Last week, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced it would be modifying meaningful use requirements to streamline the program’s reporting procedures for physicians. After years of aggressive advocacy to make the program less burdensome for physicians, this is hugely welcome news to the AMA.
The agency is considering two changes to the program that could affect physicians:
- Modifying aspects of the program to match long-term goals, reduce complexity and lessen physicians’ and hospitals’ reporting burdens
- Shortening the EHR reporting period in 2015 to 90 days to accommodate these changes
The agency’s announcement is vague right now, and nothing will be decided until the spring. Still, we are pleased with these developments so far. We know CMS will be making changes to the meaningful use program when it releases a proposed rule on the upcoming Stage 3 in early March. But by making changes to Stage 2 of the program, we can be sure that CMS is listening to physicians.
We’ve provided recommendations for revamping the electronic health record (EHR) certification process, a blueprint for fixing the meaningful use program and a framework for improving EHR usability. Not to mention the many letters we’ve sent and countless meetings held with administration officials urging more flexibility and time to meet measures and improved quality reporting options.
It appears that CMS is listening. It is our hope that, with the new rule, the agency will better align meaningful use with other quality reporting programs, including the Physician Quality Reporting System and the value-based modifier. We also hope that the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT will address problems with interoperability and support technologies that provide the ability for information to be exchanged, incorporated and presented to a physician in a contextual and meaningful manner.
Clearly, change is necessary. According to CMS data released in mid-December, more than 50 percent of eligible professionals will face payment penalties this year because they could not fulfill meaningful use requirements. Only about 3 percent of physicians and other eligible providers had attested to Stage 2 of meaningful use in 2014, highlighting the difficulty of the program.
As part of our blue print for fixing the program, we’re recommending:
- A more flexible approach for meeting meaningful use
- Expanding hardship exemptions for all stages
- Improving quality reporting
- Addressing physician EHR usability challenges
We’ll keep physicians posted on any developments that come from this announcement. The AMA looks forward to continuing our advocacy to reduce unnecessary administrative burdens and make health information technology work better for patients and physicians.
