By the EHR Association Certification Workgroup

When it comes to the HTI-5 proposed rule and its focus on certification, our primary message to ONC is this: the deregulatory push is needed and yet should be undertaken with caution.

We appreciate ONC’s efforts to streamline the certification program through deregulation. Some of the criteria have been around for many years, and removing them will help reduce the certification burden on the health IT industry and, in some cases, on providers using the software, while maintaining progress toward advancing interoperability, transparency, and access to electronic health information. We agree with ONC that many certification criteria not directly associated with interoperability should be considered for removal.