Certification Commission for Health Information Technology (CCHIT®) announced today that it has been recognized by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as an Authorized Testing and Certification Body (ONC-ATCB) under the initial certification program created to certify that electronic health records (EHRs) are capable of meeting the criteria to support meaningful use and qualify eligible providers and hospitals for funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).
“We are gratified to be among the first organizations authorized to certify EHRs by ONC,” said Karen M. Bell, M.D., M.M.S., chair of CCHIT. “As the originator of EHR certification, CCHIT has tested and certified hundreds of EHRs. Our experience has enabled us to promptly adapt our processes to accommodate the certification and standards adopted by HHS to support the meaningful use of EHRs by healthcare providers.”
CCHIT is authorized to offer HHS certification for complete EHRs that meet all of the Stage 1, 2011/2012 HHS/ONC criteria, as well as certification for modular EHR products that meet one or more – but not all – of the criteria.
CCHIT plans to launch its authorized HHS certification program on September 20 at 1:00 PM Eastern time with a Town Call Web-cast describing its application and testing process. CCHIT will take new health IT developer applications immediately after athttp://cchit.org and the first group of HHS certified complete EHRs and EHR modules will be announced within weeks of that launch. More information about the Town Call will be available at http://www.cchit.org/towncalls. The call will be recorded for later viewing.
In addition to HHS certification, CCHIT will continue to offer its CCHIT Certified® program for Ambulatory and Inpatient EHR products that exceed the HHS/ONC criteria and are designed for hospitals and physician practices that are looking for assurance of more robust, integrated EHR products to support the unique needs of its clinicians and patients. Many of these products will also be HHS certified.
CCHIT also offers CCHIT Certified® programs for EHRs used in Cardiovascular Medicine, Child Health, Emergency Departments, Behavioral Health, Dermatology and Long-Term and Post-Acute Care. In addition, a certification program for EHRs used in Clinical Research will be available in fall 2010, and programs in Women’s Health and Oncology are in development for launch in spring 2011.
