CMS extends comment period for EHR certification, quality reporting
Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on February 2 extended the deadline for sending feedback on electronic health record (EHR) certification and quality reporting to February 16, 2016. The request for information is part of an effort by CMS to streamline and reduce the burden of…
FDA: Draft guidance on designing interoperable devices
Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on January 26 published draft guidance for “Design considerations and premarket submission recommendations for interoperable medical devices” to assist medical device manufacturers in designing products that are interoperable and can securely share data. The draft includes factors to consider when developing the…
Nearly 209,000 healthcare providers receive 'meaningful use' penalties
Editor's Note Nearly 209,000 physicians and other healthcare providers will receive 2% cuts in their Medicare payments in 2016 for failing to meet meaningful use standards in 2014. The penalties total an estimated $600 million. Andy Slavitt, acting administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, said on January…
Meaningful Use to end in 2016
Editor's Note The Meaningful Use program will be ending some time in 2016, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services acting administrator, Andy Slavitt, announced January 11. New value-based payment regulations demand a more streamlined regulatory approach, noted Slavitt, speaking at the J P Morgan Healthcare conference in San Francisco.…
Bill allowing MU Stage 2 hardship exemptions signed into law
Editor's Note A bill designed to make it easier for healthcare providers to receive hardship exemption from financial penalties for failing to meet Stage 2 meaningful use (MU) electronic health record (EHR) requirements was signed into law on December 28, 2015, the January 4, 2016, iHealthBeat reports. The bill ensures…
Congress considers MU incentives for ASCs
Editor's Note A Bill in Congress would enable ambulatory surgery center (ASC) physicians to receive the same payment incentives for meaningful use (MU) of electronic health records (EHRs) as physicians in other settings, according to the December 15 Healthcare IT News. Currently, physicians practicing in ASCs are excluded. The Electronic…
Medical societies plead with Congress to fix ‘meaningful use’
Editor's Note A coalition of 111 medical societies on November 4 sent letters asking Senate and House leaders to take legislative action to pause Stage 3 of the electronic health records meaningful use program and revise Stage 2 so that it enables provider success, HealthData Management reports. Stage 3 requirements…
Front-line staff input helps build a better EHR system
Electronic health records (EHRs) are here to stay, but implementation and optimal use are still lacking. Respondents to the 25th annual OR Manager Salary/Career Survey identified many issues, including the amount of time it takes to document in an EHR, lack of integration with other systems, physicians not fully using…
US News & World Report lists ‘Most Connected Hospitals’
Editor's Note The US News & World Report has released its 2015-2016 Most Connected Hospitals list. Included are 159 hospitals in 37 states that have made significant strides in implementing technologies to enhance the digital exchange of information. Ohio has the most hospitals on the list at 23, followed by…
OIG warns against using EHRs to block information
Editor's Note An Office of Inspector General (OIG) alert reminds healthcare professionals and hospitals that information blocking in health information technology (IT) is a problem, and steps to prevent interoperability of an electronic health record (EHR) platform or services with other IT systems is not subject to safe harbor protections…
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