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Technology · North America

Trump administration removes 14 electronic health-record certification criteria

The Trump administration removed 14 certification criteria for electronic health-record systems, according to STAT. The final rule also substantially revises seven criteria, while commenters raised concerns about health-data privacy, security and AI product safety.

AI-assisted synthesis · Based on 2 independent reports from 4 outlets · Article text read from 1 of 2 reportsHow it's made

View timeline · 7 entries
4 outletsLatest reporting 3 min read
Coverage: Center OnlyL 0 · C 4 · R 0
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Photo: Daniel Torok / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)

What happened

Key facts

  • The removed criteria were among 60 criteria used to certify electronic record-keeping systems (per STAT).
  • The administration said the changes aim to streamline government regulations and support new technologies (per STAT).

The brief

The Trump administration removed 14 certification criteria for electronic health-record systems in a final rule issued by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT, STAT reported. The agency’s rule also substantially revises seven other criteria.

The removed requirements were among 60 used to certify electronic record-keeping systems sold by companies including Epic and Oracle. The requirements eliminated covered security, privacy and transparency.

The rule changes the criteria vendors must satisfy to have their systems certified; the account describes the affected systems as electronic record-keeping products sold by health technology companies. The administration’s stated rationale is to streamline government regulation and support the development of new technologies.

That rationale accompanies the removal of the criteria and revisions to seven others; the final rule does not eliminate all certification criteria, according to STAT’s description. Commenters objected to some of the changes.

STAT reported that they raised concerns that removing or revising requirements could undermine the security and privacy of sensitive health information and efforts to ensure the safety of products that rely on artificial intelligence. The objections arose during the process leading to the final rule, and the administration proceeded with changes despite them.

The rule therefore combines two distinct actions: eliminating 14 criteria and substantially changing seven more. The eliminated criteria represented 14 of the 60 used for certification, while the seven revised criteria remain in altered form. STAT reported that the administration removed or changed requirements over commenters’ objections in many cases.

The affected certification framework covers electronic record-keeping systems sold by firms such as Epic and Oracle. The account identifies the companies as examples of vendors whose products fall within the systems covered by the criteria; it does not describe a separate action against either company.

The rule’s stated policy goals are regulatory streamlining and support for new technology, while commenters’ stated concerns center on privacy, security and AI product safety. Those are the positions documented in the account; it provides no further detail about how the revised criteria will be applied or how the administration will assess the concerns raised.

Why it matters

  • The 14 removed criteria covered security, privacy and transparency in certification of electronic health-record systems.
  • Sensitive health information is the concrete stake identified by commenters, who warned that the changes could weaken its privacy and security protections.
  • Commenters also raised concerns about safeguards for products that rely on artificial intelligence.
  • Epic and Oracle are named as companies selling systems within the certification framework.

What to watch next

  • How the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT applies the final rule’s revised certification criteria.
  • Whether the seven substantially revised criteria remain in altered form as vendors seek certification.
  • How the administration addresses the privacy, security and AI product-safety concerns raised by commenters.

How it's being covered

Coverage analysisShow details
4 source articles · 4 unique outlets · 2 distinct reports
Outlet political mix: Center Only· 4 Center
Where the outlets are based: Unknown 50% · Europe 25% · Other 25%
Outlet political mix
Center Only
Left
Center
Right
0 outlets
4 outlets
0 outlets
The marker shows coverage balance: each unique outlet counts once.
Geography
Where the outlets covering this story are based.
4 unique outletsDominant coverage: Europe
Coverage imbalance
  • Coverage is currently concentrated among Center-rated outlets (4 of 4 rated sources); comparatively few Left or Right-rated outlets have published on the event.
How we measure coverage

How outlets' accounts compare

Updat3 does not yet have enough full reports to compare how outlets framed this story.

Timeline

Developments from this story's sources, dated background we compiled and fact-checked, and our earlier coverage. Each row says which.
  1. Congress enacted the HITECH Act, authorizing incentive payments for meaningful use of certified EHR technology.
    Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3
  2. In 2010, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services issued rules defining meaningful use, while ONC established certification criteria and a certification program.
    Background · from our historical context
  3. ONC published a final rule establishing the 2015 Edition certification criteria for health IT.
    Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3
  4. The 21st Century Cures Act, signed December 13, 2016, prohibited specified information-blocking practices and directed federal agencies to advance health-information exchange.
    Background · from our historical context
  5. ONC’s May 1, 2020, final rule implemented parts of that law, including requirements concerning standardized application programming interfaces and information blocking.
    Background · from our historical context
  6. A later update came with ONC’s HTI-1 final rule, published January 9, 2024, which revised certification requirements, including requirements related to transparency for predictive decision-support interventions.
    Background · from our historical context
  7. Donald Trump was inaugurated for a second, non-consecutive term as U.S. president.
    Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3

How we got here

The certification framework that preceded the current changes included the 2015 Edition criteria, established by a final rule published by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) on October 16, 2015.

A later update came with ONC’s HTI-1 final rule, published January 9, 2024, which revised certification requirements, including requirements related to transparency for predictive decision-support interventions.

Original sources

1 of 4 articles · Europe · Show all

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