Regional Extension Centers Struggling to Help Docs Meet Meaningful Use

While the nation's 62 regional extension centers (RECs)--authorized by the HITECH Act to help small practice providers achieve Meaningful Use--recently surpassed an initial goal of signing up 100,000 registrants, additional goals appear to be a bit more elusive, according to an article published recently in the Journal of AHIMA.

According to the article, the RECs are supposed to help at least 20 percent of their enrolled providers attain Meaningful Use. But of the 90,000 enrolled currently, only 1,000 have done so with the RECs' help; most of those were early adopters of EHRs.