ehr onc final certification - Department of Health Care Services

Response. We do not believe that it would be appropriate to expand the
certification criterion as suggested at this time. This does not preclude a Complete EHR
or EHR Module developer from pursuing other ways to optimize how a Complete EHR
or EHR Module may function.
§170.304(c) - Record demographics
Meaningful Use
Stage 1
Objective
Record
demographics
• preferred
language
• gender
• race
• ethnicity
• date of birth
Meaningful Use Stage
1 Measure
More than 50% of all
unique patients seen by
the EP or admitted to
the eligible hospital’s or
CAH’s inpatient or
emergency department
(POS 21 or 23) have
demographics recorded
as structured data
Page 135 of 228
Certification Criterion
Interim Final Rule Text:
Enable a user to electronically record, modify, and
retrieve patient demographic data including preferred
language, insurance type, gender, race, ethnicity, and date
of birth.
Final Rule Text:
§170.304(c)
Record demographics. Enable a user to electronically
record, modify, and retrieve patient demographic data
including preferred language, gender, race, ethnicity, and
date of birth. Enable race and ethnicity to be recorded in
accordance with the standard specified at 170.207(f).
Comments. Several commenters recommended that we adopt the OMB race and
ethnicity codes.
Response. We agree with these commenters and have adopted the OMB race and
ethnicity codes. In the Medicare and Medicaid EHR Incentive Programs proposed rule
(75 FR 1855), CMS stated that race and ethnicity codes should follow current Federal
standards. We note that the OMB race and ethnicity codes constitute a government-
unique standard for the purposes of the National Technology Transfer and Advancement
Act of 1995 (NTTAA). We have adopted this standard because it provides an easily
understood structure and format for electronically transmitting the data elements
identified in the meaningful use Stage 1 objective, the standard is readily available, in
general it provides the best standard to use to support our policies goals. Moreover, we