In another sign that government agencies may be ready to start processing incentive payments on their promised timetable, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced that they will begin registering physicians for the electronic health records incentives program starting January 4.
CMS administrator Donald Berwick told Government Health IT that the agency realizes that the conversion to electronic health records may be a difficult one for many providers. But the announcement is a sign that CMS is working with physicians to make sure that they are prepared for the transition.
“The changeover from paper to electronic records will be challenging for clinicians and hospitals, but CMS and ONC have taken steps to ease the transition,” he told the news source. “We’ve provided flexibility in meeting the meaningful use requirements and have the resources in place to help providers acquire certified EHR technology.”
CMS officials have said that they plan on beginning to administer payments for the HER incentive program as early as April. They believe that given the tools available, providers will have enough time to meet all the requirements by them.