New Federal Rule Aims to Improve Interoperability and Data Exchange

A proposed federal rule is intended to advance interoperability and improve information sharing among patients, providers, payers, and public health authorities.

The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC), on July 10 released the rule. The Biden-Harris Administration has been working to expand interoperability and improve transparency when it comes to electronic health information,” says HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra in a statement accompanying the release of the proposed rule. “Now we are building on that work to ensure that the entire system that supports patients and providers utilizes the best technology available in a safe and responsible way.”

According to ONC, key proposals in the rule include:

• Two sets of new certification criteria that are designed to enable health IT for public health and payers to be certified under the ONC Health IT Certification Program. Certification criteria focus on standards-based application programming interfaces to improve end-to-end interoperability among data exchange partners.
• Technology and standards updates that build on the HTI-1 final rule, published in January. They range from the capability to exchange clinical images to the addition of multi-factor authentication support.
• Adjustments to certain exceptions to the information blocking regulations to address additional practices that have been identified by the regulated community.
• Requiring adoption of US Core Data for Interoperability (USCDI) version 4 by January 1, 2028.

AHIMA has been following the proposal and posted an FAQ to its website to help health information professionals understand the rule and its impact.

“HTI-2 continues ONC’s previously outlined vision of pushing interoperability further and bringing data exchange to areas beyond just the electronic health record,” says AHIMA Senior Director of Regulatory & International Affairs Andrew Tomlinson. “With ONC’s proposed rule including standards for electronic prior authorization that address Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services application programming interface (API)] requirements, healthcare is getting a better picture of how clinical data, administrative, and public health data will flow in the coming years.”

The proposed rule will be published in the Federal Register on August 5 and available for public comment for 60 days before it’s made final.“The HTI-2 proposed rule is a tour de force. We have harnessed all the tools at ONC’s disposal to advance HHS-wide interoperability priorities,” says Micky Tripathi, national coordinator for health information technology. “As always, we look forward to reviewing public comments and engaging with the health IT community in the weeks and months ahead.”

Damon Adams is content production editor for AHIMA.