Health IT Research & Analysis
Quick Stats

Electronic Health Information Exchange Performance Reported to the Medicare EHR Incentive Program, 2014

Last Updated

June 2021

Link to Page Icon Link to Page

Medicare EHR Incentive Program eligible providers’ stage 2 performance on selected measures of electronic information exchange

The data presented here reflect eligible hospital, Critical Access hospital, and eligible professional reporting on electronic exchange measures as defined for 2014, and indicate that significant progress must be made to reach a patient-centered, fully networked, integrated system of health and health care. When reviewing these data, it is important to consider them in the context of performance in 2014, since reporting requirements for the EHR Incentive Programs change in 2015. These still provide valid baseline data on levels of electronic exchange between providers and patients and other health care providers.

Less than half of care transitions for eligible professionals (38%) and hospitals (34%) include an electronic summary of care. Although the vast majority of patients seen by eligible providers have access to their electronic health information, on average only one-third of stage 2 eligible professional patients have viewed, downloaded, or transmitted their electronic health information, and only 14 percent of stage 2 hospital patients had done the same.

Meaningful Use Objective: View, Download, or Transmit Electronic Health Information (VDT)

Eligible Provider Professionals Hospitals
Meaningful Use Measure Patient has Online Access [1] Patient Actually did VDT [2]^ Patient has Online Access [1] Patient Actually did VDT [2]^
Percent of providers who took an exclusion 0.92% 1.46% — —
Mean Performance 90% 33% 90% 14%

Percent of stage 2 eligible providers that provided capability to the percentage range of their patients

 100% 25% 0.2% 9% 0.1%
90-<100% 47% 0.5% 43% 0.1%
80-89% 10% 2% 18% 0.1%
70-79% 7% 3% 13% 1%
60-69% 6% 7% 10% 1%
50-59% 6% 11% 7% 1%
40-49% No reporting below 50% 15% No reporting below 50% 2%
30-39% 16% 5%
20-29% 17% 11%
10-19% 20% 35%
<10% 9% 44%
These data represent (numerator): 26.5M patients 9.7M patients 5M patients 800K patients
NOTE: ^These measures were new for 2014 and specific for stage 2 participants only.

Meaningful Use Objective: Transitions with a Summary of Care Record

Eligible Provider Professionals Hospitals
Meaningful Use Measure Provided [3] Sent Electronically [4]^ Provided [3] Sent Electronically [4]^
Percent of providers who took an exclusion 86.23% 86.23% — —
Mean Performance 84% 38% 85% 34%

Percent of stage 2 eligible providers that provided capability for the percentage range of care transitions

 100% 17% 4% 11% 2%
90-<100% 31% 4% 16% 2%
80-89% 21% 7% 20% 2%
70-79% 14% 5% 22% 4%
60-69% 10% 5% 19% 6%
50-59% 8% 6% 13% 8%
40-49% No reporting below 50% 7% No reporting below 50% 10%
30-39% 12% 15%
20-29% 19% 23%
10-19% 30% 29%
<10% No reporting No reporting
These data represent (numerator): 1.2M transitions of care 500K transitions of care 3.6M transitions of care 1.5M transitions of care
NOTE: ^These measures were new for 2014 and specific for stage 2 participants only.
  1. Patients with access to view, download, and transmit their electronic health information: In 2014, this was a required measure for both stage 1 and stage 2 for eligible hospitals (EH), Critical Access hospitals (CAH), and eligible professionals (EP). To successfully report on the measure for 2014 reporting, EPs were required to provide more than 50% of patients (or their authorized representatives) with timely online access to their health information; EHs and CAHs were required to provide more than 50 percent of all unique patients discharged from the EH’s inpatient or emergency department with timely online access to their health information (available to the patient within 4 business days after the information is available to the EP, or within 36 hours of discharge from the hospital).
  2. Patients actually view, download, or transmit their electronic health information: This was a 2014 stage 2 required measure for EHs, CAHs, and EPs. For EHs, CAHs, and EPs, this measure required that more than 5 percent of all unique patients (or their authorized representatives) seen by the EP, or discharged from the EH’s inpatient or emergency department, during the EHR reporting period view, download, or transmit to a third party their health information.
  3. Summary of care record: This wa a required measure for 2014 reporting for both stage 1 and stage 2 for EHs, CAHs, and EPs. For EHs, CAHs, and EPs, this measure required that the provider “who transitions or refers their patient to another setting of care or provider of care provides a summary of care record for more than 50 percent of transitions of care and referrals.”
  4. Electronic summary of care record: This was a 2014 stage 2 required measure for EHs, CAHs, and EPs. For EHs, CAHs, and EPs, this measure required that the provider “who transitions or refers their patient to another setting of care or provider of care provides a summary of care record for more than 10 percent of such transitions and referrals either (a) electronically transmitted using CEHRT to a recipient or (b) where the recipient receives the summary of care record via exchange facilitated by an organization that is a NwHIN Exchange participant or in a manner that is consistent with the governance mechanism ONC establishes for the nationwide health information network.”