Summary of Meaningful Use Stage 2 Certification

Updated 6/12 to provide links to text in the Federal Register.

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Before I get into details, here's a quick overview of what's new and interesting:

• Direct and Exchange
• The HL7 CDA Consolidation guide replaces CCD 1.0 for most uses of summary information as expected.
• InfoButtons are required to support access to reference information by providers
• HL7 2.3.1 is no longer an option for reporting to public health, and the expected guides have been included.
• The CDC Cancer Registry reporting guide (using CDA) has been incorporated into the requirements for ambulatory reporting to cancer registries.
• RxNORM, LOINC, SNOMED and ICD-10 are the vocabularies to use for medications, labs, and problems

If you want a bookmarked copy of the rule, thank Corey Spears of McKesson for providing one.  Thanks Corey!

If you want the crosswalks, see Certification to Standards, and Objectives to Certification just posted. 

Stage 2 Standards §170.200-299
Transport (§170.202)

1. The DIRECT Protocol
   No big surprise here
2. External Data Representation and Cross-Enterprise Document Media Interchange for Direct Messaging
   IHE XDM!
3. Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP)-Based Secure Transport Requirements Traceability Matrix (RTM) version 1.0
   the title is VERY misleading, what I think it really means is the Exchange specifications, but I cannot find any link.

 Functional Standards (§170.204)

1. Web Content Accessibility Guidelines
   Basically used for patient engagement view access of records
2. Health Level Seven Context-Aware Knowledge Retrieval (Infobutton)
   A surprise in some ways, but a welcome one.
3. National Quality Forum (NQF) Quality Data Model (QDM)
   Used in section 314(c) for quality measures, probably "overused" a bit, and will likely be misunderstood.

Content (§170.205)

1. Summaries §170.205(a)(3): HL7 Implementation Guide for Clinical Document Architecture, Release 2.0 Consolidated CDA
   W00T!
4. Syndromic Surveillance §170.205(d)(3): PHIN Messaging Guide for Syndromic Surveillance: Emergency Department and Urgent Care Data HL7 Version 2.5.1
   No surprises here, this was what replaced the broken guide originally issued in Stage 1 and was then withdrawn.  See my comments on it here  
5. Immunization Reporting §170.205(e)(3):  HL7 2.5.1 Implementation Guide for Immunization Messaging Release 1.3
7. Lab Reporting to Public Health §170.205(g):  HL7 Version 2.5.1 Implementation Guide: Electronic Laboratory Reporting to Public Health, Release 1
9. Cancer Information §170.205(i):  Implementation Guide for Healthcare Provider Reporting to Central Cancer Registries
   A surprise entry from Cancer Registries, using not HL7 2.5.1, but CDA.  A welcome change, but it isn't clear whether folks are ready for it yet.
10. Imaging §170.205(j): Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) PS 3—2011.
    Is there something else you would use for imaging?
11. Electronic incorporation and transmission of lab results §170.205(k):  HL7 Version 2.5.1 Implementation Guide: Standards and Interoperability Framework Lab Results Interface, Release 1
    Another win for S&I Framework.

Vocabulary (§170.207)

1. Problems §170.207(a)(3): SNOMED CT 2012 Edition
   They basically updated the version of SNOMED
2. Procedures §170.207(b)(3): HIPAA Code Sets at 42 CFR 162.1002(c)(3)
   And added a new line for ICD-10-PCS
6. Race and Ethnicity §170.207(f):  The OMB Directive on Race and Ethnicity
   I don't see any real change here, I'm not sure why it's there.
7. Laboratory Tests  §170.207(g):  LOINC
   Added version 2.38, otherwise, no real change from 207(c)
8. Medications §170.207(h):  RxNORM
   As you might recall, Stage 1 said "any standard that was an RxNORM data source". Stage 2 says to USE RxNORM
9. Immunizations §170.207(i):  HL7 Standard Code Set CVX - Vaccines Administered, August 15, 2011
   This also seems to just be a version update.
10. Preferred language §170.207(j):  ISO 639-1:2002
    Another DUH, but necessary I would guess.
11. Preliminary determination of cause of death §170.207(k):  The code set specified at 45 CFR 162.1002(c)(2)
    ICD-10-CM for cause of death
12. Smoking status §170.207(l):  Smoking status types must include: current every day smoker; current some day smoker; former smoker; never smoker; smoker, current status unknown; and unknown if ever smoked.
13. Encounter diagnoses §170.207(m):  The code set specified at 45 CFR 162.1002(c)(2) for the indicated conditions.
    Again, ICD-10-CM

Security (§170.210)

5. §170.210(e) (Audit) Record actions updated to reflect additional auditing for enabling/disabling audit or encryption of external devices, and incorporation of time synchronization standards
   IHE ATNA is a great resources for auditing.
6. §170.210(f) (Encryption and Hashing) FIPS 140-2 Annex A
   Consolidates Encryption/Decryption/Hashing to use appropriate algorithms in Annex A, and doesn't call out SHA version specifically.
7. §170.210(g) (Time) Synchronize your clocks using NTP (RFC 1305) or NTPv4 (RFC 5905)
   Anyone heard of the IHE CT Profile?  And BTW, they should have named SNTP, not NTP, because NTP isn't always needed.

Stage 2 Certification Criteria (§170.314)

The numbers in the list below are lined up with 42 CFR Part 170 Section 314:

1. §170.314(a) Clinical Requirements
1. §170.314(a)(1) †  Record, Change and Access Medication, Laboratory and Imaging orders
   no major change from Stage 1
2. §170.314(a)(2) † Enable med/med and med/allergy interaction checks before an order is placed, and adjust severity of messages by appropriate users.
   Again, no major changes here.
3. §170.314(a)(3) Enable capture of demograpics, including preferred language (ISO 639-1), gender, race & ethnicity (OMB Race and Ethnicity), and date of birth, and preliminary cause of death in inpatient settings.
   Language is in ISO 639-1, preliminary cause of death is in ICD-10-CM, and Race and Ethnicity must follow OMB Guidelines.  Nothing major here.
4. §170.314(a)(4) Capture vital signs: Height, Weight, BP, calculate BMI, and optionally plot growth charts
   Plot and display growth charts seems to have become optional now.
5. §170.314(a)(5) Capture problem list using SNOMED CT 2012 edition
   The shift to SNOMED CT is not a big surprise, but only if you've been paying attention.
6. §170.314(a)(6) † Record, change, and access medication list.
   I don't see any vocabulary mentioned here, but there wasn't any in Stage 1 either
7. §170.314(a)(7) † Record, change, and access allergy list.
   I don't see any vocabulary mentioned here, but there wasn't any in Stage 1 either
8. §170.314(a)(8) † Provide Clinical Decision Support based on (some combination of) problems, medications, allergies, demographics, lab results, and vital signs.
   Lots of clarification in this section, needs a deeper read
1. Enable a user to access reference information on  problems, medications, allergies, demographics, lab results, and vital signs using InfoButton (not clear whether one category or all are required to be supported).
9. §170.314(a)(9) Record, change, access and search electronic notes.
   No big changes from Stage 1
10. §170.314(a)(10) Drug formulary checks.
    No big changes from Stage 1
11. §170.314(a)(11) Record, change and access smoking status.
    No big changes from Stage 1
12. §170.314(a)(12) Enable electronic access to imaging results and status
    New criteria!  See IHE Cardiology's Image Enable Office profile.
13. §170.314(a)(13) Record, change and access family history.
    New criteria!
14. §170.314(a)(14) Select, sort, access and create patient lists based on problems, medications, demographics and lab results.
    No big changes from Stage 1
15. §170.314(a)(15) (Ambulatory only) Create patient reminder lists based on problems, medications, allergies, demographics and lab results.
    No big changes from Stage 1
16. §170.314(a)(16) Provide patient specific resources on each of problems, medications, and laboratory results using InfoButton.
    New criteria!
17. §170.314(a)(17) † (Inpatient only) Allow user to verify right patient, medication, dose and route and record time synchronized with NTP
    New criteria
18. §170.314(a)(18) (Inpatient only) Record whether patient has an advanced directive
    No big changes from Stage 1
2. §170.314(b) Care Coordination
1. §170.314(b)(1) Incorporate data received from a Consolidated CDA Document into the EHR upon receipt, including: demographics; smoking status; vital signs; medications; medication allergies; problems; procedures; laboratory tests and values/results; provider information, hospital admission and discharge dates and locations; discharge instructions; reason(s) for hospitalization; care plan, including goals and instructions;
   Replaces CCD with Consolidated CDA, and adds requirements for provider information, hospitalization data, and care plans.
2. §170.314(b)(2) Generate a summary of care record using a Consolidated CDA document, including patient demographics, provider information, care plan, and all the stuff above (hospitalization details are inpatient only) and Transmit it using Direct (required) or via Exchange (optional)
3. §170.314(b)(3) † ePrescribe
   Using NCPDP and RxNORM
4. §170.314(b)(4) † Reconcile meds, problems and allergies
   Reconciliation is not just for medications any more!  See the IHE Reconciliation of Diagnoses, Allergies and Medications profile.
5. §170.314(b)(5) Incorporate lab results using LRI and LOINC (ambulatory setting only), or as structured data (inpatient setting only), display in human readable format, and show CLIA required data, 
6. §170.314(b)(6) (Inpatient only) Transmit lab tests/results to ambulatory providers using LRI and LOINC.
   This one is a bit bogus.  They keep conflating a hospital-based lab and their information systems with a hospital.  They aren't the same system.
3. §170.314(c) Quality Measures
1. §170.314(c)(1) Electronically record and export all data elements present in the NQF QDM Standard.
   OK, I really need to spend some time with QDM.  I think the data element list is probably too big
2. §170.314(c)(2) Incorporate and calculate measures in the EHR technology, and
   See my posts on Query Health for some help on calculating measures. 
3. §170.314(c)(3) Export a data file using a CMS specified data file format
   CMS has to specify it, but they haven't yet, or there'd be a reference to it.  This is underspecified for a requirement.
4. §170.314(d) Privacy and Security
   I'll leave it to John Moehrke to provide comments on this section.
1. Authenticate users and establish appropriate access controls for them
2. Enable audit events by default, protect the audit log from alteration, and detect alterations
3. Generate an audit report
4. Support amendment of the health record, preserving original content, via user or using patient supplied information
5. Terminate login session after a predetermined time-out.
6. Permit emergency access
7. Encrypt data at rest on "end-user" devices.
8. Create a message digest
9. Optionally record an accounting of disclosures
5. §170.314(e) Patient Engagement
1. §170.314(e)(1) Enable a patient to view (via the web in an accessible fashion), download (in a human readable format, or using Consolidated CDA), or images using DICOM, and transmit using Direct and Exchange standards.
   The AND is emphasized for a reason.  Apparently you have to support BOTH.  Fortunately, you can do so using IHE XDS messages and a HISP that accepts XDR.
2. §170.314(e)(2) (Ambulatory setting only) Enable a user to provide patient summaries using Consolidated CDA to the patient
   OK, if I go to the hospital, I want my summaries from there also.
3. §170.314(e)(3) (Ambulatory setting only) Enable a user to send and receive messages from a patient using a secure channel
   And it sure would help if my hospital based provider could receive information from my patient advocate.  Also, this needs to include "authorized representative"
6. §170.314(f) Public Health
1. §170.314(f)(1) Enable a user to record, change and access immunization information
2. §170.314(f)(2) And transmit it to Public Health using the HL7 2.5.1 Immuniziation Guide from the CDC.
3. §170.314(f)(3) Enable a user to record, change and access syndromic surveillance information, 
4. §170.314(f)(4) And transmit it to public health using HL7 2.5.1, and if in an inpatient setting, using Syndromic Surveillance guide (also allowed in ambulatory settings, but not required).
5. §170.314(f)(5) (Inpatient setting only) Enable a user to record, change and access laboratory information, 
6. §170.314(f)(6) (Inpatient setting only) And transmit it to public health using the HL7 2.5.1 ELR Guide
7. §170.314(f)(7) (Ambulatory setting only)  Enable a user to record, change and access cancer information, 
8. §170.314(f)(8) (Ambulatory setting only)  And transmit it to public health using the CDC Cancer Registry Reporting Guide (CDA)
7. §170.314(g) Utilization
1. §170.314(g)(1) Automate numerator recording for each percentage-based MU objective
2. §170.314(g)(2) Automate measure calculation for each  percentage-based MU objective
3. §170.314(g)(3) Record date and time of use for each non-percentage-based MU objective where the capability was enabled, disabled or executed and provide a report of it.
4. §170.314(g)(4) Ensure that user-centered design processes are applied to capabilities described in §170.314(a)(1); §170.314(a)(2); §170.314(a)(6); §170.314(a)(7); §170.314(a)(8); §170.314(a)(17); §170.314(b)(3); and §170.314(b)(4).

† Requires use of User Centered Design principals (see g.4 above)