Only 14% of practices expect to meet CMS' meaningful use criteria

Although most (80.1%) medical practices that already have adopted an electronic health record (EHR) system reported an intention to participate in the EHR meaningful use incentives available through the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, only 13.6% of practices surveyed last year predicted an ability to meet all 15 core criteria for eligibility to receive incentive payments, according to survey results released by the Medical Group Management Association.

The survey results: "Electronic Health Records: Status, Needs and Lessons 2011 Report Based on 2010 Data," were based on 4,588 validated online responses that came from a variety of healthcare organizations, including medical group practices representing about 120,000 physicians.

Nearly 72% of EHR owners said they are satisfied with their systems, but only 20.7% had optimized their systems for meaningful use. Independent medical practices were more likely to have a fully implemented and optimized EHR.