Did you know that there is an EHR incentive program? Sure, electronically managing your health records comes with a wealth of benefits…but enhancing security, reducing costs, and improving efficiency is just the tip of the iceberg. In fact, Medicare and Medicaid want to pay you for managing your records electronically with their EHR incentive program.
The Medicare and Medicaid Electronic Health Records (EHR) incentive program provides incentive payments to eligible hospitals and healthcare professionals if they can demonstrate their adoption, implementation, and general use of a certified EHR system. These EHR incentive programs were designed to assist providers during the transitional period from physical documents to electronic records which will ultimately lead to an overall improvement in the security, quality, and overall proficiency of health care providers.
Resources: For those of you looking to learn more about the EHR incentive program, including a list of EHR technologies, specifications, and other general resources, please visit the CMS website.
EHR Incentive Program Eligibility
Eligible Professionals:
Medicare Professionals:
- Medicare:
- Osteopathy
- Dental Medicine
- Podiatric Medicine
- Optometry
- Chiroprators
Medicaid Professionals:
- Physicians
- Nurse Practicioners
- Certified Nurses
- Dentists
- Doctors
- Opticians
NOTE: Eligible Professionals may not be hospital-based. This includes any provider who furnishes 90% or more of their services in a hospital setting.
Eligible Hospitals:
Medicare:
- Subsection hospitals in the 50 united states that are paid under the hospital inpatient prospective payment system.
- Critical Access Hospitals
- Medicare Advantage Affiliated Hospitals
Medicaid:
- Acute Care Hospitals with at least 10% Medicaid patient volume
- Children’s Hospitals
EHR Incentive Program Payment Schedules
Medicare:
| First Payment Received in 2011 | First Payment Received in 2012 | First Payment Received in 2013 | First Payment Received in 2014 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amount in 2011 | $18,000 | |||
| Amount in 2012 | $12,000 | $18,000 | ||
| Amount in 2013 |
$7,840 Reduction ($160) |
$11,760Reduction ($240) |
$14,700 Reduction ($300) |
|
| Amount in 2014 |
$3,920 Reduction ($80) |
$7,840Reduction ($160) | $11,760Reduction ($240) |
$11,760 Reduction ($240) |
| Amount in 2015 |
$1,960 Reduction ($40) |
$3,920Reduction ($80) | $7,840Reduction ($160) |
$7,840 Reduction ($160) |
| Amount in 2016 |
$1,960 Reduction ($40) |
$3,920Reduction ($80) |
$3,920 Reduction ($80) |
|
| TOTAL Payments | $43,720 | $43,480 | $38,220 | $23,520 |
*As required by law, President Obama issued a sequestration order on March 1, 2013. Under these mandatory reductions, Medicare EHR incentive payments made to eligible professionals and eligible hospitals will be reduced by 2%. This 2% reduction has been applied to any Medicare EHR incentive payment for a reporting period that ended on or after April 1, 2013. This reduction does not apply to Medicaid EHR incentive payments.
Medicaid:
| First Payment Received in 2011 | First Payment Received in 2012 | First Payment Received in 2013 | First Payment Received in 2014 | First Payment Received in 2015 | First Payment Received in 2016 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amount in 2011 | $21,250.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Amount in 2012 | $8,500.00 | $21,250.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Amount in 2013 | $8,500.00 | $8,500.00 | $21,250.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Amount in 2014 | $8,500.00 | $8,500.00 | $8,500.00 | $21,250.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Amount in 2015 | $8,500.00 | $8,500.00 | $8,500.00 | $8,500.00 | $21,250.00 | $0.00 |
| Amount in 2016 | $8,500.00 | $8,500.00 | $8,500.00 | $8,500.00 | $8,500.00 | $21,250.00 |
| Amount in 2017 | $0.00 | $8,500.00 | $8,500.00 | $8,500.00 | $8,500.00 | $8,500.00 |
| Amount in 2018 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $8,500.00 | $8,500.00 | $8,500.00 | $8,500.00 |
| Amount in 2019 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $8,500.00 | $8,500.00 | $8,500.00 |
| Amount in 2020 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $8,500.00 | $8,500.00 |
| Amount in 2021 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $8,500.00 |
| TOTAL Payments | $63,750.00 | $63,750.00 | $63,750.00 | $63,750.00 | $63,750.00 | $63,750.00 |
