Contracts

National Health Information Network Prototypes

To develop and evaluate prototypes for a nationwide health information network architecture that maximize the use of existing resources such as the Internet to achieve widespread interoperability among software applications, particularly electronic health records. These contracts are also intended to spur technical innovation for nationwide electronic sharing of health information in patient care and public health settings.

Best Practices for State-level Regional Health Information Organizations (RHIOs)

To gather information from existing state level RHIOs to determine successful governance, legal, financial and operational characteristics, to develop consensus for best practices for RHIOs, and to disseminate these findings.

Anti-fraud for Electronic Health Records (EHRs)

To explore and describe how the use of health information technology can enhance and expand health care anti-fraud activities.

Standards Harmonization Process for Health Information Technology

To develop and test a process for identifying, assessing, endorsing, and maintaining a set of standards required for interoperable health information exchange.

Compliance Certification Process for Health Information Technology

To develop and evaluate a compliance certification process for health IT, including the infrastructure components through which these systems interoperate.

Measuring the Adoption of Electronic Health Records

To develop a methodology to better characterize and measure the state of electronic health records adoption and determine the effectiveness of policies aimed at accelerating adoption of electronic health records and interoperability.

American Health Information Community (AHIC) Program Support Office

To provide assistance to the National Coordinator in convening and managing the activities of AHIC to ensure that the health IT plan is seamlessly coordinated.

October 2005 Workshop on Framing a National Vision for Clinical Decision Support

To conduct a workshop on Clinical Decision Support, arranging the logistics of the actual workshop and the post-workshop deliverables, ensuring smooth financial management of the workshop and post-workshop logistics.

Privacy and Security Solutions for Interoperable Health Information Exchange

To assess and develop plans to address variations in organization-level business policies and state laws that affect privacy and security practices, including those related to HIPAA, which may pose challenges to interoperable health information exchange.

Hurricane Katrina Information Network and Digital Health Information Recovery Project for the State of Louisisana

To plan and promote the widespread use of electronic health records in the Gulf Coast regions affected by recent hurricanes. These agreements are expected to bring together local and national resources, coordinate the planning for a digital health information recovery, and develop a prototype of health information sharing and electronic health record support that can be replicated throughout the region.