100,000 PRIMARY CARE PROVIDERS COMMIT TO ADOPTING ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORDS

100,000 PRIMARY CARE PROVIDERS COMMIT TO ADOPTING ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORDS
Regional Extension Centers Gains Commitment from
Providers to Advance America’s Healthcare
 
At the ONC Annual Meeting on November 17, 2011, the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) announced that the network of 62 Health IT Regional Extension Centers (RECs) achieved one of its first major milestones – gaining commitments from 100,000 primary care providers (PCPs) to adopt electronic health records in a meaningful way. As part of this network of RECs, the Chicago Health Information Technology Regional Extension Center (CHITREC) enrolled 1,238 primary care providers in the Chicago area. Representing roughly one-third of all PCPs in the U.S., these 100,000 providers are building the foundation of a fully electronic healthcare system.
 
“This is an enormous milestone for America’s healthcare providers,” said Farzad Mostashari, MD, ScM, national coordinator for health information technology at ONC. “EHR-enabled providers are taking the first steps in transforming healthcare in the U.S., enhancing the safety and quality of care for patients. We would not have been able to accomplish this without the hard work of regional extension centers across the country.”
 
Primary care providers are the foundation of America’s healthcare system as they are often the patient’s first point of contact for healthcare and can be the center of the patient’s care network. EHR-enabled PCPs allow clinicians to share more accurate, complete information and better coordinate patient care across specialists, hospitals and other healthcare providers. As EHR technologies become more widely adopted by providers and reach their full potential, patients will be able to access their own health information and become empowered partners in their medical care.
 
As of this week, 246 of our enrolled CHITREC providers have already begun using their EHR systems and a handful of participants have reached the final stage of demonstrating Meaningful Use. Health care providers who become meaningful users of EHRs may be eligible for up to $63,750 over six years through Medicaid and up to $44,000 over five years through Medicare. Read some of our success stories and find out what doctors are saying about working with CHITREC.
 
Since February 2010, CHITREC has been using its broad, Health IT expertise to help PCPs, who face unique and complex challenges with EHR adoption, make a smooth transition to their EHR goals. Because all practices are different, CHITREC gears its support to meet each practice’s specific needs – from identifying financial resources to negotiating with EHR vendors to redesigning office workflow.
 
“We have witnessed, firsthand, providers making significant strides in switching to an electronically-enabled practice,” said Abel Kho, co-executive director of CHITREC. “The 1,238 providers who have partnered with our REC are leading the way for the CHITREC medical community in meeting the meaningful use EHR criteria, ultimately leading to improved patient health care.”
 
Throughout the country, RECs are working with providers in different practice settings to ensure widespread adoption of electronic health records. While RECs mainly assist primary care providers, they also work with specialists such as cardiologists. The regional extension centers leverage their broad health IT experience to provide assistance to clinicians working in practices of various sizes and in both urban and rural settings.
 
As part of its EHR Incentives Program, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services defined meaningful use criteria to ensure providers use a certified EHR system to:
 

• Exchange health information as part of coordinated care,
• Report clinical quality care measures and
• Utilize electronic medical services such as e-prescribing.

About CHITREC
 
CHITREC was awarded through an objective review process by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC), as the designated organization in Chicago to support primary health care providers on EHR adoption and meaningful use.
 
CHITREC delivers education, training, tools and assessments to help primary care providers in Chicago achieve meaningful use of EHRs. If you or a provider in the 606xx zip code region would like to know more about CHITREC’s services or federal payment incentive eligibility, explore our website or contact us.
 
Additional Resources
HHS Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT
Health IT Journey: Stories from the Road 
 
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