CMS report: Majority of hospitals meet MU requirements

There has been a great deal of debate since the implementation of the EHR Incentive Programs regarding whether the meaningful use requirements are effective. Many eligible providers and hospitals have complained over the years that the stage 1 and 2 meaningful use regulations have been extremely difficult to adhere to and have caused practices to focus on checking things off their list to receive incentives rather than to prioritize patient care quality. 

Majority of hospitals find MU achievable
However, despite these complaints, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has released a report that shows the number of hospitals participating in meaningful use programs is higher than it has ever been. The report states that 9 out of 10 eligible hospitals have been successful at adhering to meaningful use standards with certified electronic health records and additional health IT products. 

A total of 96 percent of large hospitals participating in stage 1 meaningful use have met the standards, while 92 percent of medium-sized facilities have achieved stage 1. One of the most surprising statistics was the success of urban hospitals, which had previously showed that 17 percent would not be participating in meaningful use. However, the new report states that although a small portion do not plan to partake at all, 78 percent have met stage 1 meaningful use requirements and 93 percent have attested. 

Their figures also showed that 70 percent of urban hospitals with less than 50 beds were paid and 90 percent were awarded financial incentives. Meanwhile, 94 percent of all eligible hospitals, including short-term general, children's facilities and critical access, have been paid for meeting the standards. Many were also provided incentives for upgrading and implementing EHR systems through the programs. One of the only categories that showed lower numbers was children's hospitals, with 57 percent currently attesting to stage 1 MU requirements.

A giant step toward shareable health data
The large increase in the number of eligible hospitals participating in the EHR Incentive Programs is likely due to the recent changes occurring throughout the health care industry, one of which is a great focus on interoperability and health information exchange. The ability to share patient health data across a wide range of health professionals has become increasingly important in the eyes of providers to ensure quality care. EHRs are key to enhancing both HIE and interoperability. Benefits like reduced administrative documentation and improved practiced workflows have also had an impact on EHR adoption and MU participation. 

The proposed stage 3 MU requirements recently issued by the CMS and the National Coordinator for Health IT has further emphasized the need for increased HIE and interoperability within the health care sector. According to The National Law Review, there is some flexibility for providers established in the proposed rule. For example, although there are eight rules listed in the stage 3 MU requirements, eligible providers will only be expected to attest to a specific portion of each objective, depending on which ones are most relevant to their practice. 

In addition to the push for HIE, the ruling focused on the acceleration of plans to increase patient engagement. Providers will begin to use more communication tools for interactions with patients, such as application program interfaces and health tools like patient portals. These enable providers to communicate directly with patients when they are not present for an appointment and allow patients to access their medical information at home through their provider.

EHR systems will make these rules achievable, as they drastically increase interoperability, HIE and patient engagement. However, there is one aspect under the new ruling that experts expect providers and hospitals may have difficulty meeting: Providers must make sure that 25 percent of their patients have transmitted, viewed or downloaded their health data electronically.