“In 2012, meaningful use will soar," said National Coordinator for Health Information Technology Farzad Mostashari at the Jan. 10 meeting of the Health IT Policy Committee.

“Meaningful use will continue to be the cornerstone of our activities,” Mostashari told committee members. “We can expect to see the numbers continue to rise,” he said of participants in the federal incentive program for electronic health records adoption, adding that “we’re going to do everything we can to ensure that every provider can be successful at meaningful use.”

Vendors and providers “are going to be asked to step up to the challenge – and it is a challenge,” he said. “But, it’s a challenge well worth meeting.”

Also in 2012, Mostashari predicted interoperability and data exchange would be the “second and more complex challenge,” following meaningful use. The emphasis, he said, will be on containing the costs and reducing the risks and liability of exchanging health data: information “will flow at the speed of trust.”