A group of 350 organizations, including AHIMA, are urging Congress to make Medicare telehealth flexibilities introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic permanent, or at least extend them for two years. In a letter to congressional leaders, the organizations emphasize the importance of telehealth for Medicare beneficiaries, particularly those with chronic conditions or in rural areas, and highlight the potential impact on health care access and infrastructure.

Athenahealth is adding AI features to its athenaOne EHR platform, including document processing and interoperability enhancements for ambulatory practices. The updates will allow standardized communication between AI tools and the platform, enabling data analysis across multiple sources, such as public health registries and payer data.

Patient portals can strengthen the clinician-patient connection, but 68% of clinicians responding to a Harris Poll survey reported feeling overwhelmed by the volume of portal messages they receive. Some clinicians and health systems have begun billing for responses to patient queries that require significant time and expertise. Gynecologist Katherine Gregory says using a portal for communication can be a time-saver, but she doesn't engage in lengthy interactions that are better dealt with in person.

Updated guidelines from the American Heart Association and American College of Cardiology recommend earlier use of blood pressure medications, while maintaining a 130/80 mm Hg threshold for hypertension. The guidelines, published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, replace those issued in 2017 and call for starting medication after three to six months of lifestyle changes for adults with a 10-year cardiovascular disease risk under 7.5%.

Guidance published in The BMJ by a panel of experts recommends assessing cardiovascular and kidney risks when prescribing SGLT2 inhibitors and GLP-1 receptor agonists for people with type 2 diabetes. The drugs are strongly recommended for T2D patient only if they have high risk factors. The panel intends for the guidance to be a "living" document that is updated as new evidence emerges.

CEOs at health care organizations want a chief financial officer who has a mission-centered mindset, sector fluency and emotional intelligence, says Unity Medical Center CEO Martha Henley. Winona Health CEO Rachelle Schultz says a CFO should have the courage to push boundaries and the ability to build relationships to drive change.

Apple is issuing a software update that restores the blood oxygen sensing feature on Apple Watch series 9 and 10 and Ultra Watch 2 models in the US. The feature had been suspended due to a patent dispute with Masimo.

A federal judge has ordered HHS to stop sharing Medicaid enrollees' personal data with immigration officials. The data-sharing policy, which was implemented in June, faced a lawsuit from 20 states over privacy concerns. The order will remain in place until the department provides a more detailed rationale for the policy.

HHS has re-established the Task Force on Safer Childhood Vaccines in response to a lawsuit from Children's Health Defense, a group formerly led by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The task force will be led by NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya include officials from the CDC and FDA.

Sessions in each track cover practical topics such as transforming processes for successful autonomous coding, creating a standout personal portfolio that showcases your skills, rebooting your clinical documentation integrity program for success, and improving health outcomes through the collection, sharing and use of social determinants of health data. Read the article in Journal of AHIMA.