http://www.gao.gov/assets/600/
In case you forgot what it means here’s a working definition for Meaningful Use. From a publication of the Robert Woods Johnson Foundation: Glossary of Health Care Quality Terms, Meaningful use— Meaningful use is a qualification to receive federal funding for health information technology. For instance, if a health information technology (HIT) system is used in a meaningful way to provide better patient care, a health system can qualify to receive federal subsidies to help to pay for the technology.
No surprise on this one. The Feds publish a way too general set of guidelines and offer financial incentives for compliance with a fill-in the dots fantasy called meaningful use. This encourages enterprises to compete with cheap, but meaningless (yes the pun is intended), limited packaged solutions that respond to and meet now several year outdated specifications, that miserably failed to anticipate intervening software and hardware developments, or new products. All of which greatly effect (expand) the scope and simplicity of implementing elegant and versatile true “meaningful use”, solutions. Once again Washington has succeeded in getting providers and entrepreneurs to chase billions of wasted tax payer dollars in order to achieve solutions not worth having. BRAVO!