Carequality Interoperability Framework Expands To Allow Federal Participation

VIENNA, Va., Aug. 01, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Carequality, the non-profit trusted exchange framework for nationwide health information exchange, today announced an expansion of the framework to enable participation of federal government agencies. Expanding the Carequality policy agreements to enable federal participation will expand the framework’s value further in promoting exchange across the private and public sectors.

“The Carequality Interoperability Framework is a living, evolving framework for health information exchange across networks, technologies, geographies, and now private sector-government boundaries. The more we can accommodate each and every type of organization and care setting that need access to electronic health information, the closer we get to the vision of true nationwide health data sharing. Federal agencies are a critical part of ensuring this vision,” said Alan Swenson, executive director of Carequality.

The eHealth Exchange, the principal way federal agencies exchange health information electronically, joined Carequality in 2021, and immediately its private-sector participants could use the network to share data with other networks leveraging Carequality. The federal agencies, on the other hand, had specific policy language they needed included in Carequality agreements before they could participate through eHealth Exchange. The policy changes now have been made, and the federal agencies will now be able to opt into eHealth Exchange’s Carequality Bridge.

The policy change was incorporated in the development and release of an updated Carequality Connected Agreement effective August 1, 2022. It is an important milestone to expanding exchange between the private-sector and government agencies.

“The eHealth Exchange seeks to support health information exchange as a public good infrastructure,” said Jay Nakashima, executive director of the eHealth Exchange. “The more ways we enable exchange of patient data when, where, and how it is needed – the better. We already support more than 1 billion transactions monthly, but we’ll always choose to expand that connectivity further to the benefit of our members and the healthcare providers and patients they serve – whether through Carequality, TEFCA, or whatever tomorrow brings. The eHealth Exchange and its members are excited about the new frontiers the industry is moving into.”

About Carequality

Carequality is a national-level, consensus-built, interoperability framework to enable exchange between and among health information networks. Carequality brings together diverse groups, including electronic health record vendors, record locator service providers and other types of existing networks, to determine technical and policy agreements to enable data to flow between and among networks, platforms and geographies.

The Carequality Framework provides the essential elements for trusted national exchange, such as common rules of the road, well-defined technical specifications and a participant directory.

For more information, visit https://carequality.org and follow us at https://twitter.com/carequalitynet.