Proposed flexibilities in the electronic health record (EHR) meaningful use program have yet to be finalized, leaving physicians in the dark about whether they’ll see more reasonable requirements that can be met before the end of the year. The AMA now is calling on regulators to issue an automatic hardship exemption so physicians aren’t penalized for regulatory delays outside their control.
In April, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued proposed modifications to Stages 1 and 2 of the meaningful use program that would reduce the reporting period from a full calendar year to 90 days. Stakeholders believed this was necessary because many physicians could not update systems, change products, or accommodate Internet outages or other disruptions under a 365-day reporting program. The modifications also are necessary to add flexibility to an overly complex and prescriptive set of meaningful use objectives.
The AMA had called on CMS to finalize the so-called “modifications rule” well ahead of October so physicians would be able to prepare for the proposed changes. But as September disappeared, the agency had yet to issue the final rule.
Meanwhile, many physicians already have left the meaningful use program this year as a result of a pervasive lack of faith in the overall program.
“The AMA welcomed and supported the proposed changes, but it’s now Oct. 1, and CMS has left physicians without any guidance or assurances that they will be capable of meeting program requirements before the end of the year,” AMA President Steven J. Stack, MD, said in a news release Thursday. “As a result, many physicians who were counting on this flexibility will be subject to financial penalties under the rules currently in place.”
Speak out on meaningful use
See what physicians had to say about the meaningful use program and its effect on their patients at a special EHR town hall meeting the AMA held last week at the Massachusetts Medical Society’s headquarters in in Waltham, Mass.
You can add your voice to the mix by visiting BreakTheRedTape.org, or join the discussion on Twitter using #FixEHR.
