New Jersey lawmakers are reportedly considering a bill that would outlaw health information technology (IT) products not certified by the Certification Commission for Health IT (CCHIT). The bill outlines financial consequences for not adhering to the bill, including a $1,000 fine for the first violation, a $2,500 fine for the second violation, and a $5,000 fine for the third and each subsequent violation.

While the bill has good intentions, it seems to be misguided and as a result has received significant criticism from industry stakeholders. Questions have been raised surrounding how New Jersey intends to enforce such a bill; what kind of manpower and other resources would this require? Further, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has not officially selected the health IT certifying body as mandated in the economic stimulus package and the possibility another entity or multiple entities may be selected remains. Making systems illegal is an extreme measure that sends the wrong message and does not "unlock the positive incentives for health IT adoption" that CCHIT is trying to encourage, according to Mark Leavitt who leads CCHIT. Leavitt posted a comment on June 12, 2009 on an ihealthbeat article discussing the bill, which read, "CCHIT feels this is an inappropriate use of certification and was not involved in any way with the bill's creation". Finally, the bill would impact all health care providers, not just the Medicare and Medicaid providers who are eligible to try to receive electronic health record (EHR) incentives from the stimulus package.

While the bill under consideration is unwise it does highlight the fact that states are working furiously to prepare for the stimulus funding that will be funneled down and to align their governance policies with federal requirements. Further, the bill underlines the fact that CCHIT is a front-runner for the certifying body position. Monitoring this decision will be vital for vendors interested in getting a piece of the action, as systems must receive the stamp-of-approval from the selected entity(s). Further, states are already considering how to extend beyond Medicare and Medicaid providers and bring the remaining providers on board the health IT train. While providers working with entitlement beneficiaries are the focal point of the stimulus funding incentives, vendors should keep an eye on plans to reach all other providers in the future.