Application deadline extended for meaningful use hardship exception
Physicians now have until July 1, 2016 to apply for a hardship exception to the 2015 reporting requirements for Medicare's EHR Incentive Program, or meaningful use.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has extended the application deadline for the Medicare EHR Incentive Program hardship exception process.
Physicians now have until July 1, 2016 to apply for a hardship exception to the 2015 reporting requirements for Medicare's EHR Incentive Program, or meaningful use (MU). Thanks to a new law enacted at the end of 2015, CMS issued a streamlined hardship exception application process for physicians and other eligible professionals who will not be able to meet MU requirements due to the lateness of the MU final rule. Physicians can apply for a hardship exception that lets them avoid a potential payment penalty in 2017.
Hardship criteria, applications, and instructions can be found on the CMS website. Additional information about the meaningful use program can be found on ACPonline.