IRS Says Not-for-Profit Hospitals Can Pony Up for EMRs

The Internal Revenue Service has stated that not-for-profit hospitals can subsidize their affiliated physicians' costs of acquiring and implementing electronic medical records without violating Stark anti-kickback laws.

The ruling covers both software and technical support for physicians to connect to their hospital's EMR.

Physician financing of EMRs has been identified as a stumbling block to adoption. Last year, the National Alliance for Health Information Technology and the American Hospital Association called attention to the potential tax issues faced by non-for-profit hospitals when providing their doctors with IT funding.