Indiana Health Information Exchange enables Indiana hospitals to meet Meaningful Use requirements and avoid costly EHR customizations.
Thrive HDS, Inc. announced today that the Indiana Health Information Exchange’s (IHIE) notifiable condition detector (NCD), version 1.3, is compliant with the ONC 2014 Edition criteria and was certified as an EHR Module on January 17, 2014 by the Certification Commission for Health Information Technology (CCHIT®), an ONC-ACB, in accordance with the applicable eligible provider and hospital certification criteria adopted by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS). The ONC 2014 Edition criteria support both Stage 1 and 2 Meaningful Use measures required to qualify eligible providers and hospitals for funding under the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act, which was a part of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).
This certification means hospitals that are live on IHIE’s NCD module meet Meaningful Use Stage 2 requirements for Electronic Lab Reporting (ELR). IHIE is the largest health information exchange in the country to receive modular certification from the CCHIT. The NCD module was developed by the Regenstrief Institute more than 10 years ago and is a cornerstone of the research-oriented Indiana Center of Excellence in Public Health Informatics (ICEPHI), a collaboration between Regenstrief, Indiana University, the Indiana State Department of Health, the Marion County Public Health Department, and others. ICEPHI was founded in 2009 through funding from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).
“Achieving certification reflects our continued commitment to improving the functionality and capabilities of our health information exchange solutions to empower providers to improve care and reduce costs,” said Harold J. Apple, chief executive officer for Thrive HDS, IHIE’s technology provider. “In addition to meeting Meaningful Use requirements, this certification milestone makes it possible for hospitals to avoid making costly customizations to their EHR systems.”
The ONC HIT Certification Program certifies that Complete EHRs meet all of the 2014 Edition criteria and EHR Modules meet one or more – but not all – of the criteria approved by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) for either eligible provider or hospital technology.
“CCHIT congratulates companies successfully achieving EHR technology certification,” said Alisa Ray, executive director, CCHIT. “These companies are now able to make their products available to providers wishing to adopt health IT to demonstrate Meaningful Use and earn federal incentives.”
The development and testing necessary for IHIE’s NCD module to achieve certification was supported through funding by Indiana’s HITECH state designated entity, Indiana Health Information Technology, Inc. (IHIT). Resources from the Regenstrief Institute, Thrive HDS and IHIE performed the work.
“Modular certification is an example of how health information exchanges can leverage their infrastructure and data flows to drive more value to the customers they serve. The attainment of this certification by IHIE gives more than 90 hospitals the opportunity to meet the ELR standard for Meaningful Use,” said Andy VanZee, statewide health IT director for Indiana’s Family and Social Services Administration. VanZee oversees the operations and funding allocations administered by IHIT. VanZee added, “HIE’s sit in a unique position to assist in performing Meaningful Use activities that occur between EHR systems and disparate organizations.”
IHIE’s NCD module, version 1.3’s certification number is CC-2014-100100-1 and meets all Electronic Laboratory Reporting certification criteria. ONC HIT certification conferred by CCHIT does not represent an endorsement of the certified EHR technology by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
To meet Stage 2 requirements, eligible hospitals and commercial labs must send ELR data through the NCD using HL7 Version 2.5.1 and comply with Indiana Communicable Disease Rules. Messages must then be successfully received throughout an ongoing 90 day attestation period.
