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Information Blocking

HHS Announces Crackdown on Information Blocking to Empower Patients and Innovators

by Fred Pennic 09/04/2025 Leave a Comment

What You Should Know: - The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has announced a new initiative to increase resources dedicated to curbing the practice of "information blocking". - Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. has directed HHS to take active enforcement against healthcare entities that restrict patients’ access, exchange, and use of electronic health information. Empowering Patients and Innovators The announcement states Information blocking was not allegedly a priority under the Biden Administration, but that has changed under President Trump and Secretary Kennedy. The 21st Century Cures Act of 2016 authorized the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy/Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ASTP/ONC) and the HHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) to take enforcement actions to hold violators accountable. Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services Jim O’Neill stated that unblocking the flow of health information is "critical to unleashing health IT innovation and transforming our healthcare ecosystem". Many patients rely on access to their health information to monitor chronic conditions, adhere to treatment plans, and find errors in their records. According to Acting Inspector General Juliet T. Hodgkins, providers and certain health IT entities have a "legal duty" to ensure that information flows where and when it's needed. She added that the HHS-OIG will use all available authorities to investigate and hold violators accountable. Dr. Tom Keane, Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy and National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, noted that ASTP/ONC has already begun reviewing reports of information blocking and is providing technical assistance to the OIG for investigations. Consequences of Non-Compliance The announcement serves as a warning to those still engaging in information blocking. The consequences for violators can be substantial: For healthcare providers: They could be subject to disincentives under certain CMS programs. For certified health IT developers, health information networks, or health information exchanges: They could face a civil monetary penalty of up to $1M per violation. Their certifications could also be terminated, and they could be banned from the Certification Program. The announcement is also a call to action for patients, providers, payers, and health IT companies to report alleged information blocking through ASTP/ONC’s Report Information Blocking Portal.

What You Should Know:  - The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has announced a new initiative to increase resources dedicated to curbing the practice of "information blocking".  - Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. has directed HHS to take active enforcement against healthcare entities that restrict patients’ access, exchange, and use of electronic health information. Empowering Patients and Innovators The announcement states Information blocking was not
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HHS Proposes HTI-2 Rule to Enhance Healthcare Data Sharing and Interoperability

by Fred Pennic 07/10/2024 Leave a Comment

SAMHSA and ONC Invest $20M in Behavioral Health IT Initiative

What You Should Know:  - The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has taken a significant step towards improving healthcare information exchange with the release of the Health Data, Technology, and Interoperability: Patient Engagement, Information Sharing, and Public Health Interoperability (HTI-2) proposed rule.  - The HTI-2 rule marks a major advancement in interoperability by focusing on seamless data exchange between patients, providers, payers, and public
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80% of Healthcare Execs Want Complete Clinical Data From Other EHRs

by Syed Hamza Sohail 01/17/2023 Leave a Comment

80% of Healthcare Execs Want Complete Clinical Data From Other EHRs to Enrich Their Own Data

What You Should Know: - Health Gorilla, a Health Information Network and interoperability provider, released it's inaugural 2023 State of Interoperability report today to understand how healthcare decision-makers are approaching their clinical data strategies in light of patient privacy concerns and new federal regulations. - The study, conducted in collaboration with Flexpa and the Health Management Academy, found that 60% of health systems report duplicative or incomplete data retrieved
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Innovaccer Joins the CARIN Alliance to Advance Interoperability

by Fred Pennic 06/24/2022 Leave a Comment

Innovaccer Joins the CARIN Alliance to Advance Interoperability

What You Should Know: - Today, Innovaccer Inc., the Health Cloud company, announced that it has joined the CARIN Alliance (CARIN), a multisector collaborative working to rapidly advance the consumer-directed exchange of health information to improve the interoperability of healthcare data. - Innovaccer will participate as a member of the multisector alliance to advance healthcare data sharing, enabling consumers, patients, and caregivers easier access to health
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What’s The Role of Digital Health in Public Health?

by Irv Lichtenwald , CEO of Medsphere Systems Corporation 04/29/2022 Leave a Comment

What is the Role of Digital Health in Public Health?

To a certain extent, the national conversation about the importance of a robust public health system has been happening for the last couple of years in the context of dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. And yet, rather than discussing how the system can be strengthened and expanded, we’ve instead largely limited it to what the government can and cannot ask the public to do, as though the necessity of a public health system is still in doubt. For those who work in the arena, this is not an
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Health Gorilla Raises $50M to Expand FHIR-Native Health Interoperability Platform

by Jasmine Pennic 03/07/2022 Leave a Comment

Health Gorilla Raises $50M to Expand FHIR-Native Health Interoperability Platform

What You Should Know: - Health Gorilla raises $50 million in Series C funding to securely enable the exchange of actionable and aggregated clinical data. - The new investment will accelerate Health Gorilla's mission to connect everyone, everywhere, with actionable health data. Health Gorilla, a Sunnyvale, CA-based health interoperability platform, today announced it has raised $50M in Series C funding led by SignalFire with participation from Epsilon Health Investors, IA Capital, and
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Information Blocking Rule: 6 Key Takeaways Since Meaningful Use

by Leigh Burchell, Vice President of Policy & Government Affairs, Allscripts 11/22/2021 Leave a Comment

Information Blocking Rule: 6 Key Takeaways Since Meaningful Use

Information exchange and data availability are now a cost of doing business but establishing a robust strategy for that exchange and compliance with the new regulation from the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology takes careful planning. Healthcare organizations can achieve and maintain compliance by following these six takeaways: 1. Understand what constitutes “Electronic Health Information” “Electronic Health Information,” ONC’s new term for the data
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Escalating Cyberattacks on Healthcare Organizations Highlight Need for Security Interventions

by Michelle Drolet, CEO of Towerwall 02/15/2021 Leave a Comment

Escalating Cyberattacks on Healthcare Organizations Highlight Need for Security Interventions

Healthcare organizations have faced continual stress from heavy COVID-19 caseloads in 2020. Cyberattacks on their information networks also loomed as a serious threat, and the pressure to protect data is expected to grow this year, as more criminals target healthcare providers. Protecting patient data from unauthorized access has long been a regulatory prerequisite for healthcare organizations. But increasingly, cybercriminals see profit potential in attacking and crippling their networks,
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Despite COVID-19: Providers Should Not Lose Sight of MIPS Compliance

by Courtney Tesvich VP, Regulatory at Nextech 12/11/2020 Leave a Comment

Despite COVID-19: Providers Should Not Lose Sight of MIPS Compliance

When 2020 began, no one anticipated that complying with the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS)—the flagship payment model of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Quality Payment Program (QPP)—would look so different halfway through the year. Like many other things, the COVID-19 crisis has delayed, diverted, or derailed many organizations’ reporting efforts and capabilities. Lower procedure volumes, new remote work scenarios, and shifting priorities have taken attention
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5 Steps for Interoperability Excellence for Healthcare Providers

by Shanti Wilson, Consultant, Freed Associates 12/07/2020 Leave a Comment

5 Steps for Interoperability Excellence for Healthcare Providers

As if 2020 couldn’t be any more challenging for healthcare providers, new federal rules on interoperability and patient access, granting patients direct access to their healthcare data, begin taking effect in 2021 and will continue into 2022. These rules, while ultimately beneficial to patients, bring an additional level of operational complexity to many revenue-stressed healthcare organizations. If anything, the 2020 pandemic has illustrated the vast potential of interoperability. For
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