E9-31216 II

II. Overview of the Interim Final Rule

We are adding a new part, part 170, to title 45 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) to adopt the initial set of standards, implementation specifications, and certification criteria required by section 3004(b)(1) of the PHSA.

We describe the standards, implementation specifications, and certification criteria adopted by the Secretary and the factors that contributed to their adoption.

We anticipate that adopted standards, implementation specifications, and certification criteria will be used to prepare Complete EHRs and EHR Modules for testing and certification.

In turn, eligible professionals and eligible hospitals that wish to position themselves to achieve the requirements of meaningful use Stage 1, once finalized, could adopt and implement Certified EHR Technology.

In drafting this interim final rule, we considered the input of the National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics, the HIT Policy Committee, and the HIT Standards Committee and the public comments received by each committee.

We invite public comment on this interim final rule and have posed several questions on topics for which we are interested in receiving specific public comment.