Special Notice / Hearing: None__
Vote Required: Majority
To: Honorable Board of Supervisors
From: Louise F. Rogers, Chief, San Mateo County Health
Chester J. Kunnappilly, MD, Chief Executive Officer, San Mateo Medical Center
Subject: Amendment to the Agreement with Cerner Health Services, Inc. to Acquire the Experian Health Suite of Solutions and Services
RECOMMENDATION:
title
Adopt a resolution authorizing an amendment to the agreement with Cerner Health Services, Inc. to acquire the Experian Health suite of solutions and services, increasing the amount by $550,000, for an amount not to exceed $29,618,914.
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BACKGROUND:
On September 23, 2003, your Board approved an agreement with Siemens Health Solutions, USA, Inc. (Siemens) for ongoing information technology support and applications at San Mateo Medical Center (SMMC). The agreement has been amended multiple times since. Additionally, on February 1, 2015, Siemens was acquired by Cerner Health Services, Inc. (Cerner) and the agreement was assigned to Cerner.
DISCUSSION:
While the Electronic Health Record (EHR) 2.0 planning work continues, SMMC front-line staff do not have adequate software tools to support efficient and accurate patient registrations. The quality and timeliness of registrations are essential to improving cash flow through accurate claim submissions. The Experian Health (Experian) suite of solutions and services adds essential functionality to the patient registration process through an automated work queue management system with performance measurement and reporting. The software supports financial clearance, insurance verification, validation of patient address, and payor notification of inpatient admissions. Experian is fully compatible with all systems being contemplated by the EHR 2.0 initiative.
The amendment and resolution have been reviewed and approved by County Counsel as to form.
The resolution contains the County’s standard provisions allowing amendment of the County’s fiscal obligations by a maximum of $25,000 (in aggregate).
The Information Services Department has reviewed and approved the IT component of this amendment.
This amendment contributes to the Shared Vision 2025 outcome of a Healthy Community by providing SMMC with more complete and accurate patient information, improving workflow productivity and increasing revenue to provide the resources to continue serving patients in San Mateo County. It is anticipated that insurance coverage accuracy will increase to the industry standard of 95%.
PERFORMANCE MEASURE:
|
Measure |
FY 2017-18 Actual |
FY 2018-19 Projected |
|
Accuracy of insurance coverage |
N/A* |
95% |
* New measure
FISCAL IMPACT:
The term of the agreement is July 1, 2012 through December 31, 2020. The amount of the agreement is not to exceed $29,618.914. The amendment increases the contract amount by $550,000. Funds in the amount of $550,000 are included in the SMMC FY 2018-19 Adopted Budget.
Expenses at SMMC are covered by fees for services or third-party payors whenever possible. The portion of expenses for services provided to the medically indigent or to those covered by programs that do not meet the full costs of care are covered by the County’s General Fund contribution to SMMC and are within the existing annual appropriation.