Every day, it seems something new is happening in the healthcare industry. Whether it's greater innovations in technology, breaking compliance news or even the growing threat of data hacking, there's a lot going on in healthcare. So you're able to catch up on all of the relevant news, lunchtime links will be a valuable resource for you to read about what's going on in the industry in one place, rather than searching all over the Internet.

While the current ICD-10 “grace period” offers physicians at least some protection against gratuitous rejections as everyone adjusts to the new system, this concession will end on October 1 2016. This means that, in a matter of months, all physicians in the U.S. will be expected to code in ICD-10 with a high level of proficiency and specificity. Those who cannot will likely experience a sudden uptick in rejected claims, as well as open themselves up to the possibility of non-compliance fines from Health and Human Services (HHS).

Last month at the 2016 Annual Aesthetic Meeting, longtime Nextech client and board-certified plastic surgeon Dr. Daniel Mills was elected as the new President of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS). “It is an honor to assume the role of President of The Aesthetic Society," Dr. Mills said in an ASAPS press release. "We are truly a unique organization, consisting of top-tier board-certified aesthetic plastic surgeons. I welcome the opportunity to work with our Board of Directors and specialized committees to advance our public and physician education enterprises as well as our patient safety initiatives." Dr. Mills is currently the Medical Director at Laguna Beach Rejuvenation and Wellness and performs aesthetic operations at his Laguna Beach practice, Aesthetic Plastic Surgical Institute. He has been a Nextech client since 1997.

Healthcare IT has grown exponentially over the past few years thanks to initiatives like Meaningful Use and the increase of cloud technology within the industry. Unsurprisingly, that growth is expected to continue according to a report from Research and Markets. In the company's "Healthcare IT Market by Product & by End User - Global Forecast to 2020" report, the global healthcare IT market is estimated to reach a whopping $228.79 billion by 2020.

"This matters. It's a matter of life and death." Those were the words of Vice President Joe Biden on Monday when he spoke at the Health Datapalooza in Washington, DC. The importance of healthcare IT and data sharing isn't lost on Biden. He experienced it firsthand as his son, Beau, was fighting cancer over a year ago. The Vice President described how difficult it was for the different hospitals his son received care at to share information.

MACRA and Meaningful Use. MIPS and Advancing Care Information. You've probably heard these phrases quite a bit over the past week - and for good reason. With the announcement that under the newly proposed MACRA rule, Meaningful Use would end on Jan. 1, 2017, has been a big story in the healthcare industry. The proposed rule would end Meaningful Use, and instead, create Advancing Care Information, a program that would be incorporated into the Merit-based Payment System (MIPS). As of now, these changes would only affect eligible providers and not hospitals. So as an eligible provider, what exactly do you need to know about all of these proposed changes?

In January, Nextech acquired plastic surgery EMR and office management provider SupraMed, further cementing the company’s commitment to delivering top-tier specialty-specific EMR and practice management solutions. We caught up with Dr. Robert Pollack, SupraMed founder and board certified plastic surgeon, to tell us more about what the acquisition means to the plastic surgery market.

Last week, the Department of Health and Human Services announced a major change was coming to the healthcare IT industry - the MACRA proposed rule would end Meaningful Use, as it's conducted today, on Jan. 1, 2017. Instead, Meaningful Use would be replaced by Advancing Care Information, which would be implemented into the Merit-based Payment System (MIPS). Those within the healthcare IT industry reacted quickly to the big news with responses ranging from hopeful to critical. RELATED: MACRA Proposed Rule Will Replace Meaningful Use for Eligible Providers