Private HIEs More Popular Than Public
By Katie Wike, contributing writer
According to the latest data from Black Book Rankings, providers are frequently choosing private HIE vendors over public ones.
A Black Book Rankings report has found providers are turning to private HIE suppliers rather than public ones in an effort to ensure interoperability. EHR Intelligence reports responses from over 4,000 HIE clients and a survey of 1,290 health payers were used to compile the report.
“Although the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT recently released a draft detailing a ten-year nationwide road map for basic health record connectivity by 2017, fewer and more specifically defined interoperability objectives are needed to focus stakeholders to prevent the technology industry from backing further away from HIE initiatives,” said Doug Brown, Managing Partner of the nationwide study, Black Book Research in a press release.
iHealth Beat explains 98 percent of respondents working as accountable care organizations said they believed private, community-based HIEs would help achieve their goals. Sixty percent of multi-provider networks and hospital systems also favored private suppliers.
Cerner Corp. was ranked number one HIE vendor for inpatient/ambulatory health information technology as well as ease of transmittal and exchange; clinical system workflow and productivity; and quality reporting and communications.
“Long before interoperability became an industry hot topic, Cerner understood the importance of helping providers connect information across organizational, geographic and technological boundaries,” said Bob Robke, Cerner vice president for interoperability strategies and solutions, and board treasurer for CommonWell Health Alliance in a press release. “Our continued high marks from clients in the Black Book HIE user survey demonstrate that Cerner has been able to successfully break through organizational silos to connect information that can benefit providers and patients.”
The report predicts that next year, private HIE use will be determined in part by healthcare payers. Commercial payers are investing in private connectivity solutions and snubbing the bureaucracies, fees and complex architecture of government sponsored health information exchanges compounding the sustainability problems of public HIEs.”