The Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology
CCHIT® today announced that AllMeds’® EMR v8 is a CCHIT Certified® 08 Ambulatory EHR, and meets the Certification Commission’s electronic health record (EHR) criteria for office-based use. Ambulatory EHRs are designed for physician offices and clinics where most Americans get their healthcare. The Commission – a private, nonprofit organization – is the Recognized Certification Body in the United States for certifying health information technology products.
“Two key new areas of interoperability are required to achieve 08 certification,” said Mark Leavitt, M.D., Ph.D., chair, CCHIT. “First, ambulatory EHRs must be capable of advanced electronic prescribing functions so physicians can qualify for bonuses under Medicare’s new incentive program. Second, EHRs must be able to send and receive an electronic patient summary. These and other new criteria will ensure that certified health IT products help improve quality, safety and efficiency while protecting the privacy of health information.”
Two key new areas of interoperability are required to achieve 08 certification In the third year of the program’s operation, the criteria and testing have been significantly updated again to provide physicians with more assurance that certified products will meet their needs for functionality, interoperability and security. The Commission added 19 criteria to the 200 required in 2007. Those changes were focused on the ability to exchange patient information with other systems. A CCHIT Certified 08 Ambulatory EHR ensures:
- Additional electronic prescribing features: access to the patient’s medication history, formulary, and eligibility.
- Better and safer medication dosing, adjusted for patient weight and other factors.
- Better ability to prevent adverse reactions due to drug interactions or allergies.
- Use of standard formats to exchange basic patient information for continuity of care.
- Enhanced ability to view X-rays and other diagnostic images.
- Better management of patient consents and authorizations.
- Increased use of standard formats when receiving and storing laboratory results.
As a CCHIT Certified product, AllMeds’ EMR v8.0 has been tested and passed inspection of 100 percent of these new criteria.
“AllMeds is pleased to receive CCHIT’s 2008 recognition and to continue our participation in the organization’s certification program,” said William T. Rust, AllMeds CEO. “AllMeds’ 2008 status indicates that our solution provides the cutting edge functionality physicians need. Today, we’re moving aggressively toward the certification that CCHIT is designing to align with federal incentive programs later this year. AllMeds is committed to providing solutions that assist our clients in taking care of their patients, managing their practices, participating in the latest incentive programs and remaining current with federal EHR requirements.”
