Today, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released the final 2020-2025 Federal Health IT Strategic Plan (the Plan). The Plan demonstrates the federal government’s ongoing, coordinated focus on improving the access, exchange, and use of electronic health information.

In January 2020 a draft strategic plan was released for public comment, and the need to connect healthcare with health data has never been more important given all the challenges we have faced with the COVID-19 pandemic. ONC and our federal partners shaped the final version of the Plan in consideration of the important role health IT and the access, exchange, and use of electronic health information can play in keeping patients connected to care and in responding to public health emergencies.

The Plan was developed with input from more than 25 federal agencies and was informed by nearly 100 public comments. On behalf of all of the federal agencies involved in the development of the Plan, we thank the individuals and organizations who contributed their thoughts. With your feedback, we created a plan that will promote modern health IT for all stakeholders and help to address barriers to the access, exchange, and use of electronic health information.

Strategic Plan Framework

The Plan includes four overarching goals, each of which includes specific objectives and strategies.

Federal Organizations’ Use of the Plan

The 2020-2025 Plan will help guide federal health IT initiatives and activities and serve as a catalyst for activities in the private sector. Specifically, the plan will help to:

• Prioritize resources within an agency
• Align and coordinate efforts between agencies
• Signal priorities to the private sector
• Benchmark and assess progress toward a more interoperable, connected health system

And, the work is just beginning! ONC—in collaboration with federal partners—will begin implementing the Federal Health IT Strategic Plan and will communicate progress through the Annual Update on the Adoption of a Nationwide System for the Electronic Use and Exchange of Health Information.

Thank you for staying engaged in our work to advance the use of health IT and interoperability. We look forward to implementing the Plan and working with you toward achieving the four goals.

Read the Plan now.