I would like to ask during this waiting period if your organization could give some careful consideration to how you might price your certification fees. As a small vendor that works with small practices and a limited number so we can provide specialized services to them, that the fees be more appropriate to the user base/number of practices or something to make it economically reasonable. Since the test scripts and etc will be predetermined and a vendor should have a good idea on where they stand when they go for certification, that should take a great deal of burden off the certifying agencies.

We also want to make our product as affordable as possible so adoption is high for the small practices. We don’t want to charge $10K per physician and 20% annually for something that is being mandated. Once the incentive money is gone, how are small providers going to pay for continung support fees and the software and that does not account for OS, Hardware, Antivirus, Scanners and other tools and services (i.e. e-Prescribing) they must acquire and continue to maintain. I have heard nothing about post implementation fee increases for the physicians who are having new expenses added to their monthly/yearly expenditures.

The incentive money should not be used for large software vendors, specification organizations, and certifying agencies to get rich will the small software vendors who are ther day and night for their customers and the physicians to be forced to take drastic actions when the money runs out. We already have a twelve week waiting list just to spend five minutes with a physician locally because they are filling their schedules so full just to make ends meet. I no of three medical students who switched their studies from MD to DVM as they can treat animals and make a resonable living without the fee reduction worries, EMRs, high malpractice and etc.

Help us help those who went to school to help us but continued to get impacted by economics at too many levels.

Thanks You

I would totally agree with Dan’s comment. It is totally ridiculous the amount that CHITT is charging for certification. Based on their costs it is next to impossible for a small vendor to maintain certifications or go bankrupt trying to do it.

Have you been informed as to who will “certify” organizations such as yours or CCHIT to be a “testing” organization? Will there be a difference in the way Drummond approaches certification or the fees it charges? How will you distinguish the process or approach from other certifying bodies?