The Medicare and Medicaid electronic health record program has paid physicians and hospitals nearly $2 billion in incentive payments as of the end of November, surpassing what federal health officials anticipated.

Medicare incentives for demonstrating meaningful use of EHRs have amounted to $920.3 million, while Medicaid payments for providers to adopt, implement and upgrade their EHRs reached an estimated $916 million for a total of $1.8 billion, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Final figures for Medicaid payments will be available within a week.

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