September 29, 2014 — On Sept. 22, 2014 MGMA sent this letter to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) requesting an extension for the current Oct. 1, 2014 deadline by which new eligible professionals must attest meeting meaningful use requirements to avoid a 2015 penalty:
September 22, 2014
Re: October 1 Meaningful Use Attestation Deadline for New EPs
Dear Administrator Tavenner:
The Medical Group Management Association (MGMA) writes today to urge you to extend the current Oct.1, 2014 date for new eligible professionals (EPs) to attest to meeting the 2014 requirements of the meaningful use EHR Incentive Program.
MGMA helps create successful medical practices that deliver the highest-quality patient care. As the leading association for medical practice administrators and executives since 1926, MGMA helps improve members’ practices and produces some of the most credible and robust medical practice economic data and data solutions in the industry. Through its national membership and 50 state affiliates, MGMA represents more than 33,000 medical practice administrators and executives in practices of all sizes, types, structures and specialties in which more than 280,000 physicians practice. We understand that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) registration and attestation website has not been modified to reflect the changes included in the recent final rule granting additional reporting options for EPs and will not permit new EPs to attest until well after the Oct.1 deadline. This will result in these EPs unfairly receiving a Medicare payment adjustment in 2015.
We urge you to immediately:
• Modify the CMS attestation website to accommodate new EP attestations;
• Extend the attestation deadline for new EPs a minimum of 30 days beyond when the website modifications are complete and the attestation process is available for new EPs; and
• Expeditiously communicate these changes to the physician community.
Thank you for your consideration of this request. Should you have any questions, please feel free to contact Robert Tennant at 202.293.3450 or rtennant@mgma.org.
Sincerely,
Anders M. Gilberg, Senior Vice President
MGMA Government Affairs
cc: Todd Lawson, Acting Director, Office of E-Health Standards and Services
