PCMHs, ACOs More Likely to Use EHRs for Population Health

A new survey published this month in the American Journal of Managed Care found that providers who had adopted EHRs in 2012 were significantly more likely than non-users to engage in population health management, patient communication, and care coordination activities.

Those providers who were participating in advanced care delivery frameworks, including accountable care organizations and the patient-centered medical home, reported much more frequent use of their electronic health records for routine coordination and care tasks than those who were still operating under traditional care and payment models.

Using data from more than 2500 responses to the 2012 National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS) Physician Workflow Survey, researchers from the ONC, the CDC, and Mathematica Policy Research examined the relationship between electronic health record use, quality improvements, and emerging alternative payment models.

The team, including Jennifer King, PhD and Vaishali Patel, PhD, found that 62 percent of office-based physicians were using an EHR system, and just under half were certified to meet meaningful use criteria. 

At the time, 16 percent were participating in an accountable care organizations, and 9 percent had adopted the patient-centered medical home framework.  Four percent of providers were participating in both advanced care delivery initiatives.

Overall, eighteen percent of physicians were part of an ACO or PCMH which was actively using an electronic health record system.