A recent Commonwealth Fund-supported study published online in the Journal of General Internal Medicine reveals current commercial electronic medical records (EMRs) may be less helpful in terms of care coordination than they are in improving billing.  Researchers at the the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC) in Washington, D.C., found that EMRs make information available at the point of care , but they seem less helpful in the exchange of information across care setting and between providers.  Under the proposed rule from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services, "meaningful use" of EHRs includes measures to gather and report data to government agencies.  Initial standards, implementation specifications and criteria for certification for EHR technology are open for public comment until March 15.  Poor standardization of key data elements and EMR designs that preclude systems from engaging in information sharing will need to be corrected to meet "meaningful use".  Providers need to learn how to manage data overflow to adequately capture the medical decision-making process or future care plans to support coordination.  Let the professionals at Medbizonics review your current systems and workflow to make sure you are ready to meet "meaningful use" or plan a gradual implementation for you and your practice to achieve success.  We are ready. Are you?