Promoting Interoperability Program for Medicaid (eMIPP)

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) implemented, through provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), incentive payments to eligible professionals (EP) and eligible hospitals (EH), including critical access hospitals (CAHs), participating in Medicare and Medicaid programs that are meaningful users of certified Electronic Health Record (EHR) technology. The incentive payments were not a reimbursement, but were intended to encourage EPs and EHs to adopt, implement, or upgrade certified EHR technology and use it in a meaningful manner.

The Illinois Promoting Interoperability Program for Medicaid (eMIPP)  provided incentive payments to eligible professionals, eligible hospitals and critical access hospitals (CAHs) as they adopted, implemented, upgraded or demonstrated meaningful use of certified EHR technology.

The last year a Medicaid provider could begin participation in the program was 2016.  The last year a Medicaid provider could receive a payment was the 2021 program year.  Audits have been completed, the eMIPP application has been taken down and the data has been archived according to federal requirements.  The program is now closed.

Final Payment Information

Final payment information for the Illinois Medicaid Promoting Interoperability Program for the years 2011-2021 are shown in the tables below.

Additional Notable Statistics

Several positive developments as a result of the program were mentioned in HFS’ final environmental scan and include:

·      Over 75% of respondents indicated that the Medicaid PI program encouraged or supported their adoption of CEHRT. And nearly 72% of respondents said the incentive payments were worth the effort for the adoption, implementation, or upgrade of EHR technology.

The top four ways adoption of a CHERT has improved practices is:

o   Decrease in medication errors 64%

o   Improved patient throughput 60%

o   Improved efficiency in reporting 60%

o   Improved referral process 57%

·      Those participating in the Medicaid PI program are more likely to share information electronically, 74% of all 2021 respondents compared to 83% of those in the Medicaid PI program.

·      In 2011, 61% of Illinois providers had an EHR in place, compared to 100% of practices surveyed in 2021.

·      An increasing number of providers indicate having a process in place to receive ADT notifications, 55% in 2016 compared to 70% in 2021. 89% of respondents indicate these notifications come directly from the hospital with 90% of those notifications coming via Fax.

·      Organizations participating in a HIE increased from 32% (2016) to 51% (2021). Of those participating in a HIE, 36% used Care Everywhere and 36% were using an EHR option.

Additional detail on the program can be found in Illinois’ final State Medicaid Health Information Technology Plan (SMHP).