The namesake sign outside Epic’s headquarters in Verona, Wisconsin.
Source: Yiem via Wikipedia CC
Epic Systems, the healthcare software giant whose technology is used in thousands of hospitals and clinics across the country, said Friday it plans to move all of its customers to a new government-backed medical records exchange by the end of next year. .
Epic is one of the groups helping the federal government create the Trusted Exchange Framework and Common Agreement, or TEFCA, to provide a legal and technical framework for securely sharing patient data.
TEFCA launched in December and Epic he said The company’s goal now is to have the “full Epic community” live on the network by the end of 2025. All customers will have to commit to the transition a year in advance, Epic said.
Sending medical records between different hospitals, clinics and healthcare organizations is notoriously complex. Information is stored in various formats across dozens of different vendors, making it difficult for doctors and other providers to access all relevant data about their patients. Epic hosts records for more than 280 million people in the US, although patients often have records with multiple vendors.
There are also significant barriers to accessing sensitive information due to privacy protections surrounding patient data. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA, is a federal law that requires patient consent or knowledge for third-party access.
Many companies and organizations have been created to try to improve the sharing of health care information, but TEFCA was designed to help bring all the different actors together. Due to Epic’s dramatic reach and 45-year history in the market, the company’s commitment to TEFCA will likely strengthen the credibility of the exchange.
In addition to Epic’s announcement, an interoperability network called Carequality, also said Friday that it is working to align with TEFCA. Carequality includes Epic as a member.
To join Carequality, organizations are audited and must agree to comply with clear “permitted purposes” for sharing patient records. For example, the permitted purpose of “treatment” means that the doctor or hospital requesting the data is providing care to that patient.
Carequality found itself embroiled in controversy earlier this year after Epic said some network participants were requesting records for reasons outside the scope of treatment. Carequality said Friday it is revising its policy to align with TEFCA’s definition of treatment, which could help prevent such conflicts in the future.
“Carequality supports and encourages all appropriate and secure sharing of health information and to that end has been involved in the development of TEFCA and actively supports those participating in TEFCA or seeking to migrate to TEFCA,” Carequality said in a blog post on Friday.
Epic said it applauds Carequality’s decision to align with TEFCA and use the same treatment definition. The company will continue to help customers facilitate exchanges through Carequality as they transition to TEFCA, the statement said.
Epic said Carequality currently connects more than 70% of hospitals, along with more than 50,000 clinics and more than 600,000 care providers.
“TEFCA is the nation’s best opportunity to bring the remaining 30% of US hospitals off the sidelines and strengthen trust between data sharing networks and care organizations,” Epic said.
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