Sanitarium

The Healthcare Financing Administration (HCFA) was created as a principal operating component of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in March of 1977. Its purpose was to combine under a single administration the oversight of the Medicare program, the Federal portion of the Medicaid program, and the related quality assurance activities.

Medicare: The Medicare Program provides health insurance coverage for people over the age of 65 and younger people who are receiving social security disability benefits. Beneficiaries of Medicare can receive care either through the traditional fee-for-service delivery system or through coordinated care plans; plans such as health maintenance organizations and competitive medical plans, contracted through Medicare.

Medicaid: The Medicaid Program is a medical assistance program jointly financed by State and Federal governments for eligible low-income individuals. Medicaid covers healthcare expenses for all recipients of Aid to Families with Dependent Children, and most States also cover the needy elderly, blind, and disabled who receive cash assistance under the Supplemental Security Income Program. Some coverage is may also be extended to certain infants and low-income pregnant women. Some States also allow for the coverage of other low-income individuals with medical bills that qualify them as categorically or medically needy.

Quality Assurance: The Medicare/Medicaid programs include a quality assurance focal point to help carry out quality assurance provisions of the programs, the development and implementation of health and safety standards of care providers in Federal health programs, and the implementation of the End Stage Renal Disease Program and the Peer Review provisions.

The American Health Information Management Association is a professional non-profit organization for medical record management. Traditionally working out of hospitals and to referring paper files, the field presently refers to all healthcare systems and types of media. AHIMA’s mission is as stated: “to be the pre-eminent foundation recognized for excellence in health information leadership, policy and research for the healthcare industry and the public.” The foundation formulates and issues opinions, supports education, conducts research, and compiles its contributions into a single Body of Knowledge (BoK).
AHIMA can be traced back to its origin in 1928 when the American College of Surgeons established the Association of Record Librarians of North America (ARLNA). ARLNA’s purpose was to “elevate the standards of clinical records in hospitals and other medical institutions.” In its 82 year history, AHIMA has undergone three name changes; from its original name of ARLNA, it became the American Association of Medical Record Librarians (AAMRL) in 1938; then in 1970 the name was changed to the American Medical Record Associations (AMRA); then finally in 1991, it was given its current name of the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA). The name changes were justified with an explanation that reflected the progression of contemporary medical record use, practices, and perceptions.
As of 2010, the association has more than 59,000 members in four membership classifications. Each member subsequently belongs to relevant state chapter. The association offers seven credentials pertaining to four areas of practice; HIM, Coding, Data Analysis and Privacy. Two credentials require formal education; the others are acquired by a combination of testing and work experience. AHIMA requires members obtain regular continuing education to maintain their credentials. The Journal of AHIMA has a circulation of 59,000 and publishes both peer-reviewed and non-peer-reviewed articles. The Association’s membership is overwhelmingly female.

The Vision, Mission, and Values of the American Health Information Management Association

The US Occupational Safety and Health Administration is an agency of the US State Department of Labor. The agency is headed by a Deputy Assistant Secretary of Labor. OSHA was created by congress under the Occupational Safety and Health Act signed by President Nixon in 1970.
The mission of OSHA is to help prevent work-related injuries, illnesses, and occupational fatalities by issuing and enforcing health and safety standards in the workplace. OSHA’s federal regulations cover most private sector workplaces. Therefore the OSH Act allows for states to develop their own plans to cover the public employment sector, as long as it provides equivalent protection to that provided by the federal government to the private sector. In return, the federal government pays 20% of the cost for states that have had their plans approved by OSHA.
OSHA’s most notable regulation changes in the last 40 years include:
•Guards on all moving parts (1970)
•Permissible exposure limits (based on standards from 1968): maximum concentrations of chemicals stipulated by regulation for chemicals and dusts
•Personal protective equipment: broader use of respirators, gloves, coveralls, and other protective equipment when handling hazardous chemicals; including goggles, face shields, ear protection in typical industrial environments
•Lockout/tagout (1980s): requirement for locking out energy sources when performing repairs or maintenance
•Confined space (1990s): specific requirements for air sampling and use of “buddy system” when working in small, confined spaces
•Hazard Communication (1983): aka “Right to Know” standard which requires developing and communicating information on the hazards of chemical products used in the workplace
•Process Safety Management (1992): issued as an attempt to reduce large scale industrial accidents. In this situation, process refers to any activity that is in reference to dealing with highly hazardous chemicals in the workplace
•Bloodborne pathogens (1990): a standard designed to prevent healthcare/ other workers from being exposed to bloodborne pathogens, i.e. hepatitis B and HIV
•Excavations and trenches: OSHA requires that any trench or excavations wherein workers are more than five feet deep must be provided with safeguards in addition to proper sloping and storage of excavated material to prevent collapses/cave-ins
•Exposure to asbestos