CMS: 21,000 docs have registered for EHR money

by: Grant Huang Feb 25, 2011

More than 21,000 providers have registered on CMS's electronic health record (EHR) attestation and reporting website in January, according to an agency press release issued Feb. 23. This figure represents roughly 2.3% of the 916,000 providers enrolled in Medicare with participating status, according to my analysis of CMS's provider enrollment numbers from its 2009 Data Compendium.

The agency is touting this statistic with some relish. "This strong early interest in the Medicare and Medicaid EHR incentive programs among providers and state Medicaid programs is most welcome and very encouraging," CMS Administrator Donald Berwick, MD, said in a prepared statement. "We encourage early adoption, and we're seeing the registration numbers continue on an upward trajectory."

Remember: You've got to register on the CMS website in order to attest that you met meaningful use and are due your $18,000 per-provider incentive bonus. Check out our previous coverage here.

About 41% of office-based physicians say they "intend" to adopt EHRs and participate in the EHR Incentive Program, according to a survey commissioned by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC).

At a registration rate of 2.3% in one month, if 41% of just Medicare-enrolled physicians elected to participate (the ONC survey was not limited to Medicare or Medicaid-participating physicians), it would take until November 2012 for everyone to register. Of course, it's likely the pace of registration will pick up sharply as this April draws near. You can't actually attest for the EHR bonus under the Medicare side of the program until then.

Blog Tags: EHR incentive bonus

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