American EHR News

AmericanEHR Partners to Launch July 13, 2010

Date: June 20, 2010

The free, web-based resource, the AmericanEHR Partners Program, will help healthcare professionals compare, evaluate, select and learn how to use certified EHR systems effectively.

Other professional associations joining the effort are:

• American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI)
• American Osteopathic Association of Medical Informatics (AOAMI)
• American Psychiatric Association (APA)
• Infectious Disease Society of America (IDSA)
• Renal Physicians Association (RPA)
• Society of General Internal Medicine (SGIM)
• American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA), a health care information management organization

In 2009, the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act --HITECH Act -- (part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act) established criteria for Medicare and Medicaid participating physicians to receive financial incentives for using EHRs in a meaningful manner. Implementation of certified EHR technology will enable physician practices to take advantage of Federal Stimulus funding of up to $44,000 in additional Medicare payments between 2011 and 2015.

As healthcare professionals plan to adopt healthcare information technology (Health IT) and receive funds, they will be faced with a range of certified EHR solutions. AmericanEHR Partners will simplify Health IT adoption by allowing healthcare professionals to:

• Evaluate readiness to adopt an EHR and provide a list of recommended resources to help with deficiencies;
• View comprehensive EHR user ratings on different solutions (ratings will be based on surveys of physicians conducted through their professional societies);
• Sort EHR solutions based on medical subspecialty and functionality; and
• Provide side-by-side comparisons of EHR systems.

AmericanEHR Partners is open to all EHR vendors with nationally-recognized certification. EHR vendors currently planning to participate in the program are:

• Allscripts 
• Amazing Charts
• Aprima
• athenahealth
• e-Clinicalworks
• e-MDs 
• GE
• Greenway Medical Technologies Inc.
• Ingenix
• McKesson
• MicroMD
• Nightingale Informatix
• NextGen Healthcare
• Pulse 
• Sage
• Sequel Systems
• SuiteMed

Once practices have determined a short list of vendors, registered users of AmericanEHR Partners will be able to submit a request for information to EHR vendors identified directly though the site. The site will provide an array of educational content provided though newsletters, podcasts, webinars, blogs, and more. The educational material will be developed for healthcare professionals in all stages of health IT adoption, including those looking to optimize existing systems.

The AmericanEHR Partners strives to provide unbiased information about the vendors -- and their products -- that participate in the program. The program will not endorse any EHR products, services or systems.

Source: AmericanEHR Partners

Author: Alan Brookstone, MD (Cientis)