Gwinnett Health System Selects Computer-Assisted Coding Solution from Ingenix and A-Life Medical to Improve Medical Coding Efficiency

Gwinnett Health System will use an advanced coding solution from Ingenix and A-Life Medical Inc. to help process its growing volume of medical claims, improve coding accuracy and reduce administrative costs.

Gwinnett Health System, which includes two acute-care facilities, an inpatient rehabilitation center and a skilled nursing facility, serves one of the nation’s fastest-growing communities. As the health system provides medical care to more patients, its claims administration workload and expenses are increasing.

Ingenix has combined its Web.Strat encoding tool with A-Life Medical’s computer-assisted coding technology to help health care facilities like Gwinnett improve claim coding accuracy, increase staff productivity and control administrative costs. The solution is supported by LifeCode®, a proprietary natural language processing system that automates the reading of clinical documentation, deciphers the meaning and context of words within medical records and recommends the appropriate codes. Medical coding staff at Gwinnett Health System can then either confirm the suggested codes or conduct additional research to validate them.

"The solution from Ingenix and A-Life Medical will enable us to manage our growing volume of medical claims much more efficiently,” said Carol Fowler, Gwinnett Health System director of health information management. "In addition to helping us resolve serious business and resource challenges, these technologies will be an integral foundation for impending regulatory and performance management initiatives.”

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will require all health care organizations to transition to coding medical transactions with the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems 10th Revision (ICD-10) by Oct. 1, 2013. The new index replaces ICD-9, which included approximately 17,000 medical codes, with a significantly expanded and more highly detailed taxonomy of more than 155,000 codes.

CMS is implementing ICD-10 to support better analysis of medical conditions and health care quality improvement efforts; however, the dramatic expansion of potential codes stands to make medical coding workflows more complex and time-consuming. Advanced coding solutions from Ingenix and A-Life Medical will enable Gwinnett to manage increased coding demands without expanding its administrative staff.

"Gwinnett Health System is a model for using advanced technology to address issues of cost and compliance,” said Ron Jones, senior vice president of Hospital Solutions at Ingenix. "Ingenix provides comprehensive solutions to our clients’ business challenges. By working with A-Life Medical, we’re helping hospitals and health systems increase staff productivity, manage their financial health and support their transition to ICD-10.”

"As hospital coding requirements become more complex, Ingenix and A-Life Medical have the necessary tools and services to ensure hospitals can meet new requirements,” said Jaye Connolly, president at A-Life Medical.

About Gwinnett Health System in Georgia
Gwinnett Health System is a not-for-profit healthcare network providing award-winning healthcare services to the Gwinnett community and beyond. The system is composed of two acute care facilities, an inpatient rehab center, and a SNF. GHS’s 4,300 associates and 800 physicians serve more than 400,000 patients annually. As part of the system’s vision for transforming healthcare, GHS was recently approved to offer open heart services for the citizens of Gwinnett County. To learn more, visit www.gwinnettmedicalcenter.org.

About A-Life Medical
San Diego-based A-Life Medical, Inc. is the pioneer and leading provider of computer-assisted coding products and services for the healthcare industry. Using its proprietary and patented Natural Language Processing (NLP) technology, A-Life deciphers electronic transcribed patient encounters via the Internet through its data center, which are then appropriately coded for reimbursement purposes.

A-Life’s solutions address medical coding needs within the physician and hospital sectors. The company processes in excess of five million transactions monthly, has thousands of users and provides coding services to more than 40,000 physicians nationwide. Its customers include medical billing companies, physician groups, university medical centers and hospitals. For more information, please visit www.alifemedical.com.

About Ingenix
Ingenix, a UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) company, is a leading provider of health information, technology and consulting services. Organizations, institutions, businesses and government agencies that comprise the health care system depend on Ingenix solutions and insights to improve their performance. Visit www.ingenix.com for more information.