The deadline for hospitals to request a hardship exemption to the Medicare Promoting Interoperability Programs is Tuesday, September 1. Eligible hospitals may be exempt from Medicare penalties if they can show that compliance with the requirement for being a meaningful EHR user would result in a significant hardship. This deadline was extended from the original July 1 date due to COVID-19. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) requires all eligible hospitals use 2015 edition certified electronic health record technology (CEHRT) to meet the requirements of the Promoting Interoperability Programs; CMS may apply a payment penalty to eligible hospitals that are not meaningful users of CEHRT.
For more information about payment adjustments and hardship information, click here. For more information on the Promoting Interoperability Programs, visit the Promoting Interoperability Programs website. (Andrew Busz, andrewb@wsha.org)
