Aprima Medical Software was granted pre-market certification from the Certification Commission for Health Information Technology (CCHIT) for its Aprima 2011. After the product has been in use by at least two practices for 45 days, it can become fully certified.

The CCHIT premarket approval comes after the Aprima 2011, an electronic health record software program, was successfully inspected against EHR functionality, interoperability and security criteria developed by the commission.

The program is a step up from the previous version, including a one-of-a-kind replication functionality, which will allow doctors to easily access records remotely, whether from a patient's home or nursing home, explains Michael Nissenbaum, the company's president and CEO.

The 2011 version also has been certified for its pediatric features, including growth charts and vaccination charts, which are key to managing pediatrics, says Nissenbaum.

The Certification Commission also tested Aprima 2011 against the ARRA IFR Stage 1 criteria and assessed that Aprima 2011 would meet those criteria. However, no organization has been authorized by the Office of the National Coordinator for testing that would ensure certification for a product to qualify for the ARRA incentive payments. CCHIT has indicated it will apply to be an accrediting body when such applications are accepted next month.

In an effort to integrate EHRs into health care facilities, the government plans to provide financial incentives for facilities than meet the meaningful use criteria by using EHR systems.

"Many hospitals and large institutions and companies have gone to Congress, [with] written editorials that [the 24 requirements are] too much too soon," says Nissenbaum.

But the Aprima 2011 has met all of the requirements, and even if the government reduces the number of objectives the systems must meet, Aprima's program will have still have "met everything in the basket," says Nissenbaum.

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