AMC – academic medical centers
(treated somewhat differently than other CEs)
Explanation on why: http://www.aamc.org/members/gir/gasp/introduction.pdf
BA – business associate
CE – covered entity
CHI – consolidated health informatics initiative [health care component of W’s eGov initiative) The three federal departments that deliver health care services (HHS, DoD, VA) are coordinating with numerous other federal agencies to standardize across federal clinical health information as part of CHI.]
CHINs – Community Health Information Networks, intranets
CMS -- Centers for Medicare &
Medicaid Services. Formerly known as the Health Care Financing Administration
(HCFA), CMS is the federal agency responsible for administering the Medicare,
Medicaid, SCHIP (State Children's Health Insurance), HIPAA (Health Insurance
Portability and Accountability Act), CLIA (Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments),
and several other health-related programs. For an overview of CMS go to: http://cms.hhs.gov/about/overview.asp
Additional information regarding CMS and its programs: http://cms.hhs.gov/about/default.asp
Acronyms from the cms site: http://cms.hhs.gov/acronyms/default.asp
CPD 4 – Common Procedures Terminology, 4th revision
CPM – critical path method (charts), a graphic representation of a process
CPR – computerized patient record, output from an automated patient information system. (14)
DHHS – Department of Health and Human Services, HHS is comprised of 12 agencies (also known as operating divisions) and nine staff divisions. An organizational chart is available at http://www.hhs.gov/about/orgchart.html
What the agency does:
http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2002pres/profile.html
DoD – U.S. Department of Defense
EMR – electronic medical record, output from an automated patient information system. (14)
FERPA – The Family educational rights and privacy act
FOIA – Freedom of Information Act
GIVES – government information value exchange for states
HIM – health information management
HIPAA – Health information portability and accountability act (of 1996)
HMO – health maintenance organization
ICD-9 – International Classification of Disease, 9th revision
JCAHO – joint commission on accreditation of healthcare organizations
MIB – medical information bureau
NCVHS - National committee on vital
and health statistics
serves as the statutory [42 U.S.C. 242k(k)] public advisory body to the Secretary
of Health and Human Services in the area of health data and statistics. In that
capacity, the Committee provides advice and assistance to the Department and
serves as a forum for interaction with interested private sector groups on a
variety of key health data issues.
NHII – National Health Information
Infrastructure (a NCVHS working group) is envisioned as a comprehensive knowledge
system capable of providing information to all who need it to make sound decisions
about health. It includes the technologies, standards, applications, systems,
values and laws that support all facets of individual health, health care, and
public health.
OCR – Office of Civil Rights
This office is part of HHS. Its HIPPA responsibilities include oversight of
the privacy requirements.
PERT – periodic evaluation
and review technique (diagrams), a graphic representation of a process.
PHI – protected health information
PMO – program management office (NC’s DHHS has its HIPAA PMO in Garner)
RFI – request for information, considered a more useful than RFPs
RFP – request for proposal. (See Davis, p49)
TPA – total plan administrator
VA – U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Established on March 15, 1989. It succeeded the Veterans Administration and has responsibility for providing federal benefits to veterans and their dependents. VA is the second largest of the 14 Cabinet departments and operates nationwide programs of health care, financial assistance and national cemeteries.
WEDI – Workgroup on Electronic Data Interchange (DHHS, 1990s, 15)