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March 16, 2009Many physicians have questions about the incentives for adopting an approved EMR under the new stimulus package, especially when it comes to Medicaid and Medicare incentives. According to a recent article, physicians will have to choose either Medicare or Medicaid incentives under the economic stimulus package because they cannot get both:
“Physicians who choose to participate in the Medicaid incentives “have to waive the right to a Medicare incentive,” explains Heidi Echols, partner at the Chicago law firm McDermott, Will & Emery. To qualify for extra Medicaid payments, hospitals and doctors must reach thresholds for percentages of patients who are eligible for Medicaid, she adds.
“Hospitals as well as physicians must have a records system up and running to begin earning Medicare incentives. In contrast, individual doctors can get as much as $25,000 in year-one Medicaid incentive payments to defray some of the cost of acquiring the technology, Echols says. Hospitals also can earn Medicaid reimbursement for technology acquisition costs in year one.
“Although the Act does not specify a start date for Medicaid incentives, “HIMSS believes it will be in 2011, based on Senate sources,” Echols says.
“After receiving the start-up Medicaid funding, physicians can earn up to $10,000 annually for four additional years to support “meaningful use” of electronic health records, the attorney adds.
“The six-year Medicaid incentive program for hospitals is more complex, she acknowledges. Hospitals must have a qualifying EHR in place by 2016 to receive any Medicaid incentive funding. And they must derive 10% of their patient volume from Medicaid to qualify for incentives.”
Read the full article: “Medicaid Incentives Explained“. According to presentation released by Practice Partner, beginning in 2011, physicians who are “meaningful users” of certified EHR/EMRs are entitled to receive up to $44,000 of total incentive payments over five years:
- Year One Customer Qualification: $15,000 ($18,000 if Year One is 2011 or 2012)
- Year Two Customer Qualification: $12,000
- Year Three Customer Qualification: $ 8,000
- Year Four Customer Qualification: $ 4,000
- Year Five Customer Qualification: $ 2,000
- You must qualify by 2013 in order to receive the full incentive ($39,000)
- For those who qualify in 2014, the maximum incentive will be $24,000
- No payments to any providers after 2016, or for those who qualify in 2015 or later
For physicians who do not adopt such technology by 2015, Medicare payments will be reduced by the following factors in the years specified:
- 2015: One percent
- 2016: Two percent
- 2017 and beyond: Three percent
- 2018 and beyond: Plus one additional percent/year (max of 5%) if 75% not automated
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