Meaningful Use and the Advancing Care Information Program

The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA), which was signed into law in April 2015, proposes a new approach to paying physicians.  In April of 2016, the Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) released a proposed rule under MACRA that signals the end of Meaningful Use for Medicare physicians.  The program is still under review for hospitals.

The proposed program is called "Advancing Care Information", and is designed to be simpler and more flexible than Meaningful Use.  Key goals of the new program, as described on the official CMS blog, include:

• Simplifying reporting by no longer requiring all-or-nothing EHR measurement or quality reporting
• Reducing the number of measures down from 18 to 11, and no longer requiring reporting on the Clinical Decision Support and Computerized Provider Order Entry measures
• Exempting certain physicians from reporting when EHR technology is less applicable to thier practice and allowing physicians to report as a group
• Emphasizing interoperability, information exchange, and security measures

If finalized, the Advancing Care Information program will be effective for Medicare physician offices on January 1, 2017.  Providers failing to demonstrate Meaningful Use in 2016 will still be penalized through the end of 2018, due to the two-year lag used for MU penalties.

JCS has experience working with organizations to demostrate Meaningful Use, and understands the implications of the changes this new program will bring.  If you are a part of a Medicare physician office, January 1, 2017 is not far away.  If you represent a hospital, it makes sense to understand these changes and start preparing for them now.  Contact Us now to learn more about how we can help you get ready.