The HHS Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC) https://www.healthit.gov issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to support secure access to the exchange and use of Electronic Health Information (EHI).
Currently, it is difficult for patients to always access their EHI, time consuming, and expensive for providers. ONC’s new proposal would require health IT developers to provide an easier way to electronically export EHI produced and electronically managed in a computable format
The proposed rule is designed to increase innovation and competition by giving patients and their healthcare providers secure access to health information and to tools to allow for more choice in care and treatment.
The NPRM calls on the healthcare industry to adopt standardized Application Programming Interfaces (API), so individuals could easily and securely access structured EHI by using apps for smartphones and other mobile devices.
The propose rule would:
- Implement provisions of the 21st Century Cures Act to deter and penalize information blocking by outlining seven proposed exceptions in definition under the law
- Help patients have electronic access to their health information at no cost
- Include a Request for Information on the implications of including price information within the scope of EHIs and provide information to help the public see the price that they are paying for healthcare
The proposed rule is posted on HealthIT.gov for review and will be published in the Federal Register. ONC encourages stakeholders to provide their comments through the Federal Register online submission process, one the information has been published.