ONC Re-tests Two EHR Products After Complaints Filed
Last week EHR certification made news when the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC) announced it had revoked certifications for two EHR products developed by EHRMagic.  The products, one ambulatory and one inpatient, had previously been certified for Stage 1 meaningful use. EHR certification status of each product was questioned after complaints were filed indicating the systems could not meet certain meaningful use requirements. This is the first time the ONC has revoked an EHR certification. Upon additional analysis by InfoGard and contacting EHRMagic, required ONC-ACB  surveillance activities began and the products retested. Both failed retesting.
The ONC was quick to respond with an email statement from ONC spokesperson Peter Ashkenaz. Â In the email, Ashkenaz writes “To date, no providers have attested using these products.” ONC Farzad Mostashari, MDÂ tweeted “If certified EHRs don’t work as promised, we want to hear about it.”
In a follow up post on the ONC’s  Health IT Buzz Blog, Carol Bean, Director, Office of Certification and Testing, writes “Providers should be confident that when they buy and use a certified EHR, their product satisfies our requirements. That’s why we review any complaints we receive about these products and make sure they are addressed, even to the point of revoking certification when necessary.” Bean makes clear in her post  that the Office of Certification’s role in this process will extend beyond certification of an EHR product, saying “We are going to monitor certified EHRs to determine whether they continue to meet our requirements. The doctors, hospitals and other providers that are adopting – and have already adopted – EHRs deserve this and should feel confident that the tools they are using are up to the job of helping their patients get the best care possible.”
For information about the EHR certification process review the ONC HIT Certification Program FAQs or email ONC.Certification@hhs.gov.