ehr onc final certification - Department of Health Care Services
ehr onc final certification - Department of Health Care Services
ehr onc final certification - Department of Health Care Services
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disability communities on accessibility and usability and how HIT will impact members<br />
<strong>of</strong> this community. The commenters requested that we clarify the applicability <strong>of</strong><br />
accessibility standards and that we add technological non-discrimination as a goal to<br />
guide future standards work.<br />
Response. We appreciate the thorough and thoughtful comments provided related<br />
to accessibility. We believe that HIT has the potential to provide all persons with more<br />
efficient access to their health information. In that regard, we solicited public comment<br />
on the issue <strong>of</strong> accessibility and <strong>certification</strong> to garner more information about available<br />
standards and to begin a path forward that included these standards as part <strong>of</strong> the overall<br />
standards adoption process. We reiterate what we discussed in the interim <strong>final</strong> rule<br />
when we provided the context for our solicitation <strong>of</strong> public comment on accessibility.<br />
“Nothing required by this interim <strong>final</strong> rule should be construed as affecting<br />
existing legal requirements under other Federal laws. While the capabilities<br />
provided by Certified EHR Technology may assist in the compliance with certain<br />
legal requirements, they do not in any way remove or alter those<br />
requirements….As another example, in providing patients with access to their<br />
online health information, it is important to note that the accessibility<br />
requirements <strong>of</strong> the Americans with Disabilities Act <strong>of</strong> 1990 and Section 504 <strong>of</strong><br />
the Rehabilitation Act <strong>of</strong> 1973 still apply to entities covered by these Federal civil<br />
rights laws. Additionally, Title VI <strong>of</strong> the Civil Rights Act <strong>of</strong> 1964 and its<br />
implementing regulations protect persons from unlawful discrimination on the<br />
basis <strong>of</strong> race, color and national origin. Under Title VI and its implementing<br />
regulations, recipients <strong>of</strong> Federal financial assistance must take reasonable steps<br />
to ensure meaningful access to their programs, services, and activities by eligible<br />
limited English pr<strong>of</strong>icient persons.”<br />
While we have not yet adopted specific accessibility standards as a condition <strong>of</strong><br />
<strong>certification</strong>, we believe that the adoption <strong>of</strong> such standards in a future rulemaking would<br />
prove beneficial, to enable all persons (including health care providers with disabilities)<br />
to have equitable access to EHR technology and the electronic information it generates.<br />
In the interim, we encourage Complete EHR and EHR Module developers to design their<br />
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