Omnibus bill holds ONC budget steady, addresses information sharing

The Omnibus Appropriations bill keeps funding for the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC) at the same level as last fiscal year and addresses information sharing problems.

The bill directs ONC to decertify EHRs that block the sharing of health information.

“ONC should use its authority to certify only those products that clearly meet current Meaningful Use program standards and that do not block health information exchange,” states the bill. “ONC should take steps to decertify products that proactively block the sharing of information because those practices frustrate congressional intent, devalue taxpayer investments in [Certified EHR Technology], and make CEHRT less valuable and more burdensome for eligible hospitals and eligible providers to use.”

The legislation instructs ONC to submit a detailed report, no later than 90 days after enactment by Congress, on the extent of the information blocking problem. The report should include an estimate of the number of vendors or eligible hospitals or providers who block information and a strategy for combating the problem.

Also, ONC’s Health IT Policy Committee is to submit a report to the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations and the appropriate authorizing committees no later than 12 months after enactment regarding the challenges and barriers to interoperability. “The report should cover the technical, operational and financial barriers to interoperability, the role of certification in advancing or hindering interoperability across various providers, as well as any other barriers identified by the Policy Committee,” according to the law.

Meanwhile, the ONC will operate with a budget of just under $60.4 million. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) will receive $3.9 billion in IT funds, which is $200 million more than FY2014, including $344 million for the modernization of VistA and the development of an interoperable system with the Department of the Defense. Of the total IT budget, $548.34 million is designated for IT development, modernization and enhancement.

The bill also prohibits the VA from spending more than 25 percent of its funds until it submits a plan to Congress on how it will achieve interoperability with the Defense Department. It must report any changes in scope, functionality, schedule or cost for the VistA upgrade, which is similar to language included in last year's VA budget.

President Obama's proposed FY2015 budget sought $75 million for the ONC, a $15 million increase over funding actually approved for the agency for FY14.

During National Health IT Week in September, the Health Information Management and Systems Society (HIMSS) had three "Congressional Asks"--formal requests to Congress to accomplish specific goals to advance health IT and urged more funding for ONC. The organization cited the "critical juncture" of Meaningful Use and the need to maintain the momentum.

Read the complete bill.