WASHINGTON – Certification of electronic health records was at the top of the news in April, with comments due April 9 for the temporary certification proposed rule, and by May 10 for the permanent rule.
In addition, on April 26, Karen Bell, MD, took over the helm of the Certification Commission for Health Information Technology (CCHIT), replacing retiring Chairman Mark Leavitt, MD, who led the Commission since its inception in 2004.
Bell is no stranger to certification. Prior to CCHIT, she was director of the Office of Health Information Technology Adoption and acting deputy of the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC). She was also ONC’s representative on CCHIT’s board of commissioners from 2006 to 2008.
"I am honored to have this opportunity to lead the Certification Commission as we enter a new phase of health information technology certification – one with expanded opportunities and challenges," Bell said.
Expanded opportunity came with the 2009 passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), promising more than $20 billion in incentive payments to hospital and medical practices through 2016. Timing seems to be presenting one of the biggest challenges, so far.
The final rules on standards and meaningful use of healthcare IT are not expected until "late spring," federal officials say, with the final certification rules lagging even farther behind.
All of this leaves little time for preparation to earn the bonuses, and many questions still unanswered. Will the new certification rule displace or disrupt all certification that CCHIT has already provided?
Leaders at the College of Healthcare Information Executives (CHIME) are skeptical. "We are very concerned that the introduction of a two-stage approach for certification will prolong the current instability in the health IT marketplace," they said in a comment on the proposed certification rule.
In the April issue of Health Affairs, dedicated entirely to healthcare IT, ONC chief David Blumenthal, MD, was more positive. "The adoption of health IT will happen faster, and it will be more effective, with reimbursement reform," he said.
