Legislation Would Extend Promise of EHRs to Underserved Communities
Thursday, August 04, 2011
Bill extends Medicaid EHR incentive payments to medical practices in which PAs provide a high volume of care for Medicaid patients.
WASHINGTON, DC — The American Academy of Physician Assistants welcomed legislation to amend the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act to extend electronic health record Medicaid incentive payments to all physician assistants who meet the Act’s criteria in serving Medicaid patients.
The Health IT Modernization for Underserved Communities Act of 2011, H.R. 2729, was filed earlier this week by Reps. Karen Bass (D-CA) and Lee Terry (R-NE). The amendment to the HITECH Act would apply to PAs whose patient volume includes at least 30 percent Medicaid recipients.
“Enhanced, quality patient care is the goal of electronic health records. The current HITECH limitation on Medicaid EHR limits the development of EHR systems for Medicaid beneficiaries who are served by PAs. This legislation extends additional support to community health centers and other medical practices in which PAs provide care to a high volume of Medicaid patients,” said Rep. Bass.
The HITECH Act currently offers the incentive payments to physicians and nurse practitioners who provide primary care to the requisite 30 percent threshold of Medicaid recipients, but limits the EHR incentive payments for Medicaid services provided by physician assistants in rural health clinics and federally qualified health centers with PAs at the helm.
Robert Wooten, AAPA president, said he was pleased with the introduction of this important legislation.
He said that medical practices and clinics that employ a large number of PAs are penalized through the Medicaid EHR incentive limitation. Physician assistants are often the sole health care professionals in medically underserved communities. Yet, an incentive program that fully recognizes physicians and advance practice nurses, but not PAs, creates a financial disincentive for medical practices to hire PAs.
“The ultimate beneficiaries of electronic medical records are patients, and this bill extends the promise of improved medical care to the Medicaid patients served by physician assistant,” Wooten said. “AAPA applauds the leadership of Representative Karen Bass, along with Representative Lee Terry, in introducing this needed bill.”
About the American Academy of Physician Assistants
Founded in 1968, the American Academy of Physician Assistants is the national professional society for physician assistants. It represents a profession of over 75,000 clinically practicing PAs across all medical and surgical specialties in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, the majority of the U.S. territories, and within the uniformed services. AAPA advocates and educates on behalf of the profession and the patients PAs serve. AAPA works to ensure the professional growth, personal excellence and recognition of physician assistants. It also works to enhance their ability to improve the quality, accessibility and cost-effectiveness of patient-centered health care.
To learn more, please visit www.aapa.org.