A new nonprofit organization has been formed to promote the implementation of a secure, interoperable nationwide health information network in the U.S.
The National eHealth Collaborative was officially launched on January 8 and builds upon the accomplishments of the American Health Information Community (AHIC), a federal advisory committee established in 2005 to improve the quality, safety, efficiency, and accessibility of healthcare to the American public. The organization is headquartered in Alexandria, VA.
Members include federal and state agencies, healthcare providers, medical professionals, payers, patient advocates, nonprofit health organizations, and commercial technology providers. Dr. John Tooker, executive vice president and CEO of the American College of Physicians, was elected chairman of the organization's 2009 board of directors.
The primary objective of the National eHealth Collaborative is to accelerate development of health IT systems, infrastructure, standards, protections, participation, and education within the U.S. Members of its board of directors met with President-elect Barack Obama's transition team on January 9 to brief the team on the work accomplished by its predecessor, and to offer assistance and help accelerate progress in developing a national interoperable health IT plan by:
- Promoting consistent standards for confidential individualized health information within a secure national network
- Supporting education and incentives for widespread adoption of electronic health records
- Supporting initiatives to create a secure, interoperable network
- Facilitating the collaboration of a wide variety of institutions and organizations to facilitate exchange of secure, individualized health information
- Partnering with other organizations to develop a governance plan for a nationwide health information network
In its new iteration, the National eHealth Collaborative continues to work in close partnership with the Health Information Technology Standards Panel, the Certification Commission for Health Information Technology, and the Nationwide Health Information Network.
The collaborative is in the process of expanding its membership to include a larger representation of entities from across the healthcare continuum, according to Meryt McGindley, acting communications and membership director. Information can be found at www.nationalehealth.org.
Related Reading
U.S. health information technology falls short - report, January 12, 2009
HIMSS sends IT wish list to Obama administration, December 18, 2008
U.S. economic package to include health tech, December 11, 2008
U.S. doctors making slow shift to digital records, June 19, 2008
AHIC transition underway, August 24, 2007
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