Think you’re a Meaningful User of EHR? Now you can prove it to CMS and cash in. CMS has opened a web link under which entities who have met the meaningful EHR use criteria can attest that they qualify for the HITECH program’s first year incentives of up to $18,000. The first step is to sign up for the program here under the Registration tab, then click on the Attestation tab. Eligible providers and hospitals will need to enter their National Provider Identifier (NPI) number, or obtain one at the NPPES site.
The Attestation site opened April 18. CMS posted a preview of the site with screenshots of each page in the attestation process. The site will go through a series of questionnaires addressing the criteria required to meet the Meaningful Use standards.
Not sure if you qualify? Use the CMS Meaningful Use Attestation Calculator. It mirrors the questions asked in the attestation process, but there is no need to enter an NPI number, and no information will be saved or transmitted. It is broken down into Core Measures and Menu Measures. For eligible professionals, there are 15 required core objectives and 5 objectives may be chosen from the list of 10 menu set objectives. For eligible hospitals and CAHs, there are 14 required core objectives and the remaining 5 objectives may be chosen from the list of 10 menu set objectives. Note: the CMS calculator requires you to go through each question in sequence and will not allow you to scroll through and answer questions out of order.