Meaningful Use for Dental Practices

Under these published regulations, dentists who meet the Medicare or Medicaid EHR Incentive Program eligibility requirements can participate and earn incentives. At the same time, not every dentist is eligible for the program and able to earn the incentives.Assuming you meet the eligibility requirements, you have an opportunity to earn the available incentive payments by meeting the required MU objectives. Although many of the objectives may not be directly within a dentist’s scope of practice, the majority of the 25 MU Stage 1 objectives are feasible for dentists* and there are exemptions which apply to specific objectives.

Although QSIDental Web Version 2.3 (Fall 2013) is certified for Meaningful Use, MU data capture and reporting are done in the NextGen® Ambulatory Electronic Health Record (EHR) and its related reporting modules. Providers should work with their advisors regarding what will be required of dentists to meet Meaningful Use requirements. Dentists and staff might need to change some aspects of workflow in order to update necessary information in the NextGen EHR to meet reporting requirements.

For more information about the CMS EHR Incentive Programs, including program rules, eligibility, payment information, Meaningful Use objectives and measures, and more, visit: http://cms.gov/EHRIncentivePrograms/

* National Network for Oral Health Access and the National Association of Community Health Centers