In an effort to provide additional relief to a health care system strained by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (“ONC”) released an Interim Final Rule with Comment Period (“IFC”) on October 29, 2020 that extends the compliance dates under the 21st Century Cures Act Interoperability, Information Blocking, and ONC Health IT Certification Program Final Rule (the “Final Rule”) and offers some technical corrections and clarifications.
Continue Reading Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT Extends Compliance Deadlines under Interoperability Final Rule

The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) has released a final rule (Final Rule) introducing a new regulatory framework for certified health information technology (Health IT). The use of certified Health IT—specifically, electronic health record (EHR) modules—has played a central role in the EHR Incentive Programs and is intimately linked to the accrual of points in MACRA’s Merit-based Incentive Payment System. A major component of the Final Rule allows for ONC’s direct review of products certified by ONC’s Health IT Certification Program (Program) and identifies the roles of both developers and the ONC in addressing Program-compliance issues.[1] The Final Rule impacts developers of certified Health IT (Health IT Developers), providers that utilize and rely on such certified Health IT, and ancillary developers and service providers whose businesses are linked to EHR technology.
Continue Reading A Stick to Balance the Carrot: ONC Finalizes a New Framework to Address Non-Conformities in Certified Health Information Technology