Offering a bit of leeway, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has pushed out the deadline for eligible hospitals and critical access hospitals to attest to meaningful use for the 2014 reporting year, from Nov. 30 to Dec. 31.

CMS is also touting its flexibility for certification and attestation. Providers can use 2011 or 2014 edition certified EHR technology, or a combination, according to a Nov. 25 announcement, and can "attest in 2014 to either Stage 1 or 2 meaningful use measures" and "report either 2013 or 2014 clinical quality measures."

[See also: CHIME sees 'troubling' signals for MU.]

A previously reported, the deadline for eligible professionals and eligible hospitals to submit hardship exception applications to avoid 2015 Medicare payment adjustments will be Nov. 30, 2014.

CMS also announced some planned maintenance on the HITECH EHR Incentive Program system, which will be unavailable between 10 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. ET on Dec.13, 2014. Users may also "experience intermittent connectivity" to the EHR application on Nov. 30, 2014, between 12:01 to 5:00 a.m., according to CMS.

[See also: Poor MU showing renews calls for change.]