Will ONC’s Final Rule put HIEs between a “Block and a Hard Place”?

Will ONC’s Final Rule put HIEs between a “Block and a Hard Place”?

by | May 18, 2020 | ,

Under the ONC’s Final Rule on Information Blocking, Health Care Providers, HIEs and HINs will be legally prohibited from interfering with the access, exchange, or use of EHI unless an exception applies. However, HIEs/HINs that are HIPAA Business Associates are not allowed to use or further disclose PHI other than as permitted or required by their HIPAA BAAs with respective health care providers. So, what happens if a Health Care Provider and its HIPAA Business Associate HIE/HIN disagree on whether an exception allows EHI to be withheld from access, exchange or use under a certain set of specific facts?

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ACO Rule Keeps HIE Consent “On the Fence”

by | Feb 8, 2012 | , ,

When DHHS published its Proposed ACO Rule in April 2011 and then the Final ACO Rule in November 2011 (I’ll refer to them as the “ACO Rules”), discussions focused predominately on issues such as who is “qualified” to participate, what the required governance structure should be, what methodology will be used to assign Medicare beneficiaries, and what the payment models will be.  However, as I digested the ACO Rules, my reading deliberately slowed down as I zeroed in on the not unremarkable language and comments CMS included with regard to sharing individually identifiable health information in the ACO context.

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Sequestration of Sensitive Data with HIE: A New Jersey Pilot

Sequestration of Sensitive Data with HIE: A New Jersey Pilot

by | Apr 30, 2011 | ,

One NJ HIE pilot is testing “plug in” software that scans data residing in the HIE repository and “tags” it where certain terms are found which correspond to rules developed around state and federal laws restricting access to such information unless certain pre-conditions have been met, such as the patient giving prior written consent. Once identified, the tagged data element, or document if it is not a discrete data segment, is removed from viewing, but leaving a “flag” noting that certain information is incomplete and that additional requirements need to be met before it can be accessed i.e., the patient’s affirmative consent has been obtained.

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