With the introduction of the HITECH Act in early 2009, there is a plethora of information and misinformation surfacing for providers.  This article is a simple breakdown of the HITECH Act and what it means to healthcare providers as of today.  It is important to note that few absolutes have been defined by governing organizations including the method of dispersal.

The HITECH Act is part of the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act signed by President Obama on February 17, 2009.  It includes $36 Billion in funds available to physicians and healthcare providers for implementation AND USE of an EHR system that is certified by the standards to be set forth near the end of 2009.

Funding is available for physicians and in rural areas some physician’s assistants and nurse practitioners who have Medicare and Medicaid billings.  Practitioners have two options, incentives through Medicare or Medicaid but not both.

Medicare incentives are based on a percentage of Medicare billings up to $44,000 over five years starting in 2011.  Physicians in a health provider shortage area will be eligible for a 10% increase.

Medicaid incentives are for physicians who see more than 30% of patients paying with Medicaid (20% for pediatricians) and are eligible for up to $64,000 over five years with the majority of the payment during the first year, $35,000, and $10,000 over the next 4 years.

The HITECH Act declares that physicians must not only implement an EHR system, but demonstrate “meaningful use.”  Within the Act, meaningful use is defined in three ways:
-    User of a certified product complete with ePrescribing capability as determined appropriate by the Secretary of HHS
-    The EHR technology is connected for the electronic exchange of PHI
-    Complies with submission of reports on clinical quality measures
It is important to note that the standards for certification have not been released yet so no system is currently certified.  Additionally, it is expected that meaningful use will be more clearly defined in the upcoming months as more documentation is released by CMS.

Key Milestones
-    September 2009: CMS releases process for obtaining incentives
-    December 2009: Standards for certification should be released
-    2011: First payments from HITECH will be issued
-    2014: Demonstration of meaningful use required or penalties begin

In short, the HITECH Act is like many new legislation and requires additional definition by the regulatory and oversight organizations within the government that will distribute funding and enforce policy.  While this act will benefit most physicians financially over the next 5 years tremendously, it is important to stay updated regularly on new mandates and interpretations of the law.

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