Why Certify EHR Products for Physician Offices?
Practices may be frustrated and confused by EHR industry claims and find it difficult to judge product suitability, quality, interoperability, data portability, and security. “Certification will help practices to distinguish among over 200 EHR products on the market,”says Sue Reber, Communication Director for the Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology (CCHITSM). In October 2005, HHS awarded a contract to CCHIT, an independent third party, to develop ambulatory EHR certification criteria and an inspection process intended to: • Reduce the risk for providers’ HIT investment by ensuring functionality, interoperability, and security. • Ensure interoperability (compatibility) of HIT products with emerging networks. • Enhance availability of HIT adoption incentives from purchasers and payers. • Protect the privacy of personal health information Practices will benefit from the processes CCHIT has created to inspect products. CCHIT encourages vendors to prepare and appl
