcare than I could be getting for pennies on the dollar from my taxes?

Re: Feds Approve $44K Doctor Reimbursement for Using Drchrono (YC W11) iPad App

#16

Post by xal » Thu, Jul 28, 2011, 5:42 PM UTC

At this point it's downright comical. It seems like a significant percentage of startups these days go to market on a design that is directly copied from Shopify.com

pricing page:

http://www.shopify.com/signup https://drchrono.com/pricing/

Or worse, look at that little badge in the top right and compare it to the one at www.shopify.com frontpage.

Re: Feds Approve $44K Doctor Reimbursement for Using Drchrono (YC W11) iPad App

#17

Post by jemfinch » Thu, Jul 28, 2011, 5:45 PM UTC

tzs wrote: post #13

jemfinch wrote: post #7

Why is my tax money subsidizing software that should have to fight in the free market like the software most other developers write?

I think you might have misunderstood the article. Doctor's aren't being paid to use this particular software. Doctor's are being paid to convert to electronic records. To be eligible for that payment, they have to use systems that have been certified. Drchrono has been certified. Anyone else is free to write a competing application, get it certified, and compete in the same market.

Ah, that makes more sense. I can see how the public good would be served by having doctors use electronic records; having them use this specific software (which is what I thought was being subsidized) seemed too specific to justify in terms of the public good.

Re: Feds Approve $44K Doctor Reimbursement for Using Drchrono (YC W11) iPad App

#18

Post by rysulliv » Thu, Jul 28, 2011, 5:45 PM UTC

Skeletor wrote: post #12

dr_ wrote: post #6

Personally I don't think the 44K incentive has ever made any sense. All it has done is allow existing EMR providers to charge more for their poorly designed software. Physicians would have switched over on their own, if the reason were compelling enough - and that reason would be user friendly software at a reasonable price. Startups would have had more opportunities without the incentive. Now they have to offer it j…

One aspect of getting government certification is that all vendors are required to support government approved standards like HL7/CCR/CCD for the exchange of health information. So forcing all vendors in the space to get certified has forced all of us healthcare IT vendors to cooperate and adopt a fixed set of standards for exchange of data. Without the government stepping in and forcing vendors to adopt these standa…

This is the type of industry that really needs that type of standardization and enforcement of it. I can fully understand why the government wanted to step in and help enforce that standardization for a greatest benefit of all involved, and I can not really think of an alternative to the cash incentive to get people to do it. Can anyone else offer up a reasonable alternative?

Re: Feds Approve $44K Doctor Reimbursement for Using Drchrono (YC W11) iPad App

#19

Post by absconditus » Thu, Jul 28, 2011, 5:54 PM UTC

jemfinch wrote: post #17

tzs wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think you might have misunderstood the article. Doctor's aren't being paid to use this particular software. Doctor's are being paid to convert to electronic records. To be eligible for that payment, they have to use systems that have been certified. Drchrono has been certified. Anyone else is free to write a competing application, get it certified, and compete in the same market.

Ah, that makes more sense. I can see how the public good would be served by having doctors use electronic records; having them use this specific software (which is what I thought was being subsidized) seemed too specific to justify in terms of the public good.

https://www.cms.gov/EHRIncentivePrograms/30_Meaningful_Use.a...

Re: Feds Approve $44K Doctor Reimbursement for Using Drchrono (YC W11) iPad App

#20

Post by watty » Thu, Jul 28, 2011, 5:56 PM UTC

xal wrote: post #16

At this point it's downright comical. It seems like a significant percentage of startups these days go to market on a design that is directly copied from Shopify.com pricing page: http://www.shopify.com/signup https://drchrono.com/pricing/ Or worse, look at that little badge in the top right and compare it to the one at www.shopify.com frontpage.

Wow, that front page badge is a blatant copy.