ONC: More hospitals able to exchange patient data with outside providers 

Four in 10 acute care hospitals could electronically send, receive, find and integrate patient health information from outside providers or sources in 2017, up from three in 10 in 2016, according to a report released this week by the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology. “Engaging in all four domains of interoperability is critical to ensure that clinicians have the information they need at the point of the care,” the report notes. Patients at more than 90 percent of hospitals could access their health information online. Among the barriers to health information exchange, nearly six in 10 hospitals reported challenges exchanging patient health information across different vendor platforms, up from five in 10 in 2016. The findings are from the Information Technology Supplement to the AHA Annual Survey. Chantal Worzala, AHA vice president for health IT and policy, discussed HIE progress, drivers and barriers at an ONC Annual Meeting session today in Washington.