We are now well past the 20 year mark in our quest for healthcare interoperability. Under an executive order from president G W Bush (April 2004), the ONC was established and Dr. David Brailer was dubbed “America’s first Health Information Czar.” The Meaningful Use program was then born out of the HITECH Act and Merit-Based Incentive Payment System was then born our of the MACRA legislation. And then information sharing from the CURES Act. And now the release of Trusted Exchange Framework and the Common Agreement (TEFCA). All trying to move our healthcare system to the digital age, better outcomes, controlling and reducing costs, and patient access to their health data. It has not been an easy road and the debate of the journey will never end.
Industry and Contract News
Oracle Health Files TEFCA QHIN Application – Oracle Health has formally submitted its application and is now an applicant Qualified Health Information Network® (QHIN™) as a part of the Trusted Exchange Framework and Common Agreement™ (TEFCA™).
“If designated, becoming a QHIN will help us enable providers, public health officials, patients, and payers to securely access data that can help improve care delivery, deliver insight into community health, and accelerate authorizations and reimbursements,” said Seema Verma, executive vice president and general manager, Oracle Health and Life Sciences. “This builds on our long-standing leadership in driving interoperability to increase industry-wide efficiency and to help ensure patients retain control over their own data.”
Unblock Health and Health Gorilla Announce Collaboration to Enhance Patient Data Access through TEFCA
Health Gorilla, a Qualified Health Information Network™ (QHIN™) and interoperability solution provider, announced a new collaboration with Unblock Health, a master key of patient access solutions designed to give patients a competitive advantage against their health conditions. Unblock Health will participate in Health Gorilla’s QHIN to enable patients to retrieve their personal health records under the Individual Access Services (IAS) purpose of use.
Epic Showcases Industry-Leading AI, Genomics, and Interoperability at HIMSS 2025 Conference
At the 2025 HIMSS Global Health Conference and Exhibition, Epic highlighted innovations that improve clinical care, streamline operations, and foster more personalized patient treatments.
MedAllies, Epic, Netsmart and eClinicalWorks Demo Together at HIMSS 2025
MedAllies, Epic, Netsmart and eClinicalWorks demonstrated a compelling clinical scenario highlighting the necessity for QHIN interoperability to expedite effective treatment in an urgent care setting. Then, 360X closed loop specialty referral will demonstrate appropriate ambulatory care follow up. This 2-step demonstration shows both the interoperability “pull” and “push” of clinically necessary treatment information.
CMS 2024 Data Submission Deadline is March 14, 2025
This is notification that eligible hospitals and critical access hospitals (CAHs) participating in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Promoting Interoperability Program that there is an upcoming data submission deadline on March 14, 2025, at 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time.
Draft USCDI v6 and Standards Bulletin 25-1
Draft United States Core Data for Interoperability Version 6 (Draft USCDI v6) is available for comment. Draft USCDI v6 includes new data elements that seek to advance interoperability for patient care. The comment period for Draft USCDI v6 is open through April 14 at 11:59 PM ET.
eClinicalWorks Launches Integrated Solution on PointClickCare Marketplace to Streamline Data Exchange with Skilled Nursing Facilities
eClinicalWorks®, the leader in the cloud-based ambulatory EHR market, announced the strategic integration with PointClickCare, a healthcare technology platform enabling meaningful care collaboration and real‐time patient insights. With this integration, eClinicalWorks can connect and exchange data with PointClickCare applications in long-term and post-acute care (LTPAC) settings to support remote and bedside physician encounters.
Netsmart Highlights 360X Interoperability and AI Advancements for Community-Based Care Providers at HIMSS2025
Netsmart, a provider of healthcare IT for human services and post-acute care communities, showcased its interoperability advancements and augmented intelligence (AI) innovations at the HIMSS.
Spotlight on Community Networks
The Network for Regional Healthcare Improvement (NRHI) and the Strategic Health Information Exchange Collaborative (SHIEC) announced a formal affiliation between the two organizations to form a new organization named Civitas Networks for Health. The organization serves as a platform for local nonprofit health collaboratives and health information exchanges to grow and thrive. Read their latest news. Follow them @civitas4health.
Announcing 2025 Annual Conference Premier Partnership with 211 San Diego which encompasses Community Information Exchange (CIE) San Diego, and San Diego Health Connect (HIE) will serve as the premier conference partner for the Annual Conference alongside other California Civitas members. The theme, “Bridging Data and Doing,” from September 28-30, 2025, in Anaheim, CA. Sponsorship opportunities are now available.
Civitas Call for Speaking Proposals Closes March 19. Submitters are encouraged to submit proposals that highlight the conference theme — Bridging Data and Doing — and fall within one of the three conference tracks: (i) Interoperability, national networks, standards, and technology; (ii) Promising partnerships; and (iii) Community information exchange. Those that did not attend the Call for Proposals Information Session, please check out the slide presentation.
State HIE News
Quarterly Rochester RHIO Newsletter
In the March edition of the Rochester RHIO Newsletter learn about a project that Rochester RHIO has completed and the impact that it brings to the communities that we serve, hear what the interim CEO has to say about the latest happenings and read some “stories from the field” to see the HIE in action.
GaHIN Ignites a New Era: Integrating Social Behavior Data for True Whole-Person Care
Imagine healthcare that goes far beyond routine checkups and prescriptions—one that understands the daily challenges and opportunities shaping your life. The Georgia Health Information Network (GaHIN) is making that vision a reality. As the very first health information exchange (HIE) to seamlessly merge social behavior data with medical records, GaHIN is giving healthcare providers the complete picture of patient well-being.
Hires and Openings
Contexture
Contexture is a nonprofit organization that provides strategic, technical and administrative support to communities committed to advancing health through information sharing. As the leading health information exchange for Arizona and Colorado, Contexture is the largest health information organization in the western region. They currently have an opening for a Chief Legal Officer & Privacy Officer.
Delaware Health Information Network
Delaware Health Information Network (DHIN) is currently seeking a Project Manager Analyst. Specifically, the Project Manager plays a critical role by serving as the lead for project work for all assigned project initiatives and will integrate with all DHIN teams, DHIN stakeholders and technology vendors. Projects are typically IT integration but are shifting towards projects requiring software development and customization. The PM has no positional authority and must be able to create and sustain cooperative voluntary relationships between the project participants.
eHealth Exchange
Active in all 50 states, the eHealth Exchange is the largest query-based, health information network in the country. It is the principal network that connects federal agencies and non-federal organizations, allowing them to work together to improve patient care and public health. They have an open positions for:
MiHIN
MiHIN is currently seeking a Senior Product Engineer. The Senior Product Engineer is responsible for translating business needs into technical solutions as well as managing a high performing team responsible for technical delivery. Normal responsibilities require critical thinking, data driven analysis and providing a fount for technical leadership. The efficiency, efficacy and cost effectiveness of our digital application portfolio are the key determinants of the Senior Product Engineer’s success. Using team management and technical excellence, the Senior Product Engineer will work to improve uptime, reduce cycle time and provide solutions that reduce technical risk.
North Carolina Department of Information Technology
The NC Health Information Exchange Authority (NC HIEA) is seeking its next mission-driven, highly motivated and detail-oriented data quality team lead. The Data Quality and Integrity Team Lead (DQIL) will be the in-house data expert, comfortable working with data and business processes to enable new and innovative use cases for NC HealthConnex, the state-designated health information exchange, as well as enhance the overall experience for NC HIEA participants across external NC HealthConnex services.
VITL
VITL is seeking a Operations Client Support Lead. This role will define and guide processes for customer and operations support including the daily interactions between our clients and our organization. The Client Support Lead plays a crucial role in prioritizing customers’ needs, expectations and satisfaction; they will lead our team in delivering the highest level of customer service in all client support interactions. The Client Support Lead will manage the day to day operations of the system and services in coordination with VITL’s internal technical team and contracted vendor support resources. The Client Support team oftentimes will be the first to identify issues, and will prioritize and escalate all issues based on severity.
Upcoming Events
HL7 and leaders from the FHIR Accelerators
When: Wednesday, March 12, 2025 2:00 – 3:00 pm ET
Register for this event.
FHIR Deep Dive Webinar Series –Dive into the world of FHIR and its transformative impact on health data exchange! Join HL7 and leaders from the FHIR Accelerators — Gravity Project, Helios, Da Vinci, FHIR at Scale Taskforce (FAST), and CARIN Alliance — for an insightful 6-part webinar series. Gain a deeper understanding of FHIR, its applications, and groundbreaking projects leveraging FHIR Accelerators to shape the future of healthcare interoperability.
CMS
When: Wednesday, April 2, 2025 12:00 pm ET
Register for this event.
CMS MIPS 2025: Promoting Interoperability – Is your practice or ACO ready for MIPS 2025 Promoting Interoperability (PI)? Join our expert-led webinar to stay ahead of key updates, requirements, and strategies for success.
✅ Understand measure eligibility & exclusions
✅ Learn about performance periods & methodologies
✅ Get insights tailored for physicians, practice managers, office admins, and ACOs
AHIP/Surescripts
When: Wednesday, April 9, 2025 1:00 pm ET
Register for this event.
Learn How New Interoperability Solutions Can Drive Improved Outcomes – Health insurance providers value the clinical insights and integrations needed to more effectively solve gaps in care for high-risk members. Getting high-quality data and new ways to communicate needed actions within provider workflows is essential to improve quality measures and reduce the cost of care. This panel will explore how new interoperability solutions can help health insurance providers quickly identify gaps in care by streamlining data exchange and enhancing communication with providers. By leveraging these solutions, attendees will learn how to improve care coordination, ensuring that providers have timely, accurate information to address gaps and deliver better care, ultimately improving member outcomes.
2025 State Healthcare IT Connect Summit
When: April 30th – May 2nd 2025
Where: Hyatt Regency New Orleans, LA
Event Page
Register for this event.
Modernization Strategies for a Connected HHS Ecosystem
The 2025 State HIT Connect Summit will explore leading-edge pilots in different vertical application areas, as well as at the enterprise level, providing key insights as to the potential for driving overall ecosystem transformation.
The 2025 meeting is the 15th annual State Healthcare IT Connect Summit. The conference has grown and evolved into an important national venue for public and private sector thought leaders to share ideas and benchmark implementation strategies of State Health IT Systems.
ONC's Cures Act Final Rule
In May of 2020 the 21st Century Cures Act: Interoperability, Information Blocking, and the ONC Health IT Certification Program released by the ONC and published in the Federal Register.
The TEFCA Players
ONC Recognized Coordinating Entity (RCE)
The Recognized Coordinating Entity (RCE) – The Sequoia Project (@sequoiaproject)is responsible for developing, implementing, and maintaining the Common Agreement component of the Trusted Exchange Framework and Common Agreement (TEFCA). The Common Agreement is the baseline technical and legal requirements for health information networks to share electronic health information and is part of the 21st Century Cures Act (Cures Act).
In addition they will collaborate with ONC to designate and monitor Qualified Health Information Networks (QHIN), modify and update an accompanying QHIN Technical Framework, engage with stakeholders through virtual public listening sessions, adjudicate noncompliance with the Common Agreement, and propose sustainability strategies to support TEFCA beyond the cooperative agreement’s period of performance.
On August 28, 2023, the ONC awarded The Sequoia Project 5-Year TEFCA RCE Contract to continue their services.
RCE Resource Library – which includes a guide to the Common Agreement, Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), technical documents, and other resources that make up TEFCA’s rules of the road. Start your journey to next generation interoperability here.
The Sequoia Project Addresses Health Data Information Sharing with Educational Toolkit – The Sequoia Project released an informational and educational toolkit to support providers, health IT developers, health information networks and exchanges, and the greater healthcare community’s commitment to compliance with the federal Information Blocking Rule (IBR).
The Sequoia Project Releases Data Usability Guide Version 2.0 – The Sequoia Project announced the release of the Data Usability Implementation Guide Version 2.0 created by its Interoperability Matters Data Usability Workgroup (DUWG). This resource covers the identified priority use cases that can be readily adopted within health information exchange vendors, implementers, networks, governance frameworks, and testing programs within 18 months.
The Sequoia Project Publishes State of Consent Capabilities – The Sequoia Project published Moving Toward Computable Consent: A Landscape Review for public feedback. This whitepaper explains the importance of managing privacy and consent when sharing personal health information, scans the current landscape of challenges facing those entrusted with personal health information, enumerates existing solutions, and explores the strengths and deficiencies of these approaches.
Designated QHINs as of February 2024
Candidate QHINs
Organizations that have completed the Qualified Health Information Network® (QHIN™) application and have been accepted into the project planning and testing phase of the on boarding and designation process.
Interoperability Market
According to research by Grand View Research, the global healthcare interoperability solutions market size was estimated at USD 3.42 billion in 2023 and is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14.15% from 2024 to 2030. An increase in the adoption of interoperability solutions by healthcare authorities, a rise in investments to enhance healthcare facilities, favorable government initiatives to improve patient care, high government funding, and a focus on patient-centric care are some major factors propelling the market growth. In February 2023, the federal government provided USD 505 million to federal data partners and Canada Health Infoway to advance digital health tools and an interoperability roadmap. Thus, the rising investments and funding from government bodies are anticipated to drive the industry growth.