Dive Brief:
- HHS’ Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology released an updated list of standards for health IT interoperability.
- The draft links to active projects listed in ONC’s Interoperability Proving Ground that use specific standards or implementation blueprints, and more clearly pairs standards for observations with ones for observation values.
- This marks the first step in transitioning the Interoperability Standards Advisory (ISA) to an interactive online platform, allowing for more real-time updates and comments, ONC said.
Dive Insight:
The ISA is a key component of ONC’s nationwide interoperability roadmap and supports the interoperability commitments adopted by providers, health IT developers, and other stakeholders earlier this year.
It is divided into four sections:
- Vocabulary, code sets and terminology standards and implementation specifications;
- Content and structure standards and implementation specifications;
- Standards and implementation specifications for services (e.g., elements of infrastructure used to meet interoperability needs); and
- Questions and requests for stakeholder feedback.
The list provides useful information on each standard, including whether it is in draft or final form, its implementation maturity, level of adoption, cost, and whether it is federally required. It also indicates whether a test tool exists to assess health IT’s conformance to the standard or implementation specification for the specific interoperability goal.
“By providing the industry with a single, public list of the standards and implementation specifications that can be consistently used to fulfill specific clinical interoperability needs, we hope to spur more seamless and secure flow of information across the health system,” Steven Posnack, director of standards and technology, and Chris Muir, director of HIT infrastructure and innovation, said in a release.
ONC is seeking comments on the draft through Oct. 24. A final version of 2017 ISA will be published in December.