Meaningful Use FAQ
Q: What will it cost an organization to implement a certified EHR technology?
A: In the Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM), CMS estimates that the average cost for an eligible professional to adopt/implement/upgrade a certified EHR technology is $54,000 per physician Full-Time Employee (FTE). In addition, CMS estimates that annual maintenance costs average about $10,000 per physician FTE per year. For eligible hospitals, CMS estimates the range to be between $1 million and $5 million for installation and $1 million annually for maintenance, upgrades, and training.
Q: In regards to Computer Physician Order Entry (CPOE) how will the total amount of orders be measured for an eligible provider, namely, how will paper order requisitions be quantified?
Q: Will existing data-exchanges to/from the EHR be required to be compliant with the latest HL7 specifications?
Q: If a state immunization registry does not have integration capabilities, yet organizations in that state have capabilities to test and demonstrate a data-exchange from/to the registry to/from the EHR, will the organization meet the meaningful use requirement by default?
Q: How will organizations exhibit and communicate meaningful use to HHS/CMS/ONC?
Q: Given the heavy investment for organizations to implement contingency plans - namely downtime solutions - is it reasonable to reward for demonstrated exhibition as this ensures continuity of care for the patient in the event of disaster?
Q: Who is eligible for Meaningful Use reimbursements
A: Medicare defines an “eligible professional” as
- Doctor of medicine/osteopathy
- Doctor of dental surgery/medicine
- Doctor of podiatric medicine
- Doctor of optometry
- Chiropractor.
Medicaid defines an “eligible professional” as
- Physicians
- Dentists
- Certified nurse midwives
- Nurse practitioners
- Physician’s assistants in a FQHC or RCH (that is so led by a physician assistant).