The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) named the Drummond Group, of Austin, Texas, and the Certification Commission for Health IT (CCHIT), of Chicago, to be the first organizations authorized to test and certify electronic health records under ONC's temporary certification program.
Announcement of the certifying organizations means that EHR vendors can begin to get their products certified as capable of the functions necessary to support meaningful use of health IT, said Dr. David Blumenthal, the national health IT coordinator, Aug. 30.
The temporary program, which will expire in December 2011, is designed to enable health IT vendors to have their products and services certified in time for providers to meet 2011 deadlines for qualifying for first stage meaningful use requirements.
ONC is developing a permanent certification program, in which separate organizations will perform testing and certification activities, for subsequent years of the incentive program.
Prior to the health IT incentive plan, CCHIT, a non-profit organization, had been the sole organization authorized to certify EHRs.
Under the new regime, ONC will increase the number of organizations that can certify vendor systems for the wave of providers expected to pursue meaningful use incentives and adopt EHRs. As a result, CCHIT had to apply to become an Authorized Testing and Certification Bodies, just like other groups.
"EHR vendors can begin immediately to get their products certified," Blumenthal said in the announcement. He called the selection of certifying bodies a "crucial step" because it means that approved EHRs will be available to support meaningful use and they will be aligned with one another on key standards.
As a result, "doctors and hospitals can invest with confidence in these certified systems," he said.
Certification is designed to assure health care providers that the EHR technology that they acquire can perform the functions they need to participate in the Medicare and Medicaid EHR incentive program. Physicians and hospitals that become meaningful users of certified EHRs and modules are eligible for incentive payments under the HITECH Act.
CCHIT plans to launch its authorized certification program Sept. 20, said Dr. Karen M. Bell, CCHIT chair. "Our experience has enabled us to promptly adapt our processes to accommodate the certification and standards adopted by HHS to support the meaningful use of EHRs by healthcare providers," she said in a statement.
CCHIT is authorized to offer certification for complete EHRs that meet all of the Stage 1 meaningful use criteria, as well as certification for modular EHR products that meet one or more, but not all, of the criteria, she said.
Drummond specialized in testing software for interoperability across a number of industries. The firm will be able to certify complete EHRs and all EHR modules for both ambulatory and inpatient settings, said Rik Drummond, the company's chief executive officer.
"We are pleased to offer over ten years of software testing and certification experience in other industries to healthcare, " he said. "After executing several pilots on existing EHR products and working with industry consultants, our organization is more than prepared to test and certify healthcare products.
Organizations that applied to certification bodies had to demonstrate their ability to test and certify complete EHRs and/or modules, such as for e-prescribing. The applicants also had to successfully complete a proficiency examination, said Carol Bean, ONC division director of certification and testing.
Once the certification bodies were picked, ONC will supply two days of training in Washington, D.C.. "Once we authorize these bodies to test and certify, they will be in business," she said.
The certifying organizations will use test methods that the National Institute of Standards and Technology has developed.
In other steps to accelerate the adoption of EHRs, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is creating an online system for providers to register and attest that they have performed the measures for the incentive program. "The first incentive payments are targeted to be made in May 2011," Blumenthal said.
ONC will also keep a Certified Health IT Product List (CHPL) of all certified EHR products and to what criteria they have been certified.
