While we've all been watching the 'Meaningful Use' channel 24/7, a significant monster has been sneaking up on practices.

HIPAA 5010

MGMA recently reported that a recent survey shows most practices are not ready for this new electronic claim submission standard that takes effect January 1, 2012.  As in, a little over six months from now.

• Less than a third thought their current practice management system could handle 5010 claims.
• Over half said they would need to upgrade their PM, though 30% said they have not heard anything from their vendor yet.
• One in 20 thought they'd have to completely replace their PM system.

Those who reported having already upgraded (and the software upgrade often results in so much more complexity that a hardware upgrade is required as well) reported an average cost of $16,000 per physician to do the upgrade.

And no, there is no HITECH subsidy for that little investment.

Two points jump out.

• You can't overstate this new reality -- Physician IT is going to be a constantly evolving world, with changes being driven by government regulations, market forces, and evolving technology converging to drive virtually non-stop change for years to come.  This is not going to end, so stop thinking that if you just hang in there for a few months this will pass.  This is your new reality.
• Unless you have a tree out back printing $16,000 bills, you better think strategically about your IT strategy, infrastructure, software platform, and implementation/delivery partners.  With the wrong relationships and direction, this type of recurring cost could kill your practice.