Dive Brief:
- HHS's Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC) has put out a call for input on how best to measure progress toward interoperability that supports improved healthcare and smarter spending.
- The call comes as a result of the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA), which named interoperability a national objective and directed HHS to collaborate with health IT stakeholders to establish metrics to determine if and when this objective is met.
- The directive to establish secure and seamless health data sharing also flows from the Federal Health IT Strategic Plan, the Nationwide Interoperability Roadmap, and pledges from private sector market leaders, the ONC notes, and follows a committment announced this year by HHS Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell toward easing interoperability as well as EHR use.
Dive Insight:
Measuring progress and addressing the roadblocks toward interoperability will be critical, as despite all the committments and best intentions, the goal has been elusive and we still don't have it. Some vendors suggest "it’s never going to happen."
The ONC's latest request seeks health IT experts' thoughts on how to measure interoperability and keep HHS on pace in meeting the objectives established in the Roadmap and the Federal Health IT Strategic plan. The request noted officials are specifically seeking input regarding what populations and elements of information flow to measure; how to use currently available data sources and metrics to follow through on MACRA's directives; and what other data sources and metrics should be used for measuring interoperability more broadly.
The public comment period is open until June 3. For details on the information being sought, view the request for information.