New Bill Could Mean Penalties For HIT Vendors That Don't Meet Data-Sharing Standards

By Megan Williams, contributing writer

A draft bill intended to encourage the development of new medical treatments might mean increased penalties for EHR (electron health records) vendors.

The Act

The 21st Century Cures Act is a bipartisan initiative designed to encourage a bolder approach to scientific research. In addition, it addresses the use of data and communication in sections like “Facilitating Dissemination Of Health Care Economic Information.”

It also includes data-sharing standards that, if not met by January 1, 2018, include penalties for HIT vendors.

If the bill passes, it would mean an injection of $10 million for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to hire a “charter organization” that would be charged with assessing the state of healthcare interoperability. The results of the assessment would be publically posted in July of next year.

HHS would also publish a follow-up report on December 31, 2017, listing whether vendors’ software was found to be compliant with certification requirements. Any vendor that did not attest by January of 2018 would face decertification. Some of those requirements would include:

• APIs
• A lack of barriers to data sharing
• Transparent pricing information on data transmission

Industry Reaction

Healthcare Dive notes a generally positive industry reaction. athenahealth’s VP of government and regulatory affairs notes that he is “still reviewing the details” but is “pleased by the focus on information blocking and the teeth given those provisions.” A similar sentiment came from CHIME senior policy advisor, Jeff Smith, who believes the bill has been “improved.”

There of course has been some criticism, mainly around the decertification penalty and how it impacts providers who may have chosen to work with offending vendors. These providers would be forced to either accept the Medicare penalty, or go through the expensive process of changing EHR systems. While there is a hardship exemption built into the language of the bill (HHS discretion of one to five years) providers are still left with the responsibility of selecting an EHR vendor that meets interoperability standards.

Additional changes include:

• reaffirmation of patient rights to the entirety of their electronic health record
• statement that providers do not need patient consent to share data for care (with the exception of mental health records)