CMS officials have dropped some tantalizing clues, but still fail to deliver change in the much-maligned incentive program.
Since meaningful use, PQRS, and the value modifier were all condemned to die by 2019 by the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) -- to be then replaced by the merit-based incentive payment system (MIPS) -- rumors have flown that meaningful use, at least, would make an early exit.
Though the 2019 deadline is clear, CMS has been less than forthcoming as to how the transition from the legacy programs would be handled. CMS issued a first draft of MIPS provider quality standards in December, but they don't say anything about the switchover. A Congressional bill passed at the tail end of 2015 ordered an extension the hardship exception deadline for meaningful use to allow some Part B eligible providers (EPs) to delay submission of their 2015 meaningful use attestation until March 15, 2016. CMS didn't react.
On Jan. 11, (CMS) Acting Administrator Andy Slavitt dropped what appeared to be a bombshell at a healthcare conference in San Francisco, where he said "the meaningful use program as it has existed will now be effectively over and replaced with something better." But though Slavitt offered touchy-feely soundbites about the new meaningful-use-free future (e.g., "Providers will be able to customize their goals so tech companies can build around the individual practice needs, not the needs of the government"), hard guidance was not forthcoming.
Nonetheless the medical policy and practice press was excitable and optimistic: "Andy Slavitt puts meaningful use on ice," rejoiced Healthcare IT News; "Meaningful Use Is Dead, Long Live Something Better!" cried HIT Consultant; "Meaningful Use Program is Ending, CMS Chief Says," headlined Medpage Today, etc.
On Jan. 19, Slavitt and CMS national coordinator Karen DeSalvo put up a blog post at the CMS website in which they repeated some buzzphrases ("Prioritizing interoperability," "Leveling the technology playing field") but gave no concrete evidence that real change was coming. In fact,they gave more of a hold-your-horses message: "While MACRA provides an opportunity to adjust payment incentives associated with EHR incentives in concert with the principles we outlined here," they wrote, "it does not eliminate it, nor will it instantly eliminate all the tensions of the current system." Also: "The approach to meaningful use under MACRA won’t happen overnight."
The closest thing in the post to news related to the hardship exception -- Slavitt and DeSalvo promised "we will be releasing guidance on this new process soon."
It seems that CMS is giving out these little hints on meaningful use mainly to give the press something to write about -- making the story one about imminent change instead of the failure of the old program. (While CMS continues to tout its success, AMA reported in November that only 12% of EPs had graduated to Stage 2.) This is not about EHR -- it's about PR. So don't get too excited, and certainly don't stop complying with meaningful use -- assuming you were complying in the first place.