One of our  Medlaw Bloggers, Software Advice, contacted us about EHR certification. We thought the information would be useful.

Here are 4 questions we answered in our analysis:

  • What are the benefits of CCHIT? CCHIT has taken on the task of defining the key components of an EHR, how it should communicate with other systems and how it should protect patient information. With over 250 qualification criteria, CCHIT provides buyers with a list of EHRs that meet every one of these requirements. At the very least, CCHIT has created a functional requirements checklist for EHR buyers.
  • Why does CCHIT generate controversy? As CCHIT gains momentum, many EHR buyers are using it as a filtering mechanism in their EHR selection process. The industry is also responding with payers, associations and healthcare information exchanges (HEIs) mandating CCHIT certification in various ways. This eliminates non-certified vendors from these opportunities, and at the same time, makes it more likely that certified vendors will be included in these purchase decisions.
  • Will a CCHIT certified EHR improve a practice’s income? CCHIT is a federally recognized certification body for EHRs. It can improve a physician’s ability to participate in upcoming payment incentive programs from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Some malpractice liability insurers even offer discounts to providers that use CCHIT Certified EHRs. However, physicians are not guaranteed eligibility for each of these incentives.
  • What important criteria does CCHIT not evaluate? At this time, CCHIT does not evaluate all criteria a physician should consider in their EHR selection. This includes ease-of-use, customer support and the financial viability of the company offering the EHR software. While CCHIT plans to evaluate EHRs for cardiology and pediatrics this year, it will take some time before they are capable of evaluating all specialty-specific EHRs.

For a complete analysis, click on the link below.

http://www.softwareadvice.com/articles/medical/should-cchit-influence-your-ehr-selection/