Since Feb. 12, the Certification Commission for Health IT has received applications from 46 vendors seeking electronic health record certification under the requirements of the stimulus package, according to CCHIT Executive Director Alisa Ray, Federal Computer Week reports.
Under the 2009 federal economic stimulus package, health care providers who demonstrate "meaningful use" of certified EHR systems are eligible to receive federal incentive payments.
After HHS published its interim final rule for EHR certification on Jan. 13, CCHIT updated its certification programs to conform to the new rule. The interim final rule took effect on Feb. 12.
Of the EHR vendors who have applied for the new programs, roughly half are seeking comprehensive certification while half are pursuing modular certification, Ray said.
CCHIT said it will update its program again after HHS finalizes the certification requirements (Lipowicz, Federal Computer Week, 3/2).