<p>[Insert organization header or Logo]</p><p>Date XX, 2013</p><p>The Honorable [Insert Sen./Rep. name] United States Senate Russell Senate Office Building, Room 393 [Insert Office Address] Washington, DC 20510</p><p>Dear [Senator/Representative Name]:</p><p>On behalf of [your organization], we are writing to urge your support in requesting an extension of Stage 2 Meaningful Use by one year. This will ensure all providers are given sufficient time to meet new program requirements, while maintaining software development and deployment deadlines, and it will better position patients to receive the benefits of an e-enabled U.S. healthcare system.</p><p>The EHR Medicare and Medicaid Incentive Program has played a major role in advancing the adoption of health information technology in the U.S. Through July 2013, CMS has spent over $15.5B, incentivizing doctors and hospitals to adopt electronic health records, resulting in nearly 70 percent of eligible hospitals (EHs) and over 46 percent of eligible professionals (EPs) having met Stage 1 Meaningful Use (MU). 1 Yet this success – combined with the structure of the program – may have unintended, even dangerous, consequences. </p><p>In 2014, over 500,000 physicians and hospitals must adopt the 2014 Edition of Certified Electronic Health Record Technology (CEHRT) and attest before the end of the year to receive incentive funding and avoid penalties. Yet only a small fraction of current EHRs have been certified to this new designation.</p><p>This dynamic may cause several providers to either abandon the possibility of meeting Meaningful Use criteria in 2014 or be forced to implement a system in haste. Both of these scenarios lead to suboptimal outcomes. For those EH and EPs who forego Meaningful Use in 2014, the decision could cause further division between more advanced and less advanced providers; it could seriously compromise progress made towards interoperability; and if the decision to forego Meaningful Use in 2014 is wide-spread, it could jeopardize nearly $30 billion in taxpayer investments to modernize the nation’s healthcare infrastructure. </p><p>If providers move forward, as dictated by the current policy, there is a risk that the technology is implemented in a rushed fashion. Such a hurried implementation may forego necessary process and care delivery changes as providers rush to meet new objectives using new technology. Implementing any major IT system should be accompanied by thoughtful reengineering of processes and workflows to ensure that the investment generates as much organizational gain as possible.</p><p>In either scenario, the promise of material improvements in the efficiency, quality and safety of care delivery that should have resulted from the meaningful use of EHRs is compromised.</p><p>1 Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, EP & EH Recipients of Medicare EHR Incentive Program Payments http://cms.gov/Regulations-and-Guidance/Legislation/EHRIncentivePrograms/DataAndReports.html Date XX, 2013</p><p>[insert organization] is a strong proponent of health IT and its ability to enable improvements in healthcare quality, affordability, and outcomes. However, in order to accomplish these goals, HHS must extend existing timelines for Meaningful Use by one year, thus promoting a safe, orderly transition to Stage 2 that leaves no one behind. We urge you to join your Senate colleagues in recommending HHS reevaluate 2014 timelines to achieve the gains of an e- enabled U.S. healthcare system. A copy of the Senate letter is available here.</p><p>We believe these changes are vitally important to ensure that U.S. hospitals and physicians continue their journey into the 21st Century. By giving providers additional time, HHS is demonstrating needed flexibility to maximize program participation, without compromising momentum towards interoperability and care coordination supported by health IT.</p><p>If there are any questions about our position or more information is needed, please contact [insert contact name/info]. We forward to a continuing dialogue with your office and other members of Congress on this important matter. </p><p>Sincerely,</p><p>Insert signature </p><p>Name Title Organization Location</p><p>2</p><p>[INSERT ORGANIZATION Footer]</p>