ChiroTouch, the nation’s leader in chiropractic software, encourages those chiropractors who have not successfully attested to meaningful use in the Medicare EHR Incentive Program in 2014 to apply for a hardship exception by July 1, 2015.
“In the beginning, attesting to meaningful use was all about the incentives gained by doing so,” said Robert Moberg, CEO of ChiroTouch. “Now, however, we’re entering the transition period where participation is required in order to avoid payment penalties. If a chiropractor cannot successfully meet the meaningful use requirements for 2014, it is important to apply for a hardship exception before the deadline to avoid losing revenue.”
Chiropractors who did not successfully attest to meaningful use in the Medicare EHR Incentive Program in 2014 will experience a 2 percent payment penalty beginning on January 1, 2016, unless they apply for a meaningful use hardship exception by July 1.
Last year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) penalized over 250,000 Medicare eligible professionals for a total of $200 million, so successful attestation or acquiring a hardship exception is critical.
CMS will grant hardship exceptions when an applicant can show that specific circumstances pose a significant barrier to achieving meaningful use. However, the maximum number of times practitioners can apply for a hardship exception is two.
This means applicants must successfully demonstrate that the circumstances were beyond their control and specifically articulate how those circumstances significantly impaired their ability to achieve meaningful use.
More information about the CMS hardship exception program and a useful hardship exception tool can be found here.
“Although the meaningful use hardship exception may be a lifeboat for those who have not successfully attested, it is important to remember that attestation should be the primary goal,” said Moberg. “This is because the penalties will continue to increase 1 percent each year, to a maximum 5 percent penalty by 2019. And those who cannot successfully attest will carry the burden of having to reapply for a hardship exception each year with no guarantee that CMS will approve them.”
ChiroTouch offers two certified 2014 Edition Complete EHR chiropractic software systems designed from the ground up to maximize efficiencies for virtually every process, including patient self check-in, scheduling, SOAP notes, billing, interoffice communication, and more.
ChiroTouch has developed its HIPAA-compliant systems to drastically reduce the time it takes to perform tasks that chiropractors are already doing, thus giving chiropractors more time to see more patients.
Source: ChiroTouch
