ASTP/ONC Extends HTI-1 Compliance Deadline to February After Shutdown Disruptions

Health IT developers who were expected to meet certification requirements by January 1, 2026, will now have until the end of February to complete mandated updates.

The Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy (ASTP) and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) have issued updated enforcement discretion criteria and extended the compliance deadline for several requirements under the Health Data, Technology, and Interoperability (HTI-1) Final Rule.

Health IT developers who were expected to meet certification requirements by January 1, 2026, will now have until the end of February to complete mandated updates.

The agencies said the decision follows significant disruptions during the 43-day federal government shutdown, which halted access to the ASTP/ONC website, compliance testing tools, and technical support channels. These outages left developers unable to validate or update modules necessary for certification, according to a notice posted Monday.

Industry groups said the shutdown stalled compliance efforts across the sector, with smaller developers disproportionately affected. Stephanie Jamison of Greenway Health, vice chair of the Electronic Health Record Association, said developers were “flying blind” as they attempted to meet year-end certification milestones without access to testing systems.

ASTP/ONC confirmed it will not exercise direct review authority based solely on missed January 1 deadlines and will refrain from initiating enforcement actions until March 1, 2026. The delay provides additional time to complete updates required for HTI-1 certification, including patient demographics and observations, family health history, transitions of care, clinical information reconciliation, care plans, immunization and public health reporting, as well as APIs for patient and population services.

Modules requiring new product certifications—such as those tied to decision support interventions—are expected to face more complex testing workflows. Developers are also awaiting clarity from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) regarding the ripple effects on software certification requirements linked to programs such as MIPS and Advanced APMs.

The extension comes as the HIT regulatory landscape continues to evolve. Over the past two years, ONC has advanced multiple rulemakings—HTI-2, HTI-3, and HTI-4—addressing information blocking, API use cases, AI-related certification, e-prescribing, and electronic prior authorization. Beginning in 2027, providers will be required to process prior authorization decisions in real time using standardized health IT based on the HL7 FHIR framework.

Jamison said the added enforcement discretion offers essential breathing room for vendors working to finalize HTI-1 requirements this year.

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