Financial Incentives for adoption of interoperable HIT:

• Financial incentives to providers for the adoption of HIT that conforms to the Common Framework will be among the factors leading to a critical mass of participants in the early phase of the Health Information Environment.
• Community consortia of public and private payers and purchasers, working in partnership with CMS and other major payers, should share ideas and early findings regarding effective incentive models. Such incentives may reward those clinicians who successfully adopt and use HIT to improve quality performance, and actively participate in the appropriate sub-networks.
• Incentive arrangements for HIT adoption must recognize that a critical mass of funding must be available to reduce "free ride" potential in which some organizations forgo participation yet reap the benefits.
• To further reduce "free ride" potential, it will be the responsibility of the Sub-Network Organizations to:
  • Work with community payers, purchasers and providers to discuss participation, incentives and appropriate funding models.
  • Monitor relevant stakeholder participation regarding conformance with the Common Framework and adoption incentives.