Despite the fact that federal authorities have yet to finalize the rules for the second stage of meaningful use, media reports indicate the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT is already beginning to consider how Stage 3 should look.

Discussions are still at a very general point, but Healthcare IT News reports that three factors will be heavily considered. Officials said at a recent meeting of the Health IT Policy Committee that rules should be targeted for specialists, regulations should harmonize with other government rules and input from private groups should be considered.

The impact of meaningful use rules on specialists has been a hot topic during the initial stages. Some groups have complained that a number of the regulations are not relevant to certain specialists, making it difficult to comply with all aspects of the program. The third stage may seek to address this complaint.

Meanwhile, a number of new regulations, including ICD-10, HIPAA 5010 and CMS's accountable care organization incentive program will go into effect over the next couple years. Ensuring that none of the rules for these initiatives clash will be important for getting physicians to participate.