With federal approval of its statewide health information exchange secured, Wisconsin officials say organizations will begin implementing the plan in early 2011.
Under the plan, the Wisconsin Statewide Health Information Network (WISHIN) will serve as the network's governing organization, and the Wisconsin Health Information Exchange (WHIE) will act as the network's technical manager and provide early stage technical assistance to healthcare providers and hospitals that want to participate.
According to officials, Wisconsin providers are expected to receive between $500 million and $800 million in federal incentive payments to help healthcare providers with the cost of implementing or upgrading electronic health records systems.
"We can now make the statewide exchange of medical information a reality, helping our healthcare providers access the right information at the right time and provide the very best care for their patients," said Karen Timberlake, Department of Health Services secretary. "This is another critical part of Wisconsin's efforts to make constant improvements in healthcare quality for all state residents."
The HIE will allow more healthcare providers to receive electronic clinical care summaries or lab results form other providers for a patient that is not associated with the same clinic or health system. Research has shown that these steps reduce medical errors, improve care outcomes and save time for clinicians and patients.
"We are very pleased to be moving forward in the development of this health information exchange," said Wisconsin Medical Society CEO Susan L. Turney, MD, WISHIN board of directors chair. "In Wisconsin, we have worked hard to be recognized consistently as a national leader in healthcare quality. Creating this statewide information exchange is another positive step we believe can advance the high quality care we are able to provide for patients across Wisconsin."
Wisconsin is receiving a total of $9.4 million for the development and implementation of its health information exchange plan as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA).
