The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) is at the forefront of the administration’s health IT efforts and is a resource to the entire health system to support the adoption of health information technology and the promotion of nationwide health information exchange to improve health care. ONC is organizationally located within the Office of the Secretary for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Here is what they are doing and reporting. Follow them @ONC_HealthIT. Sign up for their email updates.
News & Announcements
HHS-OIG: Information Blocking Final Rule
On June 27, 2023 the Department of Health & Human Services, Office of Inspector General, (HHS-OIG) posted its final rule implementing information blocking penalties to its website. The final rule establishes the statutory penalties created by the 21st Century Cures Act. If OIG determines that an individual or entity has committed information blocking, they may be subject up to a $1 million penalty per violation. Enforcement of the information blocking penalties will begin 60 days after publication of the final rule in the Federal Register. Learn more.
GAO Calls for HITAC Nominations
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) is now accepting nominations for Health Information Technology Advisory Committee appointments that will be effective January 1, 2024, serving a three-year term. These terms are subject to renewal, for a total not to exceed six years of service on the committee. Letters of nomination and resumes should be submitted to HITCommittee@gao.gov no later than July 31, 2023. From these nominations, GAO expects to appoint two to three new members, focusing particularly on patients or consumers, health plans or purchasers, and researchers. Read the Federal Register Announcement.
New Dataset: Certified Health Information Technology Reported by Clinicians for Promoting Interoperability Performance
New certified technology use data for clinicians reporting for Promoting Interoperability in 2019, 2020, and 2021 are now available on healthit.gov/data. These represent an update of data published through 2016 of the certified technology reported by eligible professionals for Meaningful Use participation. The data can be linked to the ONC Certified Health IT Product List and other HHS and industry health care datasets. View the data.
National Coordinator Micky Tripathi Joins “Knock Knock, Hi!”
Micky recently joined the Glaucomfleckens on “Knock Knock, Hi!” to talk about how ONC is working to improve interoperability in health care. Plus, keep an eye (or ear) out for Micky’s recounting of his early days in health care as a 17-year-old ‘orderly’ who was tasked with morgue duty at his local community hospital. Watch Micky on “Knock Knock, Hi!”
Progress and Ongoing Challenges to Electronic Public Health Reporting Among Non-Federal Acute Care Hospitals https://t.co/rsmuXrihhx #publichealth pic.twitter.com/P1g8sWSWRM
— ONC (@ONC_HealthIT) June 27, 2023
Events
ONC Health IT Certification Program Developer Roundtable
When: Wednesday, July 12. 2023 1:00 – 2:00 pm ET
Register for this event.
Join the ONC Health IT Certification Program for the upcoming quarterly ONC Health IT Certification Program Developer Roundtable. These public meetings are open to all health IT developers, regardless of their participation in the ONC Health IT Certification Program. During these meetings, ONC leads discussions tailored for the health IT developer community on topics such as Certification Program updates, upcoming certification deadlines, and developer requirements.
Save The Date: Two-day Virtual HL7® FHIR® Security Education Event
ONC and Health Level Seven International (HL7) are planning a two-day virtual HL7 FHIR Security Education Event for healthcare professionals on August 8 and 9, 2023. The event will feature two tracks, one for health IT architects, developers, and engineers, and a second track for a less technical audience of organizational leadership who may be procuring or implementing systems in a healthcare setting.
ONC Tech Forum: Clinical Decision Support Series
Have you registered for their upcoming 2023 Tech Forum events? Join them for their upcoming Tech Forum workshops that provide multiple opportunities to learn about how we can advance health information technology to improve patient care, data exchange, and interoperability.
Registration is now open for the next two Clinical Decision Support (CDS) series webinars happening September 27th & November 8th. Join them to learn about the future of CDS and creating value through CDS.
Save the Date
ONC 2023 Annual Meeting Happening December 14-15 in Washington DC
Resources
21st Century Cures Act Summary
The 21st Century Cures Act, signed December 13, 2016, by President Obama, promotes and funds the acceleration of research into preventing and curing serious illnesses; accelerates drug and medical device development; attempts to address the opioid abuse crisis; and tries to improve mental health service delivery. The Act includes a number of provisions that push for greater interoperability, adoption of electronic health records (EHRs) and support for human services programs.
Certification of Health IT
The ONC Health IT Certification Program (Certification Program) ensures that Certified Health Information Technology meets the technological capability, functionality, and security requirements adopted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
United States Core Data for Interoperability (USCDI)
The United States Core Data for Interoperability (USCDI) is a standardized set of health data classes and constituent data elements for nationwide, interoperable health information exchange. Review the USCDI Fact Sheet to learn more.
TEFCA
The Trusted Exchange Framework and Common Agreement (TEFCA) establishes a universal policy and technical floor for nationwide interoperability; simplifies connectivity for organizations to securely exchange information to improve patient care, enhance the welfare of populations, and generate health care value; and enables individuals to gather their healthcare information. The Common Agreement establishes the infrastructure model and the governing approach for users in different networks to securely share basic clinical information under commonly agreed-to expectations and rules.
Read
From the Health IT Buzz Blog – Learn more about HHS’s Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC). Check out the latest blog posts:
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- The Art and Science of Federal Grants Management
- LEAPing at the Opportunity to Modernize Clinical Registries
- Updated Insights on Hospital Leaders’ Perceptions of Information Blocking
- ONC Publishes USCDI+ Quality Data Element List to Support CMS Digital Quality Measurement Modernization Initiative and Overall Quality Reporting
- TEFCA Awareness Among Hospitals and Variations Regarding Intent to Participate
- ONC’s Operational Service Division: The team of “Yes, we can do that!”
- ONC gears up for HIMSS23
- Increasing the Transparency and Trustworthiness of AI in Health Care
- Information Blocking Regulations Work in Concert with HIPAA Rules and Other Privacy Laws to Support Health Information Privacy
- ONC’s New Proposed Rule: The Next Step to Advancing the Care Continuum Through Technology and Interoperability
ONC Interoperability Pledge
Companies that provide 90 percent of electronic health records used by hospitals nationwide as well as the top five largest health care systems in the country have agreed to implement three core commitments: Consumer Access, No Blocking/Ensuring Transparency, and Standards. The ONC (@ONC_HealthIT) wants vendors to sign a pledge. Is your vendor pledging? Find out who is on the list.