Comply with CMS' CoP for order authentication

In November 2006, CMS published a final rule on the Conditions of Participation (CoP) for hospitals. Among the finalized provisions, there was a five-year window ­given during which CMS permitted orders (including verbal and telephone orders) to be signed by either the ordering physician or another physician responsible for the patient's care (e.g., a covering physician or practice partner). Those five years came to an end on January 27, 2012, meaning that, as of that date, hospitals needed to ensure that their orders were signed only by the ordering practitioner him- or herself. However, in October 2011, CMS released a proposed rule addressing the five-year sunset provision. Per the Federal Register:

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