The Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinic Health (HITECH) Act authorizes the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to make incentive payments to eligible professionals and eligible hospitals demonstrating meaningful use of certified EHR technology.
Meaningful use will be implemented in three stages beginning in 2011. The duration of each stage will depend on when an eligible professional/hospital chooses to apply for incentives.
| Stage 1 | Exclusion Criteria | Immunization Reporting | Laboratory Reporting | Surveillance Reporting |
Meaningful Use for Stage 1
Requirements:
- 15 core objectives that form a foundation for meaningful use of EHRs, and
- 10 additional elements from which providers need to choose at least five to implement.
* Although providers have flexibility in choosing menu set options, at least one of the five options must be specific to public health.
Objectives:
- Submit electronic data to immunization information system [Immunization Reporting]
- Submit reportable labs results to public health (hospitals only) [Laboratory Reporting/ELR]
- Submit syndromic surveillance data to public health [Syndromic Surveillance Reporting]
Standards:
All electronic reporting must use recommended standards for exchange and vocabulary as shown in the following table.
| Objective | Ambulatory Measure | Hospital Measure (ED & IP) | Standards |
| Immunization Records | ≥ 1 test of submission to state immunization registry (unless no registries are capable) with continued submission if successful | ≥ 1 test of submission to state immunization registry (unless no registries are capable) with continued submission if successful | Follows MIIX HL7 specifications. View HL7 guides » |
| Reportable Labs | ≥ 1 test of submission to public health (unless no public health agency is capable) with continued submission if successful | ≥ 1 test of submission to public health (unless no public health agency is capable) with continued submission if successful | HL7 Version 2.5.1 Implementation Guide: Electronic Laboratory Reporting to Public Health, Release 1 |
| Syndromic Surveillance | ≥ 1 test of submission to public health (unless no public health agency is capable) with continued submission if successful | ≥ 1 test of submission to public health (unless no public health agency is capable) with continued submission if successful | PHIN Messaging Guide for Syndromic Surveillance: Emergency Department and Urgent Care Data, Release 1.1 (August 2012) PHIN Messaging Guide for Syndromic Surveillance: Emergency Department and Urgent Care Data, Addendum Release 1.1 (August 2012) |
Public Health Exclusion Criteria
The Eligible Hospital/CAH or Eligible Provider can request an exclusion to CMS based on the following criteria.
- If the Eligible Hospital/CAH or Eligible Provider does not collect public health (Immunization, Laboratory Reporting [ELR], or Syndromic Surveillance) data during the reporting period OR
- The public health agency does not have the capacity to receive the data.
NOTE: MSDH is able to receive electronic submissions to satisfy the public health-related objectives for Meaningful Use (MU) attestation.
Immunization Reporting
Mississippi's Immunization Information eXchange (MIIX) follows a standards-based solution for data exchange.
- To submit data to MIIX, providers should follow the Mississippi-specific implementation guides:
- To submit data to MIIX, providers/hospitals must complete the appropriate export agreement form:
- An eligible professional/hospital must perform at least one test of the certified EHR technology's capacity to submit electronic data to an immunization registry. Ongoing electronic submissions of data are strongly encouraged if the test is successful.
Submissions using direct data entry, electronic transfer from non-certified EHRs, patient management, billing systems, and electronic transfer in flat file format do not qualify for meaningful use.
If your facility is interested in submitting data to the Statewide Immunization Registry please register online with us and read our Requirements for Electronically Reporting Immunization Data.
Laboratory Reporting/ELR
To meet requirements, an eligible hospital must perform at least one test of the certified EHR technology's capacity to submit electronic data on reportable lab results. Laboratory results for reportable conditions are sent to the appropriate programmatic area for review and validation.
Laboratories wanting to send data to the MSDH must follow the HL7 Version 2.5.1 Implementation Guide: Electronic Laboratory Reporting to Public Health, Release 1 purchased at https://www.hl7.org/store/index.cfm. Registration with MSDH is also required. In order to submit Electronic Laboratory Reports (ELR) to the MSDH, it is the responsibility for each reporting laboratory to crosswalk their local test codes to LOINC values. The most current LOINC table can be found at www.loinc.org where there are additional tools available to assist with the crosswalk.
- Mississippi Requirements for Electronic Laboratory Reporting
Registration and complete ELR information
Syndromic Surveillance Reporting
To meet requirements, an eligible professional/ hospital must perform at least one test of the certified EHR technology's capacity to submit electronic data to public health in accordance with applicable law and practice and continued submission if successful.
Mississippi Requirements for Syndromic Surveillance Reporting
- PHIN Messaging Guide for Syndromic Surveillance: Emergency Department and Urgent Care Data, Release 1.1 (August 2012)
- PHIN Messaging Guide for Syndromic Surveillance: Emergency Department and Urgent Care Data, Addendum Release 1.1 (August 2012)
If your facility is interested in submitting electronic laboratory reports for the Reportable Diseases or Syndromic Surveillance Reports, please register online with us.
