9/12/19
Updated: Sep 12, 2019
Only What Matters on Health Information Policy
September 12, 2019
1. Today is a day to remember 9/11 victims, including survivors, who are not necessarily doing well 18 years later.
2. ONC chose Sequoia Project as its “Recognized Coordinating Entity” to implement and oversee TEFCA – creating a baseline technical and legal set of requirements for different health IT systems, among other tasks – awarding it $900,000 for the first year of this work.
3. Hospital mergers help improve IT infrastructure, according to a recent AHA study, which is one of the goals of the recently approved CVS-Aetna merger – given its push for a more “tech-enabled healthcare experience.”
One Thoughtful Paragraph
Social determinants of health ("SDOH") (factors like housing, social services, geographical location, and education) can be the cause of poor health outcomes and health disparities. Tackling issues related to SDOH requires research, which requires good data, which is often difficult to obtain. Luckily, everyone is working the problem. The Gravity Project is standardizing SDOH-related medical codes and Kaiser Permanente’s “Thrive Local” and CVS-Aetna’s Destination: Health (both are “Unite Us” software platforms) will connect health care and social service providers. Solera Health calls itself the “Match.com of healthcare” and is piloting a new program with Blue Cross Blue Shield Institute to coordinate regional patient resources, and seven data-driven healthcare companies are presenting their SDOH-related technologies at Health 2.0 on September 17. There is even discussion about how AI may help make sense of SDOH data. Of course, we always have Medicare to thank for driving the financial incentive component, and when we get this sensitive data, eHI shows us how to use it in an ethical manner.