Research Finds ICD-10 Projects Lagging: How Far Along Should You Be?

Despite the best intentions, healthcare providers and their partners have fallen behind on their ICD-10 conversion implementation projects, a new report has found.

The Workgroup for Electronic Data Interchange (WEDI), a consortium of health IT stakeholders formed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, surveyed almost a thousand healthcare providers, insurers, and vendors on their ICD-10 readiness and found that many have delayed their ICD-10 projects from where they reported they wanted to be in the February 2012 survey. Readiness also varied by type of healthcare entity:

“Based on the survey results, it is clear the industry is not making the amount of progress that is needed for a smooth transition,” wrote WEDI Chair Jim Daley in a letter reporting the results of the survey to HHS. “The industry is well behind the milestones suggested in the revised WEDI/NCHICA [North Carolina Healthcare Information and Communications Alliance] timeline. Factors that contributed to this slow progress include the change in compliance dates, competing internal priorities and other regulatory mandates.”