EHR Certification Standards

AHIMA Issues Guidance on Appropriate Use of Copy and Paste in EHRs

Kathie McDonald-McClure EHR Certification Standards, Electronic Health Records, Fraud and Abuse, Health Information Technology, HITECH Law, Meaningful Use , , , , , ,

16354859As we have written about in previous posts, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) for the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has been critical of the copy/paste function that is available in electronic health record (EHR) technology developed by software vendors.  (See “Electronic Health Records in OIG’s Sights for 2013“, October 20, 2012; “OIG recommends fraud safeguards in hospital EHR technology“, December 11, 2013; “OIG Report on CMS’ EHR Audit Practices Concludes The Practices Are Not Very Sophisticated“, February 11, 2014)  As our February 11, 2014 post concludes, while turning off the copy/paste functionalities are not the immediate solution to preventing a misuse of the function, health care providers should implement standards for its use.  The American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) recently issued guidance, “Appropriate Use of the Copy and Paste Functionality in Electronic Health Records,” dated March 17, 2014, discussing the availability and appropriate use of the copy and paste function.

AHIMA supports maintaining the copy/paste functionality in ONC’s EHR certification standards and allowing for its use in CMS Conditions of Participation.  AHIMA encourages CMS to augment provider education and training materials on the appropriate use of copy/paste in order to reduce the risk that it may pose to quality of care, patient safety and fraudulent documentation.  Importantly, AHIMA recommends that health care providers implement policies and procedures to guide users of EHRs on the proper use of copy/paste functionalities.  To read the AHIMA guidance, click here.

CMS Extends Stage 2 Meaningful Use through 2016

Kathie McDonald-McClure EHR Certification Standards, Electronic Health Records, Eligible Professional Incentives, Health Information Technology, HITECH Law, Hospital EHR Incentives, Meaningful Use , , , , , ,

Keyboard and stethoscopeOn Friday, November 6, 2013, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Office of National Coordinator of Health Information Technology (ONC) announced its proposal to extend the timeline by which eligible healthcare providers must demonstrate a “meaningful use” (MU) of a certified electronic health record (EHR) in compliance with the MU Stage 2 criteria set forth in regulations issued pursuant to the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act of 2009.   Originally, eligible providers who demonstrated Stage 1 MU by the end of 2013 would have had to demonstrate at least 3 months of Stage 2 MU by September 30, 2014 for eligible hospitals and critical access hospitals (CAHs) and by December 31, 2014 for eligible professionals, do one more year of Stage 2 in 2015, and then move to Stage 3 by 2016.  The CMS – ONC apparently will give all eligible providers more time to stay in Stage 2, stating: “Under the revised timeline, Stage 2 will be extended through 2016 and Stage 3 will begin in 2017 for those providers that have completed at least two years in Stage 2.” In essence, the start of Stage 3 is being delayed and, apparently (pending further rule making), nothing else.

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ONC revokes two EHR product certifications — review your vendor contract warranties!

Kathie McDonald-McClure EHR Certification Standards, Electronic Health Records, Eligible Professional Incentives, Health Information Technology, HITECH Law, Hospital EHR Incentives, Meaningful Use , , , , , , , ,

man planningOn April 25, 2013, the Officer of National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) announced that it had revoked certification for two electronic health record (EHR) products that the ONC had previously certified for use as part of the incentive program implemented pursuant to the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act of 2009 (HITECH Act).   The products for which ONC revoked certification are EHRMagic-Ambulatory and EHRMagic-Inpatient.  The ONC’s press release with additional information is available here.

Whether the providers who purchased these products in reliance on the previous ONC certification will be able to recoup their investment in these products may depend on the terms of any vendor agreement signed between the parties.  For providers who are purchasing ONC-certified products, this development highlights the importance of examining the provider’s EHR vendor agreement to ensure that it contains adequate warranty and indemnification provisions that will protect the provider in case the vendor’s product is de-certified by the ONC.  Importantly, without “certified EHR technology”, the provider will not qualify for the HITECH Act’s meaningful use incentive payments.

House Calls for Suspension of EHR Incentive Payments under HITECH Act

Kathie McDonald-McClure EHR Certification Standards, Eligible Professional Incentives, Federal Law Resources, Health care reform, Health Information Technology, HITECH Law, Hospital EHR Stimulus, Meaningful Use , , , , , , , , , , ,

Hands on keyboard in circleOn Thursday, October 4, 2012, in a letter to Secretary Sebelius of the United States Department of Health & Human Services (HHS), the United States House GOP called on HHS to suspend incentive payments for the adoption and implementation of electronic health records (EHRs) otherwise authorized under the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act of 2009 (HITECH Act).  The GOP also asked HHS to delay the imposition of penalties on providers who choose not to use EHRs in their practice (such penalties that pursuant to the HITECH Act provisions are to take the form of reductions in Medicare reimbursements in 2015).  Continue reading →

Final Rules for Stage 2 EHR Incentive Programs Released

Margaret Young Levi EHR Certification Standards, Electronic Health Records, Eligible Professional Incentives, Health Information Technology, HITECH Law, Hospital EHR Stimulus, Meaningful Use , , , , , , , , , ,

First, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released the long-awaited final rule to govern Stage 2 of the Medicare and Medicaid Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive Programs. The rule specifies the Stage 2 criteria that eligible professionals (EPs), eligible hospitals, and critical access hospitals (CAHs) must meet in order to continue to participate in the EHR Incentive Programs.

  • Click here for the full text of CMS’s final rule.
  • Click here to see the fact sheet on CMS’s final rule.

Second,  the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) also announced a related final rule, which specifies the technical capabilities and related standards and implementation specifications that Certified EHR Technology will need to include to support the achievement of meaningful use by EPs, eligible hospitals, and CAHs under the EHR Incentive Programs.

  • Click here for the full text of the ONC rule.
  • Click here  to read a fact sheet on ONC’s standards and certification criteria final rule.

Stay tuned.  We will be posting more about these final rules in the days to come.