The American Medical Association has approved a new policy calling for the penalties to be removed from the federal government's meaningful use program.
The AMA noted interoperability, which is an industry-wide challenge, is a more pressing focus for health IT implementation and should be the true focus of meaningful use. "The AMA has been calling for policymakers to refocus the meaningful use program on interoperability for quite some time. The whole point of the meaningful use incentive program was to allow for the secure exchange of information across settings and providers...interoperable electronic health records are a pathway to achieving that goal," said Steven J. Stack, MD, AMA's president-elect.
The policy comes on the heels of recent data showing MU attestation for Stage 2 remains low, despite approaching deadlines.
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