On Tuesday, September 17 and Wednesday, September 18, several of our federal partners will be participating in the Health IT Week Interoperability Showcase  on Capitol Hill. Federal Health Architecture (FHA) member  agencies will highlight their work toward the development and use of interoperable electronic health information exchange.

Electronic health advances on display

Many agencies will feature their innovations in the health IT and electronic health information field. Some of the highlights include:

• The Social Security Administration will feature its work on the MEGAHIT program that utilizes electronic health information to speed disability determinations.
• The Virtual Lifetime Electronic Record (VLER) program office will highlight the Veterans Administration’s work developing a standardized electronic health record for our service members and veterans.
• The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will showcase their Electronic Submission of Medical Data (esMD) program, a tool that improves the process for resolving improper Medicare and Medicaid payments.

Learn more about electronic health at the Interoperability Showcase

The Interoperability Showcase is taking place on Capitol Hill to provide easy access and visibility to important electronic health programs for lawmakers.  I’m proud that we’ll be able to highlight the work of our federal partners as well as private organizations that are working to create what I like to call an interoperable health IT “ecosystem.”

ONC’s Continued Focus on Interoperability

I’m delighted that our federal partners are able to participate in this event and share the important work they’re doing.  I only wish the space were large enough to accommodate demonstrations of all the initiatives that are being coordinated by ONC to support interoperability.  Meaningful Use Stage 2 is providing an excellent foundation for the continued adoption of health IT and increasing use of electronic health information exchange. Meanwhile, the Standards & Interoperability Framework  has been in operation for over 2 years, and the standards development work we’ve accomplished is significant.  I urge readers to visit the S&I Framework wiki  to learn more about the numerous initiatives currently operating that support interoperability standards development and harmonization. We’ve recently launched some new initiatives, including the Data Access Framework, Structured Data Capture, and EU/US Cooperation.  These initiatives will enable standardization of clinical queries, the way in which healthcare data is captured in EHRs, and the development of international standards related to vocabularies, content and transport.

If you’re in DC for Health IT Week, I encourage you to visit the Showcase and learn about these exciting initiatives.  For more information about the Federal Health Architecture, click here.