It certainly is not a sure thing, but healthcare IT officials are reasonably sure that there will be no additional changes to Stage 2 guidelines for Meaningful Use.
The reasoning behind this opinion is that such regulatory changes would require the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to first post a notice of the proposed rule changes, and this would be followed by a public comment period. Then, CMS would review the comments before making a final rule. The entire process could take a year or even longer. It is this lengthy timeline – one that complicates the process – that leads healthcare experts to believe CMS will forego any changes to Stage 2.
In Stage 2, healthcare providers need to demonstrate the ability to exchange data with other providers, increase data security, make imaging data more available, and increase patient engagement through patient portals on the provider’s website.
The focus of the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) is now in helping the smaller providers – places such as independent community hospitals and small physician practices – to get up to speed on Stage 2. The goal is to enable providers to deliver safer and more effective care at lower cost.
The ONC is focusing on open, accessible, inclusive decision making, and striving for solutions that are practical and efficient. All of their work is engaged in providing the best care for the patient.
The ONC is also focused on patient information privacy and security, which is also a primary concern among healthcare IT professionals. Patient surveys have shown that people want to know who their information is being given to and what providers do with patient information. The important thing, officials said, is to develop a sense of trust with the patient. Providers need to make clear to patients exactly what information is protected.
Smaller healthcare providers, in particular, need to improve their procedures for evaluating risks to protected patient information, according to ONC officials. The ONC has been working for more than a year to develop a free security risk assessment tool for smaller providers. The tool is expected to be ready in 2014.
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