It seems like every healthcare organization that exists has called for a delay to meaningful use stage 2. I’ve predicted before that I think that meaningful use stage 2 will have some sort of delay. I feel even more confident in that prediction thanks to the government shutdown.
With so many people not working at ONC, I think there’s a practical question of whether they can really be ready for MU stage 2. However, maybe even more powerful is that the government shutdown now gives ONC an excuse for why the delay should happen. They can blame the delay on the government shutdown and not on something else. Let’s call it the straw that broke the camel’s back.
Although, Farzad Mostashari at CHIME 2013 disagreed. Here’s the tweet I sent during his keynote presentation:
I think people should assume that the timelines for MU stage 2 stick. @Farzad_MD #CHIME13
— EMR, EHR and HIT (@ehrandhit) October 10, 2013
It was nice of Farzad to retweet it as well. I think he really believes this statement. I was sad he didn’t reply or retweet my other tweet:
It's interesting that @Farzad_MD lists off all the ONC pieces that are furloughed, but he still thinks MU stage 2 won't be delayed. #CHIME13
— EMR, EHR and HIT (@ehrandhit) October 10, 2013
If I were a betting man (which I’m not despite living in Vegas), I’d bet on a MU stage 2 delay. However, Farzad did place that seed of doubt in my prediction. Farzad made a good case for why some parts of meaningful use stage 2 we can’t wait on anymore. However, with him no longer as leader we’ll see if they can hold the course with no delays.
I’ll bet that there will NOT be delay due to the shutdown.
Here are my reasons.
The ONC-ATCB’s (Authorized Testing and Certification Body) are private organizations, and therefore not effected by the shutdown.
• Surescripts LLC – Arlington, VA
• ICSA Labs – Mechanicsburg, PA
• SLI Global Solutions – Denver, CO
• InfoGard Laboratories, Inc. – San Luis Obispo, CA
• Certification Commission for Health Information Technology (CCHIT) – Chicago, IL
• Drummond Group, Inc. (DGI) – Austin, TX
The ATCB’s certify for MU2, not the government.
The only possible delay would be for a new agency applying to become a ATCB.
We have been in contact with a number of EHR vendors that have reached out to the certification bodies, and are currently preparing their submission. In preparing their submission they have discovered that they are missing the usability evaluation portion for the Safety-enhanced design criteria. (For more information on the ONC Test Procedure for §170.314(g)(3) Safety-enhanced design see http://bit.ly/YLwrPO )
Usability testing cannot happen overnight, and it is important that you reach out to your usability partner early so that the required testing can be completed in time for your appointment with the ONC-ATCB. We recommend that you allow at least 3-4 weeks in your submission timeline for the preparation, conducting and reporting of a summative usability test for EHR 2014 Certification.