Health Information Exchange (HIE) is happening every minute of every day. Your personal health information is moving and being viewed to improve the quality of your healthcare and lower the costs. The job will not be complete until all health records are digital and interoperable. Here’s what’s happening to make that reality.
Talking Interoperability at MGMA19
I stopped by the J2 Global booth while at MGMA this week and talked about digital cloud faxing technology and interoperability with both John Nebergall and Brad Spannbauer. Take a listen.
Listen
Check out our newest podcast from Orion Health with Host Dr. Chris Hobson (@drchrishobson). On this episode, Chris chats with Alberta-based primary care physician Dr. Allen Ausford about new innovations in population health and care coordination as well as patient engagement and precision medicine. Learn more about the podcast on the Chief Among Friends program page.
News and Noted
TNAP Announces Finalized Criteria for Inaugural Accreditation Program
The Trusted Network Accreditation Program (TNAP) healthcare collaborative announced the release of final criteria, TNAP v1.0, for its accreditation program. The criteria, finalized after a 60-day public comment period and beta testing process, and developed leveraging a multi-stakeholder, consensus-based process, will assess an health exchange organization’s ability to demonstrate alignment with the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology’s (ONC’s) Trusted Exchange Framework and Common Agreement (TEFCA) requirements.
VA Shares Electronic Health Records
It will soon be easier for you to get VA health care in your community without paperwork. As of Jan. 2020, you won’t have to provide a signed, written authorization for VA to release your electronic VA health information to a participating community care provider. VA will automatically begin sharing your health information with participating community care providers using the Veterans Health Information Exchange. The electronic system is secure and safe. Read more.
CHIME Statement on Hill Oversight of ONC Interoperability Rule
The 21st Century Cures Act absolutely will help spur better interoperability across healthcare and the administration is taking seriously their task to further this with the proposed interoperability rules released earlier this year. The Office of the National Coordinator’s (ONC) rule makes several improvements to the way certified products work, requirements for electronic health record (EHR) vendors that make providers more informed consumers and puts a spotlight on connecting patients to their records. Today we call on Congressional leaders to help ensure that the administration properly acts on their well-intended policies. We need interoperability, clinicians need it and patients deserve it. Read entire statement.
Now Available: Interoperability Forum Slides and Recording
Video from ONC’s 3rd Interoperability Forum’s plenary sessions is now available on HealthIT.gov. Catch up on what was said by NHSX’s Deputy Chief Executive, Dr. Simon Eccles, FDA’s Principal Deputy Commissioner of Food and Drugs, Dr. Amy Abernethy, National Coordinator, Don Rucker, and Deputy National Coordinator, Steve Posnack. Observations from track sessions were covered as part of the day 2 wrap up. View the slides and recording.
2019 Blue Button Developers Conference
Last year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services launched Blue Button® 2.0 which allows 44 million Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries digital access to their historical claims information through an application of their choice. This functionality has empowered millions of Medicare beneficiaries to more easily access their health information and provides them an opportunity to work with their physician to make better care decisions for themselves and their family. After many months of work, the private sector released the CARIN Blue Button® data model and draft implementation guide as part of the White House Blue Button® Developers Conference. Read press release.
OCR HIPAA Right of Access FAQs: The HHS Office for Civil Rights released FAQs about the HIPAA right of access as it relates to apps designated by individual patients and application programming interfaces used by a healthcare provider’s electronic health record system. Read the OCR Patient Right of Access FAQs.
HIE and Standards Organizations
The Sequoia Project
The Sequoia Project (@SequoiaProject) was chartered to advance the implementation of secure, interoperable nationwide health information exchange. The ONC transitioned management of its eHealth Exchange to The Sequoia Project for maintenance. Since 2012, the Exchange has grown to become the largest health information exchange network in the country.
The Strategic Health Information Exchange Collaborative
SHIEC (@SHIEClive) is the National Trade Association for Health Information Exchange Organizations. It is routine for important data about patients’ ongoing care to reside in multiple unconnected organizations. SHIEC member HIEs use information technology and trusted relationships in their service areas to enable secure, authorized exchange of patient information among disparate providers. By providing enhanced access to all available and relevant patient data SHIEC HIE members aim to improve the quality, coordination, and cost-effectiveness of health care provided in their communities. Read their news feed.
The CommonWell
CommonWell Health Alliance (@CommonWell) is devoted to the simple vision that health data should be available to individuals and providers regardless of where care occurs. Additionally, provider access to this data must be built-in health IT at a reasonable cost for use by a broad range of health care providers and the people they serve.
Resources
4 Emerging Trends in Patient Identification
The issue of inadequate patient matching and duplicate records has grown increasingly complex as more data is generated and more applications are introduced into the healthcare environment. As data sharing matures and the industry pivots toward value, an enterprise view of patient information is essential for informed clinical-decision making, effective episodic care, and a seamless patient-provider experience during every encounter.
Download this eBook by NextGate to see how developing technologies are shaping patient matching efforts today and into the future.
HealthDataAnswers.net
- We have moved our ONC news and updates to What’s Happening at the ONC series posts on alternate Fridays.
- Find more news and updates on State HIE organizations in our State HIE News and Updates series posts on alternate Fridays.
eHealth Initiative Resource Center
Interoperability Files – Check out the new white paper resource in the eHealth Initiative’s (@eHealthDC) Resource Center: eHI Explains ICD-10-CM Coding for Social Determinants of Health
ONC Interoperability Pledge
Companies that provide 90 percent of electronic health records used by hospitals nationwide as well as the top five largest health care systems in the country have agreed to implement three core commitments: Consumer Access, No Blocking/Ensuring Transparency, and Standards. The ONC (@ONC_HealthIT) wants vendors to sign a pledge. Is your vendor pledging? Find out who is on the list.