CHICAGO – The Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology is ready to tackle a more ambitious agenda as the federal electronic health record initiative intensifies, CCHIT leaders told HIMSS09 attendees Sunday at a Town Hall meeting.

Ignited by the Feb. 17 passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, including approximately $19 billion in stimulus funds for the advancement of EHRs and system interoperability, CCHIT Chairman Mark Leavitt, MD, reports a huge spike in certification applications. From mid-February to the end of March, the CCHIT received 45 vendor applications.

"This is unprecedented," he said. "We've never seen this volume of applications come in before. We're already seeing a stimulus effect."

Leavitt said the actual ARRA amount is $34 billion in "outflows," with a projected savings of $19 billion. The cash infusion comes with strings attached, however, including directives for more transparency, accountability, demonstrable outcomes, expanded criteria and faster adoption rates.

The CCHIT is prepared for the challenge, Leavitt said, because it has already sustained formidable growth over the past couple of years, with 22 staff members and 200 active volunteers. The organization has certified approximately 160 vendor products, which accounts for 75 percent of the market, he said.

Industry-wide, the CCHIT has actively monitored EHR and interoperability adoption, and in Leavitt's view significant progress has been made.

For instance, in 2006-07 44 EHR incentive programs were developed, 21 states initiated healthcare IT projects and 54 EHRs were implemented involving 157 hospitals using the Stark Safe Harbor rule. Moreover, health plans with pay-for-performance incentives for certified EHRs grew from 11.3 percent to 25.8 percent.

"We rang the bell," Leavitt said. "It's a great start."