The University of California, Irvine (UCI) is one of 10 ONC Public Health Informatics & Technology (PHIT) Workforce Development Program awardees across the nation that are recruiting and training the next generation of diverse public health professionals in informatics and technology skills. With a goal of graduating 300 students/trainees of diverse backgrounds over the next four years, the PHIT Program at UCI aims to modernize the nation’s public health information infrastructure and address the issue of health disparities and inequities.

"I think there’s an opportunity to allowing patients to have greater flexibility managing the release and notification preferences. And I think while some patients may like to receive these results as soon as possible and have time to review and do their own research, there’s also likely a cohort of patients who would rather wait and get this information from their provider, where they’re able to ask questions or get the provider’s thoughts and then go do their research," said Bryan Steitz, instructor in the Department of Biomedical Informatics at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, in the ONC interview.

Combatting the opioid epidemic has long been an HHS priority, and the department provides resources and technical assistance to states, health care providers, and other interested parties to assist in their efforts to address the crisis. ONC helps address the opioid epidemic through its support for the adoption of health IT and promotion of nationwide health information exchange, including through opportunities created by prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs). The significance of this work is evident, as some states and territories have leveraged their PDMPs to help address challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic through the expansion of system capabilities. Nebraska is one such state, which we spotlight below, that has successfully leveraged its PDMP during the pandemic to address complex problems.

A recent study of 8,000 patients that accessed their test results via an online patient portal found that more than 95% wanted to continue to immediately receive test results through their portal. That percentage stayed at 95% when focused on patients with non-normal results.

These findings come amid concerns that the immediate release of test results could lead to patient distress when patients access test results before their physicians could contact them and help to interpret those results.

In April 2021, the ONC’s information-blocking portion of the 21st Century Cures Act went into effect, mandating that healthcare providers make nearly all test results and clinical notes immediately available to patients. Since then, many clinicians have expressed concern about the effects of releasing test results to patients before clinicians offer counsel or interpretation. But a new survey has found that users overwhelmingly supported receiving the results immediately, even if their provider had not yet reviewed them.