The Medical Group Management Association is calling for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to delay implementation of the HIPAA 5010 transaction set for at least six months, citing a lack of preparedness among physicians.

Recently, CMS announced it would delay enforcement of HIPAA 5010. While still expecting physicians to comply with the rules governing electronic transactions, which could impact how physicians use EHRs, the agency said it would not penalize those who did not meet the requirements within the first six months.

However, officials from MGMA said a full-on delay in implementing the rules would be more appropriate. In a recent survey, the group found that only about 14 percent of practices are currently ready to comply with the requirements of 5010.

"We have been tracking the Version 5010 coordination between physician practices and their key trading partners throughout 2011 and it is clear that a significant number of these stakeholders are not ready to meet the January 1 compliance date," said Susan Turney, the president and CEO of MGMA.

She added that the group also objects to requirements forcing practices to submit outlines of their plans for transitioning to 5010, as this represents a burdensome workload.