“The Biden administration could require enhanced patient data sharing, update EHR requirements, and increase API access to improve public health sharing and give experts the tools to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, according to Ben Moscovitch, project director of Health Information Technology at Pew Charitable Trusts.”
“The Biden administration plans to work with Congress to respond to the coronavirus, but unless these issues are resolved, challenges with sharing data could continue to hamper efforts to track the virus’s spread and who has been vaccinated,” Moscovitch wrote in a recent Health Affairs blog post.”
“ENHANCE PATIENT DATA SHARING
The need for faster and more reliable patient data access is key to slowing down the coronavirus pandemic. Gathering critical demographic data to effectively initiate contact tracing would aid public health organizations during the pandemic….”
““The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has the power to enforce the Cures Act, but so far has only proposed how it will penalize EHR vendors,” Moscovitch added. “HHS leaders can and should use their authority to enforce information sharing by clinicians and testing labs—an approach that can quickly be put in place through additional guidance or an interim final rule.”
Moscovitch recommended HHS ensure providers include patient data on all COVID-19 testing orders for the duration of COVID-19 by penalizing providers that do not follow the rules…” Read the full article here.
Source: 3 Ways the Biden Admin, HHS Could Boost Patient Data Sharing – By Christopher Jason, March 2, 2021. EHR Intelligence.
