It’s no mystery that the federal government offers EHR incentives to help deter the cost of implementing an electronic health records system, but many physicians and hospitals are unsure of how to start.  Though the road to Meaningful Use eligibility seems complicated and difficult to understand, a bit of research can help you keep your EHR and EMR cost levels down and take advantage of federal funding.  The following two steps are absolutely essential to preparing your office for EMR implementation and collecting your EHR incentives.

1: Understand that Meaningful Use is not a simple checklist. Physicians implementing an EMR or EHR must

1)      Meet 20 specific use requirements

a)      15 of those must be fulfilled by all physicians in the practice

b)      The remaining 5 are selected from a menu of 10 objectives [by each physician]

2)      Report on 6 clinical quality measures with electronic specifications

a)      3 are required

b)      The remaining 3 are chosen by each physician

The requirements are rather general, such as “improve care coordination” and “use the EHR in a meaningful manner.”  Furthermore, Meaningful Use is divided into several stages with different requirements.  EMR consulting services or legal assistance specializing in EMR could help you to understand exactly what is expected of you.

2: Make sure that the EHR system you select is fully certified. The cloudiness around Meaningful Use doesn’t mean that EHR systems don’t adhere to strict standards of certification.  Be sure that your EHR is ONC-certified and meets all necessary requirements to comply with Meaningful Use.