The federal government said this week that physicians have until
Nov. 1, 2011, to file for an exemption to the new federal
electronic prescribing requirements. Physicians who don't meet the
requirements are subject to a 1% reduction in Medicare payments.
The penalty will be 1.5% in 2013 and 2% in 2014.
The extension was granb=ted in response to calls from more than
100 physician organizations who said the original deadline of June
26 was unrealistic. The CMS also added a few more exemptions to its
original proposal, particular the one which exempts physicians who
are using electronic health records.
Physicians may seek an exemption under one or more of six
conditions:
- They have registered in a Medicare or Medicaid electronic
health record incentive program or have a certified EHR
- Were unable to prescribe electronically because of a local,
state or federal law or regulation
- Had limited prescribing activity
- Had insufficient opportunities to report e-prescribing for
eligible patient visits
- Practiced in a rural area without sufficient high-speed
Internet access
- Practiced in an area without a sufficient number of pharmacies
that accept electronic prescriptions
More information is available on the CMS website.
