HHS Releases Final EHR Rules for Incentive Programs, 2015 Edition Health IT

Most large medical groups responded positively to CMS’ Stage 3 final ruling on Meaningful Use citing flexibility for meeting the program requirements and support for the 90-day reporting period for 2015.

New final rules to advance electronic health records make significant changes in current requirements, offering providers and physicians greater flexibility in meaningful use requirements, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

The Office of National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) is concurrently publishing its related final rule for 2015 Edition Health IT Certification Criteria (2015 Edition).

The modifications also require a 90-day reporting period for all eligible providers in 2015, while Stage 3 Meaningful Use is optional in 2017 and not effective for all providers until 2018.

“We eliminated unnecessary requirements, simplified and increased flexibility for those that remain, and focused on interoperability, information exchange and patient engagement”, said Patrick Conway, deputy administrator for innovation and quality and chief medical officer at CMS.

American Osteopathic Association Vice President of Public Policy Laura Wooster expressed disappointment that the timeline for Stage 3 was not “more aligned” with the Medicaid and CHIP Reauthorization Act (Frieden, MedPage Today, 10/7).

“In particular, the agency addressed the delay in issuing the modifications rule by allowing a hardship exemption for physicians who are unable to attest this year, providing needed relief for those uncertain about the 2015 program requirements”, Stack said.

“And since providers have already started to work towards the existing definitions of Stage 1 and Stage 2 before the changes were finalized, we have created alternative exclusions and specifications within the individual objectives for those providers who previously scheduled to be at Stage 1 of the EHR Incentive Programs”, Holland explained. Members of the College of Health Information Management Executives, however, is on the bus with where the CMS is heading with the meaningful-use regulations.

The changes are meant to make it easier for providers to meet the tougher health IT standards, which were announced in April. We urge CMS to use the additional public comment period provided for Stage 3 to further improve the program…

Senators wrote that although most of the hospitals and the physicians meet the required certification for the implementation of the first stage of the meaningful use program, the requirements for stage 2 of the program are so elaborate and demanding that only 12% of the physicians and circa 40 percent of hospitals around the United States that have been eligible to join the program chose to comply with it.

Good news for Stage 3 program implentation protocols.

A few privacy and security experts, however, point out the rules spotlight the importance of safeguarding electronic protected health information through measures such as risk analysis, encryption and secure data exchange.

However, he said, more work needs to be done. As part of the rule, CMS opened up a 60-day comment period, asking for feedback on Stage 3 of the EHR Incentive Program, as it relates to MACRA. “These steps will improve the reliability of certified health IT and provide more purchasing power to providers”, CMS says. They really didn’t change anything beyond the two rules becoming one regulation. That rule, according to ONC, focuses on increasing interoperability and improving transparency and competition in the health IT marketplace.

CMS is continuing to seek public comment on the “meaningful use” rule for 60 days. The American Hospital Association called the rules “a mixed bag for hospitals and health systems and the patients they serve”. In addition, she said in a statement that HIMSS typically calls for at least 18 months between the publication of a new Meaningful Use rule and the start of a new Stage’s reporting period, and that the 27 months provided in this rule satisfy that requirement.