Broadband access is required to meet certain objectives outlined in the Medicare and Medicaid EHR Incentive Programs final rule. Therefore, The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has maintained exclusions for providers in areas with limited broadband availability as identified by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC):
- Objective 8, Patient Electronic Access - EPs and eligible hospitals/CAHs
- Measure 2 Only: Any EP or eligible hospital/CAH who conducts 50 percent or more of his or her patient encounters in a county where 50 percent or more of its housing units do not have 4Mbps broadband availability on the first day of the EHR reporting period, according to the latest information available from the FCC.
- Objective 9, Secure Messaging – EPs only
- Any EP who has no office visits during the EHR reporting period, or any EP who conducts 50 percent or more of his or her patient encounters in a county where 50 percent or more of its housing units do not have 4Mbps broadband availability on the first day of the EHR reporting period, according to the latest information available from the FCC.
CMS recently released a new tipsheet to help providers determine their eligibility for the broadband access exclusions. The tipsheet provides a list of states and associated counties with less than 4 Mbps of broadband download speed, which is required to claim the exclusions.
For More Information
To learn more about the specific exclusion criteria, visit the EHR Incentive Programs page on the CMS website.