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Jim Tate

Jim Tate

HITECH Answers

Jim Tate blogs for HITECH Answers. He is a nationally recognized expert on meaningful use, EHR certification, and the CMS EHR Incentive program.

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Escape hatch for electronic submission of CQMs for meaningful use

Escape hatch for electronic submission of CQMs for meaningful use

February 14, 2012 1:05 pm by | 0 Comments

It is there in black and white on page 68 of the Final Rule “Therefore, for the Medicare EHR incentive program beginning in CY 2012 we proposed that an EP ... Read more
Certified EHR getting data from non-certified PM system

Certified EHR getting data from non-certified PM system

February 13, 2012 12:50 pm by | 0 Comments

One very common question I receive about theCMS EHR Incentive Programs for Eligible Providers(EPs) concerns their use of a separate Practice Management System. Many EPs have an EHR that has ... Read more
Proposed Stage 2 Meaningful Use Requirements Expected Soon

Proposed Stage 2 Meaningful Use Requirements Expected Soon

February 12, 2012 12:45 pm by | 0 Comments

So the holidays have past and we can all ease back into the well-known and comfortable understanding ofStage 1 Meaningful Useand incentives. Correct? Well don’t get too deep in that ... Read more
Meaningful Use Attestation and Audits: A Word to the Wise

Meaningful Use Attestation and Audits: A Word to the Wise

February 10, 2012 12:37 pm by | 0 Comments

The CMS EHR Incentive Program is going full bore. Over $390,000,000 was paid out in November alone by Medicare to Eligible Professionals (EP) and Eligible Hospitals (EH). That doesn’t even ... Read more
Acceleration of CMS EHR payments

Acceleration of CMS EHR payments

December 5, 2011 2:04 pm by | 0 Comments

Payment Statistics for CMS EHR Incentives for Eligible ProfessionalsThe proof is in the pudding. The case of CMS EHR incentive programs continue to produce remarkable statistics that demonstrate that Health ... Read more
Accuracy of meaningful use reporting called into question

Accuracy of meaningful use reporting called into question

November 30, 2011 12:59 pm by | 0 Comments

The ability of ONC-ATCB certified EHRs to accurately generate meaningful use data is being brought into question. A complete certified EHR must be able to ’electronically record the numerator and ... Read more
Meaningful Use and documenting patient vital signs

Meaningful Use and documenting patient vital signs

November 27, 2011 1:55 pm by | 0 Comments

Sometimes things are not what they seem and what may appear simple is complex upon closer examination. A case in point: meaningful use objective for vital signs.The documentation of vital ... Read more
Two most common questions for physician specialists on meaningful use

Two most common questions for physician specialists on meaningful use

November 20, 2011 12:44 pm by | 0 Comments

There are two questions from Eligible Professional specialists about the CMS EHR Incentives that I’m asked over and over again.Question 1: “Do specialists have to meet all of the required ... Read more
Can providers register for EHR incentives after achieving meaningful use

Can providers register for EHR incentives after achieving meaningful use

November 5, 2011 12:36 pm by | 0 Comments

By now we all (hopefully) know the ABCs of the CMS EHR Incentive Program: Registration ’Meaningful Use of Certified EHR Technology’ Attestation. After attestation you hope to get a check ... Read more
Meaningful Use and EHR Technology

Meaningful Use and EHR Technology

September 20, 2011 2:53 am by | 0 Comments

The issue of what makes up ’Complete EHR Technology’ continues to amuse and confuse EPs and EHs. Simply put, the issue stems from the fact that all the modules that ... Read more
Your Health Information Through the Blue Button

Your Health Information Through the Blue Button

September 19, 2011 3:00 am by | 1 Comments

Well we’ve got Big Blue and the dreadedBlue Screen of Death so I guess it was just a matter of time until we got a Blue Button. Well, what is ... Read more
Healthcare Social Media ’ Is Anybody Out There?

Healthcare Social Media ’ Is Anybody Out There?

September 19, 2011 2:52 am by | 0 Comments

This blog post might be hazardous to your standing in the kingdom of health care social media royalty. Pink Floyd said it best in 1979 and it has never been ... Read more
Where Have All the PHRs Gone?

Where Have All the PHRs Gone?

September 16, 2011 12:45 pm by | 0 Comments

In the pre-ARRA era, which I believe was right about the time the dinosaurs died off, there were Personal Health Records (PHRs) everywhere. Web-based, thumb drives, smart, dumb, tethered to ... Read more
EHR Heroes Who Join the Ranks of Roy Rogers and Zorro

EHR Heroes Who Join the Ranks of Roy Rogers and Zorro

September 15, 2011 12:44 pm by | 0 Comments

OK I’m going to seriously date myself here. My first heroes emerged from the flickering black and white images of 1950’s television. Roy Rogers, Sky King, and Davy Crockett made ... Read more
Drop Dead Date for CMS EHR Incentive Programs

Drop Dead Date for CMS EHR Incentive Programs

August 31, 2011 11:52 am by | 0 Comments

Several times a week I am asked the following question: ’What is the absolutely last drop dead date an eligible professional can meet the CMS EHR Incentive Program requirements and ... Read more