HIT Policy Committe Requests Comments on Initial Proposal for Definition of Meaningful Use by June 26 - 6/19/09

On June 16, a workgroup of the HIT Policy Committee of the Office of the National Coordinator for HIT (ONCHIT) issued a draft definition of "meaningful use of eHR" for purposes of receiving Medicare and Medicaid incentive payments under the stimulus legislation. HHS plans to begin incentive payments in 2011 for providers that meet the definition and to impose a Medicare payment penalty on providers that do not meet the standard by 2015.

The Committee has issued a preamble outlining the framework of their proposal and a matrix describing specific objectives and measures that providers will need to satisfy in 2011, 2013 and 2015 in order to meet the "meaningful user" standard. They are requesting comments on the proposals and "seek specific stakeholder feedback on whether the recommended timeline of requirements is overly aggressive based on the current state of technology and the demands on new provider workflows."

We encourage individuals with the relevant expertise within your system to submit comments on this proposal by 5 p.m. on June 26. Comments may be submitted by email to MeaningfulUse@hhs.gov, subject line "Meaningful Use," and should be no more than 2,000 words. The Federal Register notice issuing this draft proposal is available here. A Workgroup presentation containing more detail on the proposal is available here.