In a letter to HHS Sec. Kathleen Sebelius, the American Hospital Association, the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives, the American Medical Association, the American Health Information Management Association and 45 other healthcare organizations urged HHS to provide flexibility in the meaningful use attestation timeline, especially for this year.
According to the letter, more than 5,000 hospitals and 550,000 physicians and other professionals must adopt 2014 Edition electronic health record technology and attest to meaningful use, or face loss of incentive payments in addition to financial penalties in 2015.
However, only a small fraction of 2011 Edition certified electronic health record technologies have currently received 2014 Edition certification. "It is clear the pace and scope of change have outstripped the ability of vendors to support providers. This inhibits the ability of providers to manage the transition to the 2014 Edition CEHRT and stage 2 in a safe and orderly manner."
The letter writers therefore recommend an extension of the deadline to implement 2014 Edition CEHRT through 2015, as well as continued flexibility in the meaningful use attestation timeline.
"This additional time and new flexibility are vitally important to ensure that hospitals and physicians continue moving forward with technology to improve patient care. By making such changes, HHS would be demonstrating needed flexibility to maximize program success, without compromising momentum towards interoperability and care coordination supported by health IT," according to the letter.
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