Advion Advocacy - Health Information Technology Upon taking office, President Obama promised to "invest $10 billion a year over the next five years to move the U.S. health care system to broad adoption of standards-based electronic health information systems, including electronic health records." The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act ("stimulus package or ARRA") and Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH) included $19 billion to modernize health information technology and offered Medicare and Medicaid incentive payments for physicians and hospitals for the purchase and adoption of health IT. Medicare and Medicaid Electronic Health Records (EHR) Incentive Programs The Medicare and Medicaid EHR Incentive Programs will provide incentive payments to eligible professionals, eligible hospitals and critical access hospitals (CAHs) as they adopt, implement, upgrade or demonstrate meaningful use of certified EHR technology. Medicare EHR Incentive Program Meaningful Use of Certified EHRs What is the difference between "EMR" and "EHR"? Sometimes people use the terms "Electronic Medical Record" or "EMR" when talking about Electronic Health Record (EHR) technology. Very often an Electronic Medical Record or EMR is just another way to describe an Electronic Health Record or EHR, and both providers and vendors sometimes use the terms interchangeably. For the purposes of the Medicare and Medicaid Incentive Programs, eligible professionals, eligible hospitals and critical access hospitals (CAHs) must use certified EHR technology. Certified EHR Technology Certified EHR technology gives assurance to purchasers and other users that an EHR system or module offers the necessary technological capability, functionality, and security to help them meet the meaningful use criteria. Certification also helps providers and patients be confident that the electronic health IT products and systems they use are secure, can maintain data confidentially, and can work with other systems to share information. For more information about which EHR systems and modules are certified for the Medicare and Medicaid EHR Incentive Programs, click here. ONC Publishes 2011-2015 Federal Health IT Strategic Plan ONC Publishes Permanent Certification for HIT Final Regulation (January 20, 2011) More on CCHIT certification of LTPAC EHRs Advion believes the benefits of HIT cannot be fully realized unless it is available along the entire spectrum of care. By extending incentives to long term and post-acute care providers Congress would be enhancing significantly the ability of these programs to honor our commitment to delivering quality, cost-effective care to beneficiaries. NASL advocates for standardized, interoperable health information technology to facilitate care coordination and disease management, minimize medical errors, improve outcomes, reduce cost, and empower patients. Agencies, Commissions, and Federal Bodies Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology Health IT Buzz Blog Health IT Policy Committee Health IT Standards Committee Office of Civil Rights National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services National Institute of Standards and Testing Additional Resources LTPAC Health IT Summit E-Prescribing Incentive Program 2010-2012 Roadmap for Health IT in LTPAC