HIMSS10: Majority of CIOs expect to earn full 'meaningful use' bonus

Nearly seven in 10 healthcare organizations expect to be eligible for federal incentives for "meaningful use" of health information technology before the end of fiscal year 2012, in time to receive the full Medicare or Medicaid bonus, according to the annual HIMSS Leadership Survey of CIOs and other health IT executives. 

"We feel like we can be compliant on April 1, 2011," David Dawdy, CIO of Phelps Regional Hospital in Rolla, Mo., said Monday morning at the annual HIMSS conference in Atlanta.

"We really are at a tipping point," said HIMSS Chairman Dr. Barry Chaiken. It's a phrase we've heard before, but data from the survey suggests that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act really is pushing providers to adopt EMRs and other health IT en masse. "A year ago, spending was down and hospitals were feeling pressure, but the stabilizing of the economy and the ARRA meaningful use provision has provided an incentive for making healthcare IT investments," Chaiken added.

Some 38 percent of respondents cited government issues--meaningful use, HIPAA and the transition to 5010/ICD-10 coding--as the business issue having the most impact on health IT this year, up from just 6 percent in 2009. Financial considerations dropped to 23 percent from 54 percent a year ago.

And for 42 percent of respondents, the top IT priority over the next two years is meeting meaningful use. Last year's top priority, a focus on clinical systems, fell to 27 percent from 51 percent last year.

About a quarter of organizations surveyed have fully operational EMRs in at least one facility, and another 22 percent are fully operational across the whole organization, which is one reason why HIMSS does not support a delay in the federal EMR incentive program. "I think keeping the bar high is important," said Allana Cummings, CIO of Children's Hospital and Medical Center in Omaha, Neb.

For more data:
- Take a look at this HIMSS press release

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