Meaningful Use Lives On!
The controversial report of the demise of CMS EHR Incentive Programs and Meaningful Use (MU) were greatly exaggerated. The confusion began with a statement (now removed) that CMS Acting Administrator Andy Slavitt made at a healthcare conference on January 11, 2016. He was discussing the changes coming in the next few years to the Medicare program under MACRA, the Medicare Access & CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015. Among other things, Mr. Slavitt said, “Now that we effectively have technology into virtually every place care is provided, we are now in the process of ending Meaningful Use and moving to a new regime culminating with the MACRA implementation. The Meaningful Use program as it has existed, will now be effectively over and replaced with something better.”