AMA, others advise HHS to clarify meaningful use regs

A collaborative of seven organizations, including the American Hospital Association, American Medical Association, and the Healthcare Information & Management Systems Society, has proposed changes to clarify and streamline the process of achieving meaningful use objectives. "The success of future stages will hinge on the outcomes and lessons learned from Meaningful Use Stage 1," stated the letter to Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. "Going forward, everyone realizes much remains to be done."  To reduce the complexity of the regulations, the group suggested that HHS launch a unified website serving as "the single source of truth" for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services's meaningful use and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT's certification programs. The collaborative also suggested the HHS extend the regional extension center services to specialist categories, and evaluate the effectiveness of the RECs' physician outreach and assistance efforts.