certified EHR technology. In order to encourage widespread EHR adoption, promote innovation and to avoid imposing excessive burden on healthcare providers, meaningful use was showcased as a phased approach, which is divided into three stages which span 2011 (data capture and sharing), 2013 (advanced clinical processes) and 2015 (improved outcomes). The incentive payments range from $44,000 over 5 years for the Medicare providers and $63,750 over 6 years for Medicaid providers (starting in 2011). Participation in the CMS EHR incentive program is totally voluntary, however if EPs or EHs fail to join in by 2015, there will be negative adjustments to their Medicare/Medicaid fees starting at 1% reduction and escalating to 3% reduction by 2017 and beyond. Meaningful Use Stage 1 On July 13, 2010, CMS/ONC displayed the final rules as related to meaningful use in the context of objectives and measures and standards, implementation and vocabulary respectively. The final rules were published in the Federal Register on July 28, 2010, and became effective on September 26, 2010. The CMS final rule requirements have been divided into 15 core set objectives, and 10 menu set objectives (where there is an option to pick 5 of 10. However, it is mandatory to include at least one population/public health measure). In the future, ONC and CMS intend to propose expansion on the stage 1 criterion where it is likely that the currently proposed menu set of measures will be transitioned into the core set for stage 2. HITECH is a powerful opportunity