Majority of providers have no plans for Stage 2 attestation this year
More than half (55 percent) of physicians do not plan to attest to Meaningful Use Stage 2 in 2015, according to a survey of almost 2,000 members of SERMO, a social network for physicians.
Respondents cited “patient engagement, lack of workflow usability and excessive time consumption” as their reasons for not attesting.
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) figures reveal that only 4 percent (16,455) of eligible professionals have attested to Stage 2 as of Dec. 1. As a result, multiple efforts have sprung up to add greater flexibility to the program. More than 250,000 providers will face financial penalties and Medicare payment reductions this year.
The American Medical Association, for one, has called for CMS to take immediate action to add more flexibility and shorten the reporting period to help physicians avoid penalties.
Editor Beth earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism and master’s in health communication. She has worked in hospital, academic and publishing settings over the past 20 years. Beth joined TriMed in 2005, as editor of CMIO and Clinical Innovation + Technology. When not covering all things related to health IT, she spends time with her husband and three children.