HHS has submitted its final "meaningful use" rule and electronic health record certification criteria to the Office of Management and Budget for review and approval, Modern Healthcare reports.
On Monday, CMS sent OMB a copy of the final rule that defines how health care providers can demonstrate meaningful use of EHRs to qualify for federal incentive payments.
On July 2, HHS sent OMB a copy of the final rule on EHR standards, implementation and certification criteria.
Background
The 2009 federal economic stimulus package required the development of the meaningful use rule and EHR certification criteria (Modern Healthcare, 7/6).
Requesting OMB approval typically is the final step before rules are published in the Federal Register (Goedert, Health Data Management, 7/6).
Final Release Uncertain
A CMS spokesperson could not confirm when the rules would be published because they are still in the clearance stage. However, the agency said it expects the rules to be available this summer (Health Data Management, 7/6).