RECs surpass MU Stage 1 goal

Regional Extension Centers (RECs) have helped more than 100,000 providers demonstrate Stage 1 Meaningful Use, according to a Health IT Buzz blog post from National Health IT Coordinator Karen DeSalvo, MD, MPH, MS and ONC Director of the Office of Programs & Engagement, Kimberly Lynch, MPH.

The RECS, which focus on primary care and rural and underserved providers, are partnered with more than 150,000 U.S. providers, including 139,000 primary care providers and 13,000 specialists. In all, the centers have helped 91 percent of these providers adopt an EHR, they wrote.

“Through their work, RECs have developed strong relationships with the nation’s providers, establishing themselves as a credible and capable resource,” according to the blog. “This trust is all the more important as many small practices are also small businesses, and the livelihood of these providers, their staff and the neighbors they serve are impacted by the tremendous technological investments and operational changes practices make to provide better care."

As for the future of RECs, 93 percent are expected to be sustainable, the ONC officials wrote. “We look forward to much more being done–and yet to be done–to achieve the vision of better health and better healthcare.”