Electronic Health Records: Researching the Basics

The American Recovery and Investment Act of 2009 (ARRA) allocated $19 billion in Medicare and Medicaid incentives to eligible physicians who demonstrate the "Meaningful Use" of a certified electronic health record system.

• Incentive Program Overview
  Who's eligible for the incentives, what's available, and when it's available.
  
• Meaningful Use Rules
  A non-technician's guide to the standards needed to be certified as meeting the federal government's Meaningful Use criteria.
  
• State Assistance
  The Massachusetts Regional Extension Center offers subsidized consulting services for practices seeking to have their EHRs certified under the Meaningful Use program.

White Papers/Resources

MMS/MAeHC CME Webinar Series on Meaningful Use
A series of four informative videos that bring the ARRA program from the theoretical down to the practice

• Making Meaningful Use Useful
  
• Implementing an EHR Webinar 
• Details of Meaningful Use Webinar 
• Meaningful Use in the Practice Webinar
  

State Medicaid Health Information Technology Plan (.pdf, 293 pages)

Implementing Electronic Health Records: A Checklist for Your Practice
Provides practices with a tool to track and follow their EHR process from purchase to post-implementation. (.pdf)

Change Management in Medical Practices: Understanding Software Migrations and Promoting Success
This MMS white paper explores how to handle the complexities of implementation and how to maintain effective communication with staff through the process.

EHR Cost Calculator
This spreadsheet is a tool to assist physicians in calculating the potential costs for purchasing an EHR system for their practices.

Glossary
The ARRA presents a maze of acronyms. Our glossary will help you navigate.