WASHINGTON – The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology published its proposed rule on certification of electronic health records on Tuesday in the Federal Register, launching the comment period.

David Blumenthal, MD, the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, unveiled the rule on March 2 at the Healthcare Information Management Systems Society's annual conference in Atlanta.

The certification proposal is the last in a series of three rules mandated under the HITECH Act, part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, that explain how providers and hospitals can qualify for bonuses for using certified healthcare IT.

The ONC proposed rules on standards and meaningful use last December. Since then, providers, vendors and other stakeholders have been waiting for the release of the certification rule so they can prepare to qualify for bonuses by Jan. 1.

ONC policy analyst Steven Posnack said the 184-page certification proposal will allow organizations to apply for temporary or permanent authorization to become certification bodies. The ONC is proposing the temporary certification to speed things up because of the looming deadline, he said.

The 30-day comment period on the temporary certification ends April 9, while the 60-day comment period for the permanent certification proposal will end May 10.

Organizations that apply for a temporary certification will be required "to demonstrate through documentation" that they are qualified to test and certify EHRs for part or all of the meaningful use requirements, Posnack said.

Permanent certification will take longer and require more rigorous qualifications for both testing and certification of EHRs, he said.