CMS, Aug. 23 — Today, HHS’ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and HHS’ Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT released final requirements for stage 2 MU that hospitals and healthcare providers must meet in order to qualify for incentives during the second stage of the program, and criteria that electronic health records must meet to achieve certification.
The requirements announced today:
- Make clear that stage two of the program will begin as early as 2014. No providers will be required to follow the Stage 2 requirements outlined today before 2014.
- Outline the certification criteria for the certification of EHR technology, so eligible professionals and hospitals may be assured that the systems they use will work, help them meaningfully use health information technology, and qualify for incentive payments.
- Modify the certification program to cut red tape and make the certification process more efficient.
- Allow current “2011 Edition Certified EHR Technology” to be used until 2014.
The CMS final rule also provides a flexible reporting period for 2014 to give providers sufficient time to adopt or upgrade to the latest EHR technology certified for 2014.
A fact sheet on CMS’s final rule is available at www.cms.gov/apps/media/fact_sheets.asp.
A detailed fact sheet on ONC’s standards and certification criteria final rule is available at healthit.hhs.gov/standardsandcertification.
The final rules announced today may be viewed at www.ofr.gov/inspection.aspx?AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1.
More information on the Stage 2 rule can be found at the CMS EHR Incentive Programs website at www.cms.gov/EHRIncentivePrograms.
