National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, Farzad Mostashari, stated last week in a meeting of the Health IT Policy Committee that, “in 2012, Meaningful Use will soar.” He told committee members that, “meaningful Use will continue to be the cornerstone of our activities. We can expect to see the numbers continue to rise.”
The Health IT Policy Committee is vigorous to ensure that every provider can and will be successful at Meaningful Use. “Vendors and providers are going to be asked to step up the challenge – and it is a challenge well worth meeting.”
The Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act provides Health and Human Services (HHS) with the authority to establish programs to improve health care quality, safety, and efficiency through the promotion of health information technology (HIT), including electronic health records and private and secure electronic health information exchange. Under HITECH, eligible health care professionals and hospitals can qualify for Medicare and Medicaid incentive payments when they adopt certified EHR technology and use it to achieve specified objectives.
Two regulations have been released, one of which defines the Meaningful Use objectives that providers must meet to qualify for the bonus payments, and the other which identifies the technical capabilities required for certified EHR technology.
The PQRS incentive payments are available until 2014. Beginning in 2015, EPs who do not satisfactorily report Physician Quality Reporting System measures will be subject to payment adjustments. The EHR incentive program, which began in 2011, allows EPs to earn incentive payments for up to 5 years if they elect to receive their incentive payment through Medicare or up to 6 years if they elect to receive their incentive payment through Medicaid.
Mostashari conceded that many of this year’s goals are the same as 2011, only on a grander scale. “There’s a lot on the table for 2012. There will always be some challenges we meet better than others. Looking back on 2011, it was our biggest EHR adoption year to date. 2012 will be even bigger,” he said. “We got here by being pretty good about staying true to our principles. This doesn’t mean we can’t be bold, but have to keep our feet on the ground.”
The final Meaningful Use criteria have been released to the medical provider community. Since the Stage 1 requirements have been completed, physicians and hospitals that have been hesitant in the past can move forward with in their EHR selections. The Stage 2 criteria are focused on structured data exchange and continuous quality improvement. The Stage 3 criteria are expected to center on advanced decision support and population health. CMS is scheduled to publish the third phase criteria by the end of 2013.
Electronic Health Record Vendors, such as Waiting Room Solutions, a web based EMR vendor, have been helping clients develop the Meaningful Use plan. Waiting Room Solutions now has a significant relaxation of several compliance requirements and are currently reviewing the final rule, in detail, to provide their clients and prospects with an accurate road to Meaningful Use. WRS is providing clients, prospects, and other industry professionals with the knowledge needed to help them accomplish the goals of ARRA and impending Health Care Reform under the new Patient Protection Act.
