Just in time for everyone to begin reporting financial relationship data on Aug. 1, the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services released two free apps last week to help doctors and manufacturers comply with the OPEN PAYMENTS program and allow them to track and review data from iOS and Android mobile devices.
One app is aimed at physicians, with the intent of ensuring what’s been reported about them is accurate. The other is for manufacturers and GPOs to track accuracy of their reports. This should help everyone involved track transactions in real time.
However, the app does not interact with CMS systems and can’t be used to submit reports. According to the CMS website, it “will not validate the accuracy of data stored in the app, nor will it be responsible for protecting data stored in the app.”
CMS could not be reached for comment. But here are some questions I still have concerning these apps:
Will the app display any reporting data from CMS? Or is it just a one-way push of data to the app?
Do the two separate apps work together so doctors can compare their own tracking to manufacturer or GPO tracking?
How does the error reporting process work? (For instance, if a physician finds an inaccuracy or discrepancy between his reports and a manufacturer’s, what should he do (or whom should he contact) to fix it?
A Deep-dive Into Specialty Pharma
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
If the apps don’t interact and there is no error reporting process, what is the value of these apps over a legal pad or spreadsheet? What’s the point?
Anyone out there have answers? Or is anyone using the app yet? Please leave comments (or more questions) below.
