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ICD-10: An Important and Positive Change

April 1, 2021
April 1, 2021

By Lee Ann Bryant, Associate Product Manager, HealthStream

If you work in any healthcare environment, you know how inundated we have become with information around ICD-10--most of it leaning towards the negative end of the spectrum. Yes, there is a lot to learn. Yes, there are time and financial burdens involved. Yes, it is one of the most significant changes ever for the healthcare industry. And Robert Tagalicod, Director, Office of E-Health Standards and Services, reminds us why it is an important and positive change and why it should matter to us.

 Why ICD-10 Matters:

  • ICD-10 Advances Healthcare and the Implementation of eHealth Initiatives
    • ICD-10 is essential to healthcare reform and the CMS eHealth Initiative and is part of the overall goal – the triple aim to achieve better care, better access and better health while lowering costs.
    • eHealth programs such as ICD-10, Administrative Simplification, the Medicare and Medicaid Electronic Health Record Incentive Programs, and quality reporting programs like the Physician Quality Reporting System are all aimed at accomplishing this goal. 
    • Together, these eHealth programs will provide greater interoperability, easier data sharing, better quality measurement, improved clinical outcomes, and lower costs.
  • ICD-10 Captures Advances in Medicine and Medical Technology
    • ICD–10 captures new procedures that lead to innovative health care and medical breakthroughs.
  • ICD-10 Improves Data for Quality Reporting
    • Many quality measures rely on ICD diagnosis codes. ICD-10 provides better data for quality reporting and outcomes measurement.
  • ICD-10 Improves Public Health Research, Reporting, and Surveillance
    • ICD-10 is more effective at capturing public health diseases due to its greater specificity. Federal, state, and local officials, including researchers, will use ICD-10 diagnosis codes for public health research, reporting and surveillance.
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