Final answer:
The Stage 3 criteria of 'meaningful use' focus on the advanced use of EHRs for decision-support and population health management. It is part of the effort to improve healthcare outcomes as mandated by the ACA, controlling healthcare costs while ensuring the privacy of patients' records remains protected.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question pertains to the 'meaningful use' criteria set during the implementation of Electronic Health Records (EHRs) as part of healthcare reforms in the U.S., specifically referring to Stage 3 of meaningful use. The correct answer is a. Advanced decision-support and population health, which is a criterion of Stage 3 of meaningful use. This stage focuses on utilizing the capabilities of the EHR to improve healthcare outcomes. It involves features like clinical decision-support systems, which provide healthcare providers with knowledge and person-specific information, intelligently filtered and presented at appropriate times, to enhance health and health care.
Additionally, population health management tools assess the data across a patient cohort to improve the health of the entire population. Other criteria such as submission of provider orders electronically, exchanging EHR data in a structured manner, and using EHR data to track conditions could be part of the overall meaningful use framework but are not specific to Stage 3 only.
The importance of meaningfully using EHRs is a result of various healthcare reforms including the Affordable Care Act (ACA) which aims to control increases in healthcare costs and improve efficiency. The privacy of electronic health records is a critical concern when improving health information technology, and healthcare providers are mandated to switch to EHRs to reduce administrative costs. Widespread adoption of EHRs and ensuring that they are used meaningfully is fundamental to achieving these reforms.