Raths D. The Path Ahead: Taking the Next Steps Toward Meaningful Use. Healthcare Informatics. December 20, 2011.
“At about the same time this issue of Healthcare Informatics hits your inbox, so will the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for Stage 2 of meaningful use under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act/Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (ARRA-HITECH) Act of 2009. And if the pattern from Stage 1 holds true, there will be several months of tension as provider and vendor organizations push back against regulators, advising the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) that the new measures are too heavy to lift.
Because of the tight timelines they were facing, the advisory committees of the Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) didn’t have the benefit of much provider feedback on Stage 1 before they had to make proposals for Stage 2. But with more time at their disposal, CMS officials will no doubt weigh both what providers are saying about Stage 1 and the number of hospitals and physicians participating. (Only 10 percent of the 778 hospitals in a September 2011 HIMSS Analytics survey reported having the capability to address all 14 core measures and at least five of the 10 menu items. Another 31 percent of the hospitals should be prepared to meet Stage 1 of meaningful use shortly, reported HIMSS Analytics, a division of the Chicago-based Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society.)
The turn of the New Year provides a good vantage point from which CIOs and other healthcare IT leaders can take a look back at Stage 1, and as they begin to ramp up for Stage 2 apply some of the lessons they’ve learned. We asked a few CIOs where the pain points are and if there are things CMS could change to provide more clarity and flexibility and reduce the reporting burden.”
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