CMS’s Andy Slavitt Says MU will End in 2016

Jan. 12, 2016
Although the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently stated that Stage 3 of its meaningful use program will begin as early as 2017, just this week, Andy Slavitt, acting CMS Administrator, said that might not be the case at all.

Although the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently stated that Stage 3 of its meaningful use program will begin as early as 2017, just this week, Andy Slavitt, acting CMS Administrator, said that might not be the case at all.

According to multiple news media reports, Slavitt dropped the news on Monday evening, Jan. 11 at the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference in San Francisco. At the conference, Slavitt reportedly said to mark March 25 as the date CMS would be providing more details on future health IT incentive programs that would focus on patient outcomes rather than using technology. Specifically, according to a Family Practice News report, Slavitt said, “The meaningful use program as it has existed will now be effectively over and replaced with something better.”  He continued, per the report, “We have to get the hearts and minds of physicians back. I think we’ve lost them.”

Slavitt seemed to double down on these sentiments on Twitter on Monday evening, and again on Tuesday, Jan. 12.