In this subchapter:

(1) Certified EHR technology

The term “certified EHR technology” means a qualified electronic health record that is certified pursuant to section 300jj-11(c)(5) of this title as meeting standards adopted under section 300jj-14 of this title that are applicable to the type of record involved (as determined by the Secretary, such as an ambulatory electronic health record for office-based physicians or an inpatient hospital electronic health record for hospitals).

(2) Enterprise integration

The term “enterprise integration” means the electronic linkage of health care providers, health plans, the government, and other interested parties, to enable the electronic exchange and use of health information among all the components in the health care infrastructure in accordance with applicable law, and such term includes related application protocols and other related standards.

(3) Health care provider

The term “health care provider” includes a hospital, skilled nursing facility, nursing facility, home health entity or other long term care facility, health care clinic, community mental health center (as defined in section 300x-2(b)(1) of this title), renal dialysis facility, blood center, ambulatory surgical center described in section 1395l(i) of this title,¹ emergency medical services provider, Federally qualified health center, group practice, a pharmacist, a pharmacy, a laboratory, a physician (as defined in section 1395x(r) of this title), a practitioner (as described in section 1395u(b)(18)(C) of this title), a provider operated by, or under contract with, the Indian Health Service or by an Indian tribe (as defined in the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act [25 U.S.C. 5301 et seq.]), tribal organization, or urban Indian organization (as defined in section 1603 of title 25), a rural health clinic, a covered entity under section 256b of this title, an ambulatory surgical center described in section 1395l(i) of this title,¹ a therapist (as defined in section 1395w-4(k)(3)(B)(iii) of this title), and any other category of health care facility, entity, practitioner, or clinician determined appropriate by the Secretary.

(4) Health information

The term “health information” has the meaning given such term in section 1320d(4) of this title.

(5) Health information technology

The term “health information technology” means hardware, software, integrated technologies or related licenses, intellectual property, upgrades, or packaged solutions sold as services that are designed for or support the use by health care entities or patients for the electronic creation, maintenance, access, or exchange of health information ²

(6) Health plan

The term “health plan” has the meaning given such term in section 1320d(5) of this title.

(7) HIT Advisory Committee

The term “HIT Advisory Committee” means such Committee established under section 300jj-12(a) of this title.

(8) Individually identifiable health information

The term “individually identifiable health information” has the meaning given such term in section 1320d(6) of this title.

(9) Interoperability

The term “interoperability”, with respect to health information technology, means such health information technology that—

(A) enables the secure exchange of electronic health information with, and use of electronic health information from, other health information technology without special effort on the part of the user;

(B) allows for complete access, exchange, and use of all electronically accessible health information for authorized use under applicable State or Federal law; and

(C) does not constitute information blocking as defined in section 300jj-52(a) of this title.

(10) Laboratory

The term “laboratory” has the meaning given such term in section 263a(a) of this title.

(11) National Coordinator

The term “National Coordinator” means the head of the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology established under section 300jj-11(a) of this title.

(12) Pharmacist

The term “pharmacist” has the meaning given such term in section 384(2) ³ of title 21.

(13) Qualified electronic health record

The term “qualified electronic health record” means an electronic record of health-related information on an individual that—

(A) includes patient demographic and clinical health information, such as medical history and problem lists;

(B) has the capacity—

(i) to provide clinical decision support;

(ii) to support physician order entry;

(iii) to capture and query information relevant to health care quality; and

(iv) to exchange electronic health information with, and integrate such information from other sources; and

(C) includes, or is capable of including, a real-time benefit tool that conveys patient-specific real-time cost and coverage information with respect to prescription drugs that, with respect to any health information technology certified for electronic prescribing, the technology shall be capable of incorporating the information described in clauses (i) through (iii) of paragraph (2)(B) of section 1395w-104(o) of this title at a time specified by the Secretary but not before the Secretary adopts a standard for such tools as described in paragraph (1) of such section.

(15) ⁴ State

The term “State” means each of the several States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands.