Evaluation of the Patient Request Process for Radiology Imaging in U.S. Hospitals.

Background In the United States, patients have the right to access their protected health information. However, to the knowledge of the authors, no study has evaluated the patient request process and the barriers to patient access of their radiology images. Purpose To assess U.

Assessment of US Hospital Compliance With Regulations for Patients' Requests for Medical Records.

Importance: Although federal law has long promoted patients' access to their protected health information, this access remains limited. Previous studies have demonstrated some issues in requesting release of medical records, but, to date, there has been no comprehensive review of the challenges that exist in all aspects of the request process.

Objective: To evaluate the current state of medical records request processes of US hospitals in terms of compliance with federal and state regulations and ease of patient access.

The 21st Century Cures Act and electronic health records one year later: will patients see the benefits?

While federal regulation provides patients the right to access their electronic health records and promotes increased use of health information technology, patient access to electronic health records remains limited. The 21st Century Cures Act, signed into law over a year ago, has important provisions that could significantly improve access and availability of health data. Specifically, the provisions call for partnerships among health information exchange networks, educational and research initiatives, and health information technology certification requirements that encourage interoperability.

E-prescribing adoption and use increased substantially following the start of a federal incentive program.

E-prescribing, or the electronic generation of a prescription and its routing to a pharmacy, is generally believed to improve health care quality and reduce costs. However, physicians were slow to embrace this technology until 2008, when Congress authorized e-prescribing incentives as part of the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act. Using e-prescribing data from Surescripts, we determined that as of December 2010, close to 40 percent of active e-prescribers had adopted the technology in response to the federal incentive program.

A national action plan to support consumer engagement via e-health.

Patient-centered care is considered one pillar of a high-performing, high-quality health care system. It is a key component of many efforts to transform care and achieve better population health. Expansion of health information technology and consumer e-health tools--electronic tools and services such as secure e-mail messaging between patients and providers, or mobile health apps--have created new opportunities for individuals to participate actively in monitoring and directing their health and health care.

Medication adherence: a call for action.

Poor adherence to efficacious cardiovascular-related medications has led to considerable morbidity, mortality, and avoidable health care costs. This article provides results of a recent think-tank meeting in which various stakeholder groups representing key experts from consumers, community health providers, the academic community, decision-making government officials (Food and Drug Administration, National Institutes of Health, etc), and industry scientists met to evaluate the current status of medication adherence and provide recommendations for improving outcomes. Below, we review the magnitude of the problem of medication adherence, prevalence, impact, and cost.