ONC-ATCB Certified EHR / EMR Software

Updated April 29, 2012 - In 2010 the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) selected six organizations to test and certify electronic health records (EHR) software, also known as electronic medical records (EMR) software. Dubbed ONC-Authorized Testing and Certification Bodies or ONC-ATCBs, these companies determine which EHRs meet criteria to support "meaningful use." The six ONC-ATCBs include:

Over 500 products for ambulatory practices and 275 products for inpatient practices have received ONC-ATCB certification and meet EHR meaningful use / EMR meaningful use requirements. These numbers will continue to rise over the next few years as more medical software vendors apply for certification.

It’s important for providers to understand that a single, certified product may not make them eligible for HITECH Act incentive payments. A product can be either a complete EHR or an EHR module.

For example, a software company could get certification for say, an e-Prescribing tool. This is an important distinction. Providers must implement two or more modular EHRs that, when combined, meet 100% of the ONC EHR criteria (or at least a complete meaningful use EHR / meaningful use EMR system). Here are five key questions providers should ask during their EHR comparison and while evaluating ONC-ATCB certified vendors

• Which certification has the vendor received? CCHIT, KLAS, or ONC-ATCB? Providers must use an ONC certified EHR / ONC certified EMR system to receive Stimulus incentives.
• Which version of the software has been certified? Providers need to make sure the version they own or purchase has ONC-ATCB certification.
• Has the vendor received certification for a complete or modular EHR? As noted above, providers must implement two or more modular EHRs that meet 100% of ONC criteria.
• Does the vendor intend to get re-certified for final certification in 2012? The temporary certification program ends in 2011. Visit the ONC website for more information.
• Has the product been renamed by a reseller or other business partner? Providers need to make sure the renamed version has been approved, even if the original product received certification.

Updates on Meaningful Use and Certification Requirements

On February 24th 2012, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) released their proposal for “stage 2” of EHR meaningful use criteria. There are three major requirements or outcomes of stage 2:

• The standardization of data formats so that EHRs are interoperable;
• The ability for patients to access and download their health records, and;
• An expanded set of quality metrics that will include specialists and that will help to demonstrate outcomes such as coordination of care.

While the rules were released this year, eligible providers (EPs) won’t need to demonstrate meaningful use of EHR software until 2014 (at least for the stage 2 requirements). There are 20 functional metrics and 12 clinical quality measures that providers will need to track. The entire proposal is available on the Federal Register website.

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