Feds Ramp Up Push for Meaningful Use of Digital Health Records

The nation's health IT czar and the head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued a joint statement encouraging states to help CMS meet its 2012 goal of paying incentives to 100,000 health care providers for achieving "meaningful use" of electronic health records.

Acting CMS Administrator Marilyn Tavenner and Dr. Farzad Mostashari, national coordinator for health IT, steered clear of criticizing states in their joint post in the CMS Blog. But they said the effort could not succeed unless states "and our many other health IT partners" join in the effort.

As InformationWeek noted in an article today, 12 states have yet to launch their Medicaid incentive programs. That should soon change. The article quotes a CMS official saying the agency expected all states to be making Medicaid incentive payments by June.

The government incentive programs aim to encourage hospitals and medical practices to digitize their records by offering cash reimbursements through Medicare and Medicaid. States administer Medicaid funds.

"Working together with state Medicaid programs and CMS regional offices, many states are partnering with local stakeholder organizations to make sure providers get the help and encouragement to achieve 'meaningful use,' and assistance with overcoming any barriers that are blocking their progress," Tavenner and Mostashari wrote.

Money already has begun flowing. In examples cited by Tavenner and Mostashari:

• More than 59,000 providers and 2,000 hospitals have received incentive payments through the EHR programs, receiving more than $2 billion in Medicare incentives and $1.8 billion in Medicaid incentive payments as of Feb. 29.
• More than 120,000 providers, representing approximately 40 percent of primary care providers nationwide, enrolled with regional extension centers for help adopting EHRs.

The American College of Cardiology, meanwhile, is pushing for one-third of its membership, or about 8,000 cardiologists, to achieve meaningful use of EHRs this year, note Tavenner and Mostashari.