The Certification Commission for Health IT (CCHIT) moves Forward Apace.

The CCHIT has been having a busy week in the news. First we have.

CCHIT Quantifies EHR Incentives

September 25, 2008

At least 50 hospital organizations have launched programs to partially subsidize the cost of electronic health records for physicians as permitted under federal regulations announced in 2006, a new study shows.

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The Chicago-based Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology, which conducted the study, also determined that another 40 incentive programs have been introduced by government agencies, insurance companies, employer coalitions and public-private partnerships. Of these, half explicitly call for the use of records software certified by the commission.

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Together, the 90 programs have the potential of offering at least $700 million in funding for EHR costs, according to the “CCHIT Incentive Index” study. Some $150 million of that total is from a Medicare demonstration project that will provide payments to 1,200 practices using certified EHRs.

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The full article is found here:

http://www.healthdatamanagement.com/news/electronic_medical_records_EMRs_EHRs26998-1.html?ET=healthdatamanagement:e619:100325a:&st=email&channel=electronic_health_records

More details of the findings are here:

http://ehrdecisions.com/incentive-programs/

Next we have.

CCHIT to certify e-prescribing systems in 2009

By: Matthew DoBias / HITS staff writer

Story posted: September 25, 2008 - 5:59 am EDT

The Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology this week said it would begin to certify stand-alone electronic-prescribing systems next year, though a set of standards has yet to be developed.

CCHIT board members agreed to the initiative on Sept. 23, saying it would launch a program by July 2009 after a public comment period and a demonstration project.

Stand-alone e-prescribing systems are used to send and receive prescription data from doctors’ offices to pharmacies. They often do not include an electronic health-record component.

More here:

http://www.modernhealthcare.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080925/REG/309259997/1029/FREE

This is all good stuff and shows how e-Health can be fostered when there is an honest broker around to ensure the quality of systems that physicians need to invest in. While we are doing pretty well in the GP area we still have a long way to go with the specialists and a Commission of this sort could help give clinicians the confidence to invest. NEHTA should have been doing this for ages but just simply did not think it had any role in assisting private practice based e-health. Pretty dumb in my view.

On another small matter – what focus do you think NEHTA is getting from its chairman given he has just become Chair of the Australian Stock Exchange as the financial world implodes? Bigger ‘fish to fry’ I suspect!

David.