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
Payer Workgroup Publishes Payer-to-Payer FHIR® API Compliance Readiness Checklist Ahead of CMS Deadline
The Sequoia Project, a non-profit focused on advancing healthcare interoperability, is pleased to publish the “Payer-to-Payer Compliance Readiness Checklist.” This checklist is designed to help payers assess their readiness for compliance with the payer-to-payer components of CMS-0057-F, a critical regulation for improving data sharing and interoperability in healthcare.
Velatura Unveils Consent Manager+ with J&B Medical
Velatura Public Benefit Corporation (Velatura), the country’s premier interoperability platform provider and operator of the largest network of multijurisdictional health information exchanges (HIE) and Trusted Data Sharing Organizations (TDSO), announced the official launch of Consent Manager+™, a groundbreaking AI-driven solution designed to transform how patient consent is captured, managed and honored. The solution debuts with a large-scale implementation at J&B Medical, a recognized leader in healthcare solutions.
South Australia Becomes the First Jurisdiction in the Nation to Activate Sunrise EHR Statewide Across all Public Hospitals and Health Services, Including in the Regions
Altera Digital Health is proud to announce the successful statewide activation of the Sunrise™ electronic health record (EHR) and patient administration system (PAS) across all South Australian public hospitals. South Australia Health (SA Health) and Altera Digital Health are delighted that South Australia is the first state in Australia to activate a statewide EHR and PAS across all hospitals and health services in both metropolitan and rural areas. This milestone marks a major advancement in digital healthcare transformation, providing clinicians with a fully integrated, real-time patient record system that enhances efficiency, improves care coordination and optimizes patient outcomes.
Standards Participation
Participation in DirectTrust Standards is open to application by any interested party within the DirectTrust Standards Interest Categories. Members of DirectTrust should contact Standards@DirectTrust.org to indicate their interest in participation in DirectTrust Standards activities. For non-Members of DirectTrust, interested parties can join DirectTrust Standards via the application linked here.
Advancing Healthcare Information Sharing with Computable Consent
The Sequoia Project published the final Moving Toward Computable Consent: A Landscape Review. Authored by the industry and government experts of the Interoperability Matters Privacy and Consent Workgroup, the whitepaper incorporates stakeholder feedback received during the public feedback period for the previous draft, published January 2025.
NAHAM and THSA Unite to Standardize Newborn Naming Recommended by AHIMA
In a major milestone for infant patient safety and health information exchange, the National Association of Healthcare Access Management (NAHAM) and the Texas Health Services Authority (THSA) have adopted a standardized newborn naming convention recommended in 2023 by the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA).
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.
Civitas Networks for Health Announces Jolie Ritzo as Interim CEO
Civitas Networks for Health is pleased to share that Jolie Ritzo, MPH, has been appointed Interim CEO, effective April 11, 2025. Jolie has been with Civitas since its founding and most recently served as their Vice President of Strategy and Network Engagement. With more than 15 years of experience advancing health data exchange, multi-stakeholder collaboration, and public health improvement, she brings the strategic vision and steady leadership needed during this important transition.
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.
State HIE News
L.A. Care Using FHIR to Send Claims, Encounter, and Clinical Data to LANES QHIO
L.A. Care Health Plan, the nation’s largest publicly operated health plan, has become the first managed care plan in California to use FHIR to connect with its Qualified Health Information Organization (QHIO) under the state’s Data Exchange Framework (DxF). By partnering with LANES, the Los Angeles Network for Enhanced Services, L.A. Care is setting a new standard for interoperability and real-time data sharing.
UHIN Joins Utah Coalition to Improve CKD Detection & Care
The Utah Health Information Network (UHIN) is collaborating with Comagine Health, the Utah Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), and the One Utah Health Collaborative to relaunch the Utah Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) Coalition. The coalition is focused on improving early detection and management of CKD across the state, using data to inform and support its strategies.
Hires and Openings
Health Gorilla Appoints Veteran Healthcare Leadership to Accelerate Next Phase of Growth
Health Gorilla, the nation’s most complete healthcare data network, announced that it has appointed a distinguished group of healthcare industry veterans to its executive leadership team. The company’s newly appointed executive leadership team includes: Bob Watson, Executive Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer; Patrick Lane, President and Chief Operating Officer; Steven Lane, MD, Chief Medical Officer; Chuck Boyle, Chief Financial Officer; Tom Visotsky, Chief Revenue Officer; George Michelson, Executive Vice President of Technology; Derek Plansky, Senior Vice President of Strategic Governance.
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:
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 have openings for the following:
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 passionate about improving health care for Vermonters. They are a mission-driven nonprofit that connects health care data across the state. VITL is where the health care and technology sectors meet. Their network facilitates the secure exchange of real-time information and makes it possible for providers to get the information they need to provide excellent health care for Vermonters. They have the following openings:
- HL7 Interoperability Engineer
- Product & Engagement Manager
- Operations Client Support Lead
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.
Upcoming Events
2025 DirectTrust Annual Conference
When: August 4-7, 2025
Where: St. Louis Hilton at the Ballpark, St. Louis MO
Event Page
Register for this event. Early Bird Registration is open through May 16.
The Intersection of Interoperability, Identity, and Cybersecurity – Last year’s conference brought healthcare stakeholders together from across the country to discuss “The Future of Trust in Health.” Throughout the event, three themes consistently came up: interoperability, identity, and cybersecurity.
Each of these areas is incredibly important to the health technology ecosystem, with a great deal of complexity, science, and art within each. However, these topics also have a common intersection, one that DirectTrust cares very deeply about: trust. DirectTrust truly lives and thrives at the intersection of these three areas. That is why this year’s annual conference theme is “The Intersection of Interoperability, Identity, and Cybersecurity,” providing opportunity to explore these topics individually as well as how they interrelate.
Civitas 2025 Annual Conference
When: September 28-30, 2025
Where: Anaheim, CA
Event Page
Register for this event
Event hashtag: #Civitas2025
Bridging Data and Doing – Civitas’ Annual Conference brings together hundreds of passionate industry leaders, decision-makers, implementers, and innovators to discuss interoperability, data-driven quality improvement, social determinants of health, public health, multi-stakeholder and community-led governance, and health outcomes. Civitas’ members serve as the bridge between “data” and “doing” in health and health care. Attendees choose the conference to foster deep connections, strengthen and build new partnerships, and leave with tangible ways to evolve their national, state, regional, and local initiatives.
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.