ONC Launches New HITAC Adopted Standards Task Force

By Josianne Charles, Liz Turi, Scott Bohon, and Mike Berry, ONC
Twitter: @ONC_HealthIT

Recently the ONC launched the Health Information Technology Advisory Committee (HITAC) Adopted Standards Task Force to review and make recommendations on the existing set of ONC-adopted standards and implementation specifications. This HITAC Task Force fulfills the following 21st Century Cures Act requirement:

“Beginning 5 years after the date of enactment [December 13, 2016] of the 21st Century Cures Act and every 3 years thereafter, the National Coordinator shall convene stakeholders to review the existing set of adopted standards and implementation specifications and make recommendations with respect to whether to-

(A) maintain the use of such standards and implementation specifications; or

(B) phase out such standards and implementation specifications.”

Members of the Adopted Standards Task Force will include both current HITAC members and industry experts, and Task Force meetings will be open to the public. The final report from the Task Force and recommendations from the HITAC are expected in the fall and are expected to inform ONC’s future work. This new process will ensure a transparent and repeatable approach for reviewing adopted standards and implementation specifications that support the advancement of interoperable electronic health information.

We encourage all interested stakeholders to follow the Task Force meetings. Stakeholders can also provide written or verbal comments during Task Force meetings.

This article was originally published on the Health IT Buzz and is syndicated here with permission.