This advisory discusses a Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Proposed Rule (the “Proposed Rule”) that sets forth the requirements for eligible professionals (EPs) and eligible hospitals to be considered meaningful users of electronic health records (EHRs) and, thereby, qualify for EHR incentive payments. The Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act, which was passed as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), created financial incentives within the Medicare Fee-for-Service (FFS), Medicare Advantage (MA) and Medicaid programs to encourage the use of EHRs. The Proposed Rule specifies the requirements for meaningful use, the calculation for incentive payments and penalties, and other requirements for the three incentive programs.
The advisory is provided in PDF on the Alston & Bird web site: http://www.alston.com/health_care_advisory_electronic_records