Open Dental EHR

Open Dental EHR was a complete 2014 edition certified software used by Eligible Providers (EPs) in the EHR Incentive Program (now called “Promoting Interoperability”).

CMS has issued a new Final Rule that makes changes to the Medicare and Medicaid EHR / PI (Promoting Interoperability) Incentive program for 2019. Beginning with the EHR reporting period in Calendar Year 2019, participants in the Promoting Interoperability (PI) Programs are required to use 2015 edition certified electronic health record technology (CEHRT).

Open Dental has decided not to develop a certified 2015 edition software. See 2015 Edition Update.
For more information, see: 

• 2019 Program Requirements - Medicaid
• 2019 Program Requirements - Medicare
• Final Rule: CMS-1694-F

Open Dental will not be supporting attestation for years after 2018. Contact your State Medicaid EHR/PI office for any 2019 EHR-related questions.

Contact Open Dental support for any questions you may have about using Open Dental for EHR.

Questions and Answers
Q: I am ready to attest and receive my incentive payment. What do I need to do?
A: See EHR Attestation.

Q: I am being audited. What do I need to do?
A: See EHR Audits for guidance.

Note: 2016 was the last year to start participation in the EHR Medicaid Incentive Program (AIU).

EHR Consulting: When applying for incentive payments, someone on your staff needs to take the lead.  That person may need additional help figuring out your state requirements.  You may consider hiring an EHR Consultant. Open Dental technicians are not general EHR Incentive Program experts.  We are experts on how to use Open Dental to enter required information and produce reports. If you need advanced help from Open Dental, we will give it our best effort, but we must charge a fee and still cannot own your EHR process. The EHR consulting fee is $100/hr so we can keep our staff available for software support. Examples of EHR consulting include:

• You want someone from Open Dental on the phone with you when entering report data into government web sites (attestation).
• You want someone from Open Dental working with your EHR contracted consultant for more than 2 questions per call.
• You need help integrating meaningful use requirements into your workflow process.  (We may be able to help, but you need to own this internally.)
• You need involved help with specific exclusions or other EHR issues not related to Open Dental Software.
  
  For general Open Dental training, see Training.

2015 Edition Update
Open Dental will not have a certified 2015 EHR software
This announcement only applies to providers who want to attest for meaningful use in 2019 - 2022.

After careful deliberation and analysis, Open Dental has decided we will not develop an 2015 edition EHR-certified product. Currently, providers can continue to use, attest for meaningful use, and receive incentive payments using an Open Dental 2014 certified version for the 2017 calendar year and the 2018 calendar year (per final rule CMS-1677-F issued 8/2/2017).

At some point in the future, we may consider certifying our product to the 2015 Edition (new requirements for 2019 - 2022), but only if there is enough interest. We will also continue to work on EHR-related features that may be useful to our customers.

Q: Why did you make the determination to not certify for the 2015 Edition?
A: We feel the cost is too high and the requirements too burdensome. We do not want to develop EHR features at the expense of other useful features, nor do we want to pass the increasing costs on to our customers. Many of the requirements for the 2015 edition are difficult and time-consuming to develop, and are not applicable to our dental customers (e.g. public health reporting). Government regulations have proven unpredictable and requirements have continued to change, which has created an ongoing drain on our resources.

Q: Can I still use Open Dental EHR for meaningful use in 2017 and 2018?
A: Yes, we will continue to certify 2014 edition versions as long as CMS allows a 2014 edition to be used for meaningful use. Currently providers can use Open Dental EHR for meaningful use in calendar years 2017 and 2018.

Q: How long has Open Dental had an EHR certified product?
A: In total, Open Dental has been EHR-certified for seven years (since August 2011, for both the 2011 Edition and 2014 Edition). Thus, providers who started early in the program had the opportunity to receive all incentive payments.

Q: For 2015 Edition certified software, vendors can choose to certify only certain modules. Is Open Dental considering certifying any modules for 2015 edition EHR?
A: At this time, we are not.

Cost and Limitations
Certified Product Information
Developer: Open Dental Software
Product Name and versions: 17.4, 17.3, 17.2, 17.1, 16.4, 16.3, 16.2, 16.1, 15.4, 15.3, 15.2, 15.1, 14.3, 14.2

Modules tested: 170.314(a)(1-15), 170.314(b)(1-5, 7), 170.314(c)(1-3), 170.314(d)(1-8), 170.314(e)(1-3), 170.314(f)(1-3), 170.314(g)(2-4)
Clinical Quality Measures tested: 68v4, 69v3, 74v4, 75v3, 127v3,138v3,147v4, 155v3, 165v3
Additional Software used: NewCropRx (comprehensive version)

Additional Costs
There is a per provider calendar year fee for EHR functionality and reporting plus ongoing monthly support fees per location.
This certified product-version may require ongoing monthly fees per provider/location for e-prescribing (170.314.b.3), drug-drug and drug-allergy interaction checks (170.314.a.2), and drug formulary checks (170.314.a.10). There is also a one-time per provider fee for identity proofing.
This certified product version may require purchase of an email security certificate and email address to securely receive, email, or transmit summaries of care (170.314.b.1-2, b.4, e.1).
This certified product version may require obtaining an email address per provider to send secure messaging notifications (170.314.e.3).
This certified product version may require additional fees to establish interfaces for submitting data to immunization registries or public health agencies (170.314.f.1-3).

Contractual Obligations
Purchase of this certified product version requires signing a one year renewable contract and entering into a 12 month support agreement.

Disclosure of Technical or Practical Limitations
Direct messages can only be sent to other providers who also use Direct messaging (use a certified EHR software). Many dental providers may not use Direct. In these cases standard encrypted email can be used instead. This will require manually exchanging public key certificates with each provider.

ONC Disclaimer
This Complete EHR is 2014 Edition compliant and has been certified by an ONC-ACB in accordance with the applicable certification criteria adopted by the Secretary of Health and Human Services. This certification does not represent an endorsement by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Also see Cost and Limitations (PDF)