HHS Releases Implementation Plans for ARRA Dollars

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HHS Releases Implementation Plans for ARRA Dollars
May 19, 2009

On May 18 the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released their implementation plans for the $167 billion dollars they received through the ARRA. Included in these plans is a document with a more specific outline on how the money will affect those looking to adopt health information technology through the incentive programs [PDF]. Also included in these plans are more details about the work the Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) will be doing to encourage adoption and "meaningful use" of health information technology.

The incentive program's implementation plan includes an updated funding table [view table] where the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) estimates the total cost of the health IT programs to be $48.8 billion dollars over the next ten years. This is a significant increase compared to previous estimates. Their plans also state that CMS will be providing Eligible Professionals with information, so that they can decide whether to select an incentive under the Medicare or Medicaid program. This information should be available sometime in 2010. The plan also included a clearer outline of the Medicaid incentive program, stating that it will be begin in 2011 to assure consistency with Medicare. Finally the plan clearly stated that the maximum incentive under the Medicaid program in the first year is $21,250 and in each of the subsequent five years the max incentive is $8,500.

The ONC's Implementation Plan [PDF] also includes a clear outline for when the initial set of standards, implementation specifications and certification criteria will be released. The ONC plans to have the draft rules complete by the end of August so that they may complete the regulatory processes prior to the December 31, 2009 deadline. Another sought after piece of information is the definition of "meaningful use." Unfortunately no timeline is identified in the plan, however HHS is developing milestones for the project with planned delivery dates.

For more information and to read these documents in full please visit:

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