INFORMATION BLOCKING RULE EFFECTIVE APRIL 5, 2021: ARE PROVIDERS READY?

By Kathie McDonald-McClure and Margaret Young Levi

The Information Blocking Final Rule, a provision of the 21st Century Cures Act geared towards ensuring access, exchange and use of electronic health information (EHI), was published on May 1, 2020, and became effective on June 20, 2020. However, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC) extended the compliance effective dates for the Final Rule several times over the last year—and most providers were hopeful that it would be extended once again—but there are no more delays. Information Blocking compliance is now effective, as of April 5, 2021. Health care providers should take immediate steps to ensure compliance.

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Stages 1, 2, And Now 3, Meaningful Use Criteria

April 17, 2015 Margaret Young Levi Electronic Health Records, Health Information Technology, HITECH Law, Meaningful Use CEHRT, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, CMS, EHR, Health Information Technology, Meaningful Use, Medicaid Electronic Health Record, Medicare Electronic Health Record, ONC

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) proposed Meaningful Use criteria to implement Stage 3 and allow eligible professionals, eligible hospitals and critical access hospitals (“CAHs”) to qualify for incentive payments (or avoid downward payment adjustments) under the Medicare and Medicaid Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive Program implemented by the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (“HITECH”) Act of 2009. Then CMS made changes to Stage 1 and Stage 2 Meaningful Use criteria to better align with the proposed Stage 3 criteria just two weeks later.

On March 30, 2015, CMS published a long-awaited proposed rule which, if finalized, would implement Stage 3, making changes to the objectives and measures of meaningful use for providers effective in Continue reading →

HHS Announces Dramatic Increase in Adoption of Electronic Health Records

May 23, 2013March 12, 2014 Kathie McDonald-McClure Electronic Health Records, Eligible Professional Incentives, Health care reform, Health Information Technology, HITECH Law, Hospital EHR Incentives, Meaningful Use, Physician EMR Stimulus ARRA, Electronic Health Records, Health Information Technology, HITECH Act, linkedin, meaningful use of certified EHR, ONC

On May 22, 2013, Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of the United States Health & Human Services Department, announced that over 50 percent of doctors and over 80 percent of hospitals are making a “meaningful use” of electronic health records (EHRs) and have received incentives for such use. By comparison, in 2008, just nine percent had adopted EHRs. Secretary Sebelius credits the “dramatic increase” in adoption of EHRs to the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH Act) that was passed as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). The HITECH Act awards incentives to eligible professionals (physicians) and hospitals who make a “meaningful use” of EHR technology that has been certified by the HHS Office of National Coordinator of Health Information Technology (ONC). The HHS press release with further information is available here.

The Ball is Now in Play to Extend the EHR Safe Harbor!

April 13, 2013March 12, 2014 Kathie McDonald-McClure Electronic Health Records, Fraud and Abuse, Health Information Technology, HITECH Law Anti-Kickback Statute safe harbor for EHR donations, EHR donations, Electronic Health Records, Health Information Technology, HITECH Act, linkedin, ONC, Stark Law exception for EHR donation

By Ann F. Triebsch and Kathie McDonald-McClure

Barely two weeks after Rep. Jim McDermott (D-Wash) sent a letter to the HHS Office of the Inspector General (OIG) requesting that the Anti-Kickback Statute’s “safe harbor” allowing hospitals to donate electronic health record (EHR) items and services to physicians be extended, the OIG has proposed a rule to do exactly that. On April 10, 2013, the OIG proposed a rule to extend the Anti-Kickback Statute safe harbor from December 31, 2013, to December 31, 2016. On the same date, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) proposed a complementary rule to extend the Stark Law’s similar EHR exception to December 31, 2016.

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House Calls for Suspension of EHR Incentive Payments under HITECH Act

October 5, 2012April 16, 2013 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 EHR Certification Standards, Electronic Health Records, eligible professional incentives for electronic medical records, Health care reform, Health Information Technology, HITECH Act, hospital incentives for EHRs, linkedin, Meaningful Use, ONC, privacy and security of health information exchange, Stage 2

On 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 →

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A legal blog about consumer and business data privacy and security in a high tech world

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