Stimulus Package contains $19 billionfor adoption of Electronic Health Records 19-February-2009 Authors Chanley Howel of Foley & Lardner Charles looks at the Stimulus Healthcare Plan - Article extract from www.wistechnology.com. On February 17, 2009, President Barack H. Obama signed into law the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). This article summarizes the provisions of the ARRA's stimulus expenditures and other stimulus measures relating to health information technology (HIT), including incentives for adoption of electronic health record (EHR) systems. Executive Summary Medicare/Medicaid Incentives Government/Agency Leadership Infrastructure
Other Stimulus Measures Finally, the ARRA adopts additional stimulus spending measures such as:
Summary of HIT/EHR Stimulus Provisions Medicare Incentives for Meaningful Use of Certified EHR Technology The ARRA establishes incentive payments through Medicare for the “meaningful use of certified EHR technology” by eligible professionals and hospitals. As specified in the legislation, an eligible professional will receive incentive payments for the first five years (2011 through 2015) for demonstrating a meaningful use of EHR technology and demonstrated performance during the reporting period for each payment year. If an eligible professional does not demonstrate a meaningful use of EHR technology by 2015, he or she will not receive incentive payments, and his or her reimbursement payments under Medicare will be reduced as specified in the legislation. Professionals eligible for the incentive payments are physicians, dental surgeons, dentists, podiatrists and chiropractors who participate in Medicare. Incentive Payments for Eligible Professionals
Thus, to achieve the maximum incentive payment amount, eligible professionals must adopt a meaningful use of EHR technology in 2011 or 2012, thereby qualifying for five annual payments ending in 2015 or 2016, respectively, for an aggregate maximum payment of $44,000. However, if a professional first adopts EHR technology in 2014, the maximum annual payments are $15,000, $12,000 and $8,000, for an aggregate maximum payment of $35,000. Accordingly, there are direct financial benefits for eligible professionals becoming meaningful users of EHR technology in 2011 or 2012; reduced benefits for adopting EHR in 2013 or 2014; and no benefit for adopting in 2015. (As discussed below, penalties are assessed if the professional has not become a meaningful user by 2015.) Eligible professionals may be eligible to receive a larger incentive amount or may be ineligible altogether under certain circumstances. Incentive payments are increased by 10 percent if the professional predominately serves in an area designated as a health professional shortage area. The EHR incentive payments for professionals are not available to a hospital-based eligible physician such as a pathologist, anesthesiologist, or emergency physician who furnishes substantially all such services in a hospital setting using the hospital's facilities and equipment, including computer equipment. Incentive payments are made available to hospitals in Section 4312 of the ARRA, discussed below. Meaningful Use of EHR Technology
The eligible professional demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Secretary that, during the period, the professional is using a certified EHR technology in a meaningful manner, which will include the use of electronic prescribing as determined to be appropriate by the Secretary The eligible professional demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Secretary that, during such period, such certified EHR technology is connected in a manner that provides, in accordance with law and standards applicable to the exchange of information, for the electronic exchange of health information to improve the quality of health care such as promoting cure coordination The eligible professional submits information on clinical quality measures (the Secretary will select the clinical quality measures and will provide preference to measures that have been endorsed by the consensus-based entity regarding performance measurement with which the Secretary has a contract under Section 1890(a) of the Social Security Act) |
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