The ONC has released proposals for the 2015 Edition of the electronic health record certification criteria.
Compliance with the new criteria would be voluntary. Vendors with products certified under 2014 Edition criteria, and providers with 2014 Edition-certified products, would not need to upgrade or recertify to continue to participate in the meaningful use program.
This is the first time the ONC has proposed certification criteria independently from CMS' meaningful use regulations. Friday's proposal is part of a new regulatory approach from the ONC that focuses on issuing more incremental and frequent rulemaking, according to an ONC statement.
"The proposed 2015 Edition EHR certification criteria reflect ONC's commitment to incrementally improving interoperability and efficiently responding to stakeholder feedback," said National Coordinator for Health IT Karen DeSalvo, MD, in a statement. "We will continue to focus on setting policy and adopting standards that make it possible for healthcare providers to safely and securely exchange electronic health information and for patients to become an integral part of their care team."
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