Meaningful use declaration mixed among rural healthcare providers

While rural providers have adopted health IT at the same time or at greater rates as their urban counterparts, meaningful use varies dramatically among them, according to a recent HealthAffairs study. About 97.2 percent of rural hospitals with fewer than 100 beds initially achieved meaningful use; a rate consistent with larger hospitals with more than 400 beds, at about 97.4 percent. Critical access hospitals had slightly lower meaningful use achievement rates at about 92 percent. However, many rural providers failed to continue achieving meaningful use after the initial year, which leads to a greater financial disadvantage.