No more "meaningful use" of IT for doctors

nbauman writes: The administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, told an investors' conference that they will be backing off the unpopular requirement that doctors show "meaningful use" of their new computer systems.

Andy Slavitt, acting administrator, admitted that “physician burden and frustration levels are real. Programs that are designed to improve often distract. Done poorly, measures are divorced from how physicians practice and add to the cynicism that the people who build these programs just don’t get it.”

Dr. James L. Madara, CEO of the American Medical Association, agreed that EHRs were having a negative impact on physicians’ practices. Many physicians are spending at least 2 hours each workday using their EHR and may click up to 4,000 times per 8-hour shift, he said.

Instead, CMS will reward health care providers for patient outcomes through the merit-based incentive pay systems created by last year’s Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) legislation.

CMS is calling on the private sector to create apps and analytic tools that will keep data secure while fostering true and widespread interoperability.