Proponents of open-source health IT systems have some concerns about the recently proposed "meaningful use" rules, including the time frame for electronic health record certification and adoption.
Federal officials recently released proposed regulations describing how health care providers can demonstrate meaningful use of EHRs to qualify for incentive payments under the 2009 federal economic stimulus package.
In an iHealthBeat Special Audio Report by Mina Kim, experts discuss the feasibility of the new rules.
The Special Report includes comments from:
- Nancy Anthracite, president and CMO of WorldVistA, a not-for-profit organization that develops open-source versions of the Department of Veterans Affairs' VistA EHR system;
- Edmund Billings, executive vice president and CMO of Medsphere Systems, a vendor of a modified, commercial open-source version of VA's VistA EHR system; and
- Kevin Toppenberg, a solo family practice physician and proponent of open-source EHR software.
The public has until March 15 to comment on the proposed regulations. Federal officials are expected to issue a final rule later this year (Kim, iHealthBeat, 1/26).
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