Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has posted new, streamlined hardship applications, reducing the amount of information that eligible professionals (EPs), eligible hospitals and critical access hospitals (CAHs) must submit to apply for an exception. The new applications and instructions for a hardship exception from the Medicare Electronic Health Records Incentive Program 2017 payment adjustment are available here: https://www.cms.gov/Regulations-and-Guidance/Legislation/EHRIncentivePrograms/paymentadj_hardship.html

EPs, eligible hospitals and CAHs that wish to use the streamlined application must submit their application according to the timeline established in the Patient Access and Medicare Protection Act (PAMPA):

• Eligible Professionals: March 15, 2016
• Eligible Hospitals & CAHs: April 1, 2016

CAHs should use the form specific for the CAH hardship exceptions related to an EHR reporting period in 2015. CAHs that have already submitted a form for 2015 are not required to resubmit.

Please visit the CMS EHR Incentive Programs website for more information: https://www.cms.gov/Regulations-and-Guidance/Legislation/EHRIncentivePrograms/index.html?redirect=/ehrincentiveprograms

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