EHR Implementation Rising, But Hurdles For Healthcare Providers Remain

Thanks to government incentives, more healthcare organizations in the United States are implementing Electronic Health Record systems than ever before. But EHR implementation isn't the same as EHR adoption, which requires significant investment in planning, training and personnel.

CIO — Recent data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services point to progress in Electronic Health Record (EHR) implementation. Under the meaningful use program established by the 2009 stimulus bill, 75 percent of eligible hospitals and 73 percent of healthcare providers have received incentive payments for attesting to EHR use, CMS says.

In addition, the number of hospitals using EHR systems with "advanced functionality" has grown from 9 percent to 44 percent between 2008 and 2012, with growth from 17 percent to 40 percent shown for physician offices. (Advanced functionality goes above and beyond the criteria of the meaningful use incentive program and includes features such as viewing imaging test results.)