The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009, casually known as the economic stimulus package, has generated a lot of buzz across the chiropractic profession.

A section of the ARRA, known as the HITECH Act, deals specifically with health information technology; however, there has been substantial misinformation and rampant rumors about the package and its relationship to you.

This article will help dispel some of the myths swirling around and simplify some of the complexities.

Separating myth and fact

MYTH:Chiropractors are not eligible for incentive payments related to the implementation of a qualified electronic health records (EHR) system.

FACT:The government is using the definition of “physician” from the Social Security code, which includes chiropractic physicians. Thus, you are eligible to receive reimbursement for implementing EHRs — as long as they also meet other established guidelines.

MYTH: Any electronic system will qualify me for government incentive payments.

FACT:Only qualified EHRs used meaningfully will be considered for incentive payments to you. To be a qualified EHR, the system must have the capacity to handle patient demographics and clinical health information, and have clinic management capabilities, as outlined by the entity that certifies qualified EHRs.

Only certified EHRs will be considered for the financial incentives, and while the certification entity has not yet been named, most predict it will be the Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology since it is currently the only recognized EHR certification entity in the federal system.

“Meaningful use” is defined by three key measures:

• Connectivity to health information exchanges (HIEs) and other EHRs;

• Regular reporting of quality measures, including outcome assessment scores and pain assessment; and

• E-prescribing capability. (Note: Because chiropractic physicians don’t have prescribing privileges, it is unknown whether this will remain a requirement.)

Digital note taking systems and other automated documentation programs that don’t meet these criteria will not be considered for incentive payments.

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