Following significant pushback from industry groups, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has decided to delay enforcement of deadlines for complying with HIPAA 5010.

This does not mean that the deadline has been pushed back. Under current rules, providers are still required to comply with the rules by January 1, 2012. CMS will not begin enforcing the rules until March 31, 2012.

Physicians have had a difficult time implementing the new rules governing electronic transmission of health data and billing, which could have implications for the use of EHRs. The Medical Group Management Association has described the HIPAA 5010 rules as being extremely costly and difficult for practices to implement. CMS officials recognized the fact in announcing the delay in enforcement.

"Feedback indicates that the number of submitters, the volume of transactions and other testing data used as indicators of the industry’s readiness to comply with the new standards have been low across some industry sectors," read a statement from the agency.

Still, CMS is encouraging providers to do all they can to comply with the January 1 deadline, as this will increase their chances of being prepared once enforcement begins.