Oklahoma, Kentucky issue first EHR incentive payments

Oklahoma and Kentucky have become the first states under the Medicaid EHR Incentive Program to make incentive payments to providers for the adoption of certified electronic health records, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). In Kentucky, the University of Kentucky (UK) Healthcare and Central Baptist Hospital in Lexington became the first hospitals in the country to receive checks under the 2009 stimulus law. UK received $2.8 million, and Central Baptist received $1.3 million. In Oklahoma two physicians at the Gastorf Family Clinic of Durant, Okla., received $21,250 each, for having adopted certified EHRs. According to CMS, Kentucky, Iowa, Louisiana and Oklahoma are the first states to receive the Medicaid incentive payments for the purchase and use of EHRs. The incentive program for hospitals is set to run through 2016, the year targeted for completion of a nationwide health information network.