The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has laid out the details for how it will raise the bar for healthcare providers to qualify for incentives with the release Feb. 23 of its proposed rule for Stage 2 of meaningful use of electronic health records. Among its provisions, CMS will delay the start of Stage 2 until 2014 instead of 2013. As expected, the next stage of meaningful use builds [...]
Health Data Management is now accepting nominations for its 2nd Annual EHR Game Changers recognition program, created to honor individuals who have been true game changers in the design, advocacy, deployment and development of electronic health records technology. Individuals from across the spectrum of industry stakeholders–hospitals, group practices, payers, associations, federal and state governments, and health technology vendors–have helped in the evolution of EHR technology and its increasing adoption by [...]
Physicians understand the potential of health information technology to help improve patient care, and doctors are willing to work with the federal government through incentive programs designed to encourage more practices to go paperless. But the government went too far when designing the punitive side of some of these incentives, tying penalties to burdensome, unfair and even unrealistic mandates on many of the practices that are trying to work toward [...]
By Joseph Conn The CMS has announced the awarding of a total of just over $9 million in matching funds to be used by four states to plan for their Medicaid programs to subsidize provider purchases and the use of electronic health-record systems under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, also known as the stimulus law. The states and their grant amounts are: New Jersey, $4.93 million; Louisiana, [...]
By Neil Versel If nothing else, it should at least be easy to register to receive federal incentive payments for meaningful use of EMRs. CMS has awarded a $1.6 million contract to CGI Federal, a Fairfax, Va.-based unit of Montreal-based technology consulting firm CGI Group, to revise the existing Provider Enrollment Chain Ownership System (PECOS) so physicians and hospitals can attest to meeting the requirements for meaningful use that will [...]
Health care industry experts expect recent policy changes to spur more physicians to start prescribing medications electronically in the coming years, the Wall Street Journal reports. Trends in E-Prescribing A recent report from the electronic prescribing network Surescripts found that the number of prescriptions submitted electronically increased from 68 million in 2008 to 191 million in 2009. According to Surescripts, about 25% of all office-based physicians have the technology necessary [...]
On Thursday, CMS awarded federal stimulus funding to six state Medicaid programs for planning activities related to the implementation of an electronic health record incentive program, AHA News reports. Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, states can receive a 90% federal match for planning activities to: Administer EHR incentive payments to Medicaid providers; Ensure proper payments through audits; and Promote interoperability and “meaningful use” of EHRs (AHA [...]
CMS must pay special attention to ensure that the final version of the proposed “meaningful use” rule for electronic health records fits with other rules for standards and certification, as well at the interim final rule for the certification of EHRs, Government Health IT reports. Earlier this year, CMS published a notice of proposed rulemaking describing how health care providers can demonstrate meaningful use of certified EHRs to qualify for [...]
The American Academy of Family Physicians is calling for significant changes to “meaningful use” criteria that will be used to determine whether health care providers are eligible for federal subsidies for health IT usage, Modern Healthcare reports. In a seven-page letter to acting CMS Administrator Charlene Frizzera, Ted Epperly, chair of AAFP’s board of directors, wrote that the group agrees with many of the criteria’s stated goals, but urged CMS [...]
By, Diana Manos WASHINGTON – The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will grant Alaska, Kentucky, South Carolina and Wisconsin federal matching funds for EHR implementations. The funding is allotted under The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The grants cosist of: $900,000 for Alaska; $2.6 million for Kentucky; $1.48 million for South Carolina; and $1.37 million for Wisconsin According to CMS officials, matching state funding for EHR adoption is “another [...]
Practices that have been waiting for CMS to define the term “meaningful use” are finally in luck. But as is always the case when the feds are involved, don’t look for a quick one-sentence definition. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Bill of 2009 (ARRA) offers annual bonuses to practices that show “meaningful use” of electronic health records, and in 2015, practices that aren’t showing meaningful use will face penalties. On [...]
The Centers for Medicare & Medicare Services (CMS) and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) encourage public comment on two regulations issued today that lay a foundation for improving quality, efficiency and safety through meaningful use of certified electronic health record (EHR) technology. The regulations will help implement the EHR incentive programs enacted under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act). A [...]
Last week, CMS released proposed regulations defining the “meaningful use” of electronic health records, Reuters reports (Wutkowski/Heavey, Reuters, 12/31/09). In addition, the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT released an interim final rule describing the required certification standards for EHR technology (Simmons, HealthLeaders Media, 12/31/09). Under the 2009 federal economic stimulus package, health care providers who demonstrate meaningful use of certified EHRs will qualify for incentive payments through [...]
Article by Ryan The HITECH Stimulus Act is legislation designed to promote the adoption of Electronic Health Records (EHRs) among physicians. Passed near the beginning of 2009, the HITECH Act will reimburse qualified physicians who purchase and implement a certified EHR system. If a physician’s practice includes 30% Medicaid patients or more, they could qualify for up to $64,000. Medicare incentives could total up to $44,000, depending upon allowable charges. [...]
After federal officials publish an interim rule on the “meaningful use” of electronic health records, the Health IT Standards Committee will use public comments to shape a final version of the rule, according to John Halamka, vice chair of the committee, Government Health IT reports. Halamka spoke last week during the panel’s final meeting of the year. The Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT is scheduled to release [...]
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