Health information exchange (HIE)

The push for health information exchange (HIE) began back in the Bush administration, with the long-term vision of a National Health Information Network (NHIN). While the NHIN remains a long way off, local and regional exchanges are developing in many areas of the country.[1] (mambots/editors/jce/jscripts/tiny_mce/blank.htm#_edn1). The eHealth Initiative, in its 2010 survey, found 234 active HIE initiatives across the country. Seventy-three of these HIEs were actively exchanging data. Furthermore, there are now 56 state-designated entities that are working, often in coordination with state health officials, to guide HIE development in their state. What will the availability of HIE mean for your practice? As HIEs are developing across the country, they face a number of decision points that will make a difference for what information you can obtain through the HIE. Here are some of the most critical: