On October 9, 2015 Varian Medical Systems (NYSE:VAR) reported that its ARIA oncology information system has been certified as a Complete Electronic Health Record (EHR). As a result, hospitals and clinics can use ARIA to qualify for financial incentives from the Medicare and Medicaid programs when they demonstrate meaningful use of the technology (Press release, Varian Medical Systems, OCT 9, 2015, View Source [SID:1234507685]).

Schedule your 30 min Free 1stOncology Demo!
Discover why more than 1,500 members use 1stOncology™ to excel in:

Early/Late Stage Pipeline Development - Target Scouting - Clinical Biomarkers - Indication Selection & Expansion - BD&L Contacts - Conference Reports - Combinatorial Drug Settings - Companion Diagnostics - Drug Repositioning - First-in-class Analysis - Competitive Analysis - Deals & Licensing

                  Schedule Your 30 min Free Demo!

"Varian is committed to the creation of digital tools that connect the entire oncology community, and enable coordinated care," said Sukhveer Singh, vice president of Varian’s Oncology Continuum Solutions group. "The ARIA system provides a seamless flow of information for managing the patient’s entire journey—from diagnosis through follow-up. This certification means that our customers in the U.S. can continue to use ARIA to attest for the Meaningful Use 2014 measures, and thereby qualify for incentive payments from the federal government."

ARIA is a comprehensive electronic medical record and image management system that aggregates patient data into an organized, oncology-specific medical chart with functional components for managing clinical, administrative and financial operations for medical, radiation and surgical oncology.

The ARIA oncology information system (version 13.6 MR1), coupled with the Equicare Health Patient Portal for providing patients with secure web-based access to important portions of their medical records, were certified together to meet the federal requirements for Complete Ambulatory EHR.

Additional Information

The ARIA system for both medical and radiation oncology (version 13.6 MR1) was tested and certified in accordance with applicable certification criteria adopted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The software is compliant with the Office of National Coordinator (ONC) 2014 Edition criteria. ARIA received certification for Complete EHR from the Drummond Group, an ONC Authorized Certification Body. The ONC 2014 Edition criteria support both Stage 1 and Stage 2 meaningful use measures required to qualify eligible professionals for Medicare and Medicaid HIT incentive payments. This certification does not represent an endorsement by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services or guarantee the receipt of incentive payments.

ARIA version 13.6 MR1 was certified on September 17, 2015. Certified ID numbers are 0917201526316 (for radiation oncology) and 0917201526306 (for medical oncology). The modules tested were: 170.314 (a)(115); (b)(15, 7); (c)(13); (d)(18); (e)(13); (f)(13); (g)(24). Clinical Quality Measures tested were: 2v3; 50v2; 68v3; 69v2; 124v2; 125v2; 129v3; 130v2; 138v2; 139v2; 140v2; 141v3; 154v2; 156v2; 157v2; 165v2.

Price Transparency

These certified products generally involve one-time license fees plus some ongoing costs:

ARIA Disease Management, a one-time initial license fee and ongoing Software Support Agreement (SSA) fees.
Equicare Health Solutions Active Patient Portal, a one-time initial license fee and ongoing SSA fees.
ePrescribing, a one-time initial license fee and ongoing SSA fees.
Interfaces: In and Outbound Laboratory, Immunization, Syndromic Health, a one-time initial license fee/interface and ongoing SSA fees.
DIRECT, a one-time initial license fee and ongoing service fees.