CMS just released An Eligible Professional’s Guide to Stage 2 of the EHR Incentive Programs, which provides a comprehensive overview of Stage 2 of the EHR Incentive Programs for eligible professionals. The guide outlines criteria for Stage 2 meaningful use, 2014 clinical quality measure reporting, and 2014 EHR certification including Chapters on;
- What is Stage 2 of the EHR Incentive Programs?
- What are the requirements under Stage 2 of Meaningful Use?
- How will clinical quality measures (CQMs) change?
- Resources
The guide can be found on the Educational Resources page of the EHR website.
Health care providers and their vendors and advisors using these resources also are reminded to ensure that their business associate agreements, privacy practices notices and other privacy and data security processes, policies, and procedures are updated to comply with changes to the Privacy, Security, Breach Notification and other requirements he for the protection and handling of personal health information including electronic personal health information of the Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act (HIPAA) as amended by the HITECH Act. The Final Omnibus Regulations published by the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) generally took effect earlier this year except that the regulations set next Monday, September 23, 2013 as the deadline for updating business associate agreements and the effective date for the extension of most HIPAA requirements to business associates. As demonstrated by recent enforcement actions by OCR, Health care providers and other covered entities, their business associates and advisors continuously reconfirm that their systems and arrangements continue to comply with these requirements as they make updates.
For More Information Or Assistance
If you need assistance responding to EHR, HIPAA or other health industry regulatory, enforcement or other developments, reviewing or tightening your policies and procedures, conducting training or audits, responding to or defending an investigation or other enforcement action or with other health care related risk management, compliance, training, enforcement or management concerns, the author of this update, attorney Cynthia Marcotte Stamer, may be able to help. Vice President of the North Texas Health Care Compliance Professionals Association, Past Chair of the ABA Health Law Section Managed Care & Insurance Section and the former Board Compliance Chair of the National Kidney Foundation of North Texas, Ms. Stamer has more than 25 years experience advising health industry clients about these and other matters. Her experience includes extensive work advising, representing and training health industry and other clients on HIPAA and other privacy, data protection and breach and other related matters. She also advises hospitals, nursing home, home health, rehabilitation and other health care providers and health industry clients to establish and administer compliance and risk management policies; prevent, conduct and investigate, and respond to peer review and other quality concerns; and to respond to Board of Medicine, Department of Aging & Disability, Drug Enforcement Agency, OCR Privacy and Civil Rights, HHS, DOD and other health care industry investigation, enforcement and other compliance, public policy, regulatory, staffing, and other operations and risk management concerns. A popular lecturer and widely published author on health industry concerns, Ms. Stamer continuously advises health industry clients about compliance and internal controls, workforce and medical staff performance, quality, governance, reimbursement, and other risk management and operational matters. Ms. Stamer also publishes and speaks extensively on health and managed care industry regulatory, staffing and human resources, compensation and benefits, technology, public policy, reimbursement and other operations and risk management concerns. Scribe for the ABA JCEB annual Technical Sessions meeting with OCR for the past three years, Ms. Stamer also is recognized for her extensive publications and programs including numerous highly regarding publications and programs on HIPAA and other privacy and data security concerns as well as a wide range of other workshops, programs and publications on other compliance, operational and risk management, and other health industry matters. Her insights on these and other related matters appear in the Health Care Compliance Association, Atlantic Information Service, Bureau of National Affairs, World At Work, The Wall Street Journal, Business Insurance, the Dallas Morning News, Modern Health Care, Managed Healthcare, Health Leaders, and a many other national and local publications. You can get more information about her health industry experience here. If you need assistance responding to concerns about the matters discussed in this publication or other health care concerns, wish to obtain information about arranging for training or presentations by Ms. Stamer, wish to suggest a topic for a future program or update, or wish to request other information or materials, please contact Ms. Stamer via telephone at (214) 452-8297 or via e-mail here. If you or someone else you know would like to receive future updates about developments on these and other concerns from Ms. Stamer, see here.
About Solutions Law Press
Solutions Law Press™ provides business risk management, legal compliance, management effectiveness and other resources, training and education on human resources, employee benefits, compensation, data security and privacy, health care, insurance, and other key compliance, risk management, internal controls and other key operational concerns. If you find this of interest, you also be interested reviewing some of our other Solutions Law Press resources including:
- Stamer Speaks On Managing Physician Conduct at 9/17 NTHCPA Meeting
- CMS To Host Provider Webinar To Celebrate National Health IT Week
- Tell HHS What You Think-Comment On HHS Strategic Plan Now!
- Court Upholds NLRB Certification of CNAs As Bargaining Union Based On NLRB Modified Community Of Interest Test
- Stamer To Speak 8/20 On “Sex, Drugs & Rock ‘N Role: Managing Physician Conduct In Health Care”
- $1.2M HIPAA Settlement Results From Improper Copier Disposal
- CMS Rescinds Plan To Require Automatic Denial of Provider Enrollment To Providers With Outstanding Overpayments
- IRS Publishes 2014 Branded Prescription Drug Fee Guidance
- CMS Publishes FY 2014 Final Inpatient Psychiatric Facility Prospective Payment Rule
- CMS Publishes FY 2014 Final Inpatient Psychiatric Facility Prospective Payment Rule
- CMS Publishes FY 2014 Final Inpatient Rehab Facility Prospective Payment Rule
- Tighten Disability Compliance To Avoid ADA Suits, Program Disqualification & Other Risks
- Doc Caught Submitting Conflicting Patient Records to Private Payer Versus Medicare Criminally Sentence, Pays Civil Settlement
- OCR To Covered Entities: Learn From WellPoint $1.7 Settlement
If you or someone else you know would like to receive future updates about developments on these and other concerns, please be sure that we have your current contact information – including your preferred e-mail – by creating or updating your profile here. For important information on this communication click here. THE FOLLOWING DISCLAIMER IS INCLUDED TO COMPLY WITH AND IN RESPONSE TO U.S. TREASURY DEPARTMENT CIRCULAR 230 REGULATIONS. ANY STATEMENTS CONTAINED HEREIN ARE NOT INTENDED OR WRITTEN BY THE WRITER TO BE USED, AND NOTHING CONTAINED HEREIN CAN BE USED BY YOU OR ANY OTHER PERSON, FOR THE PURPOSE OF (1) AVOIDING PENALTIES THAT MAY BE IMPOSED UNDER FEDERAL TAX LAW, OR (2) PROMOTING, MARKETING OR RECOMMENDING TO ANOTHER PARTY ANY TAX-RELATED TRANSACTION OR MATTER ADDRESSED HEREIN.
©2013 Cynthia Marcotte Stamer, P.C. Non-exclusive license to republish granted to Solutions Law Press. All other rights reserved.
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