Would it make sense to do a freedom of information act inquiry to
release the source code for this tool?
Especially if it looks like a number of open source projects are going
to have to duplicate some of it's functionality.
-Brian
Mary Kratz wrote:
>
> Ah, the perfect application of Open Source for US vendors and providers
> alike. HCFA mandates do not add any value to a healthcare software
> application (say a finance app), but ALL US vendors must embed this logic
> in their systems, or no provider will purchase the product
> offering. Trouble is, every vendor interprets the HCFA requirements
> slightly differently. The result is that the data going to HCFA is then
> hard to interpret/use.
>
> Bob Mayes at HCFA had the vision to build a toolset to address these
> issues. MedQuest is the name of the toolset, and HCFA makes it freely
> available off the HCFA web site at http://www.hcfa.gov/medquest/medq1.htm.
>
> Bob's recent efforts focus on metadata. One quickly realizes the benefits
> of metadata in a complex data set, such as HCFA is responsible for. I
> believe the metadata definitions are currently being incorporated into the
> MedQuest offerings, but Bob would know better than I.
>
> If you *really* want the HCFA forms, you can ask HCFA for a copy. I did
> this a few year back, when I took on a position as EDI Coordinator. HCFA
> sent me a package about 15 inches of paper in depth...at least a month's
> worth of reading! Very ugly!!
>
> Hope this helps. I'm sure Bob would like feedback on MedQuest.
>
> -Mary
>
> At 01:00 PM 1/19/00 -0500, Alvin B. Marcelo wrote:
> >Question from an outsider:
> >
> >Which HCFA forms are providers required to submit in the US?
> >
> >Is there a way of connecting a HCFA electronic form to a database so that
> >appropriate fields are extracted from the database, placed on the form,
> >and then printed pdf-like _using open source tools_? I know this can be
> >done with Adobe Acrobat but is there an open source counterpart?
> >
> >Thanks.
> >
> >alvin
> >
> >
> >
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