It's time for Stage 3

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued the proposed rule for Meaningful Use Stage 3 as well as a proposed rule for 2015 EHR Certification. Response has been fast and furious.

The proposed rule offers a final stage for the incentive program and proclaimed to offer greater flexibility and simplification. Stakeholders are skeptical, however.

The College of Health Information Management Executives called on “CMS to propose policy changes to the “all-or-nothing” construct, lengthen timing between required Stage upgrades, and consider much-needed revisions to the hardship exception categories. These changes will enable far better participation among providers, which will in turn, keep them on a path towards improved care through health IT.”

The American Hospital Association said the rule demonstrates that CMS “continues to create policies for the future without fixing the problems the program faces today. In January, CMS promised to provide much-needed flexibility for the 2015 reporting year, which is almost half over. Instead, CMS released Stage 3 rules that pile additional requirements onto providers.  It is difficult to understand the rush to raise the bar yet again, when only 35 percent of hospitals and a small fraction of physicians have met the Stage 2 requirements.”

There’s sure to be much more discussion and debate before the final rule is published later this year.

Beth Walsh

Clinical Innovation + Technology editor