Fact Sheet: Commitments from health care industry to make electronic health records work better for patients and providers
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia M. Burwell announced today that companies that provide 90 percent of electronic health records used by hospitals nationwide as well as the top five largest private healthcare systems in the country have agreed to implement three core commitments:
Consumer Access: To help consumers easily and securely access their electronic health information, direct it to any desired location, learn how their information can be shared and used, and be assured that this information will be effectively and safely used to benefit their health and that of their community.
No Information Blocking: To help providers share individuals’ health information for care with other providers and their patients whenever permitted by law, and not block electronic health information (defined as knowingly and unreasonably interfering with information sharing).
Standards: Implement federally recognized, national interoperability standards, policies, guidance, and practices for electronic health information and adopt best practices including those related to privacy and security.
The organizations that have made commitments today represent hospitals, integrated healthcare organizations, medical groups and physician offices, academic facilities, long-term and behavioral healthcare settings, professional and advocacy organizations, and patients throughout the country, and include:
- Vendors who provide 90 percent of hospital electronic health records used nationwide;
- The top five largest private health systems in the nation and, in total, healthcare systems providing patient care in 46 states;
- More than a dozen leading healthcare provider, hospital, technology, and consumer advocacy groups.
These market leaders provided individual statements outlining how they are or will implement these shared principles in the months ahead, available at www.healthit.gov/commitment.
The full list of committed organizations is below.
Health IT Developers: The health IT developers below provide 90 percent of hospital electronic health records used nationwide. One of the products is used by 95 percent of all pharmacies.
These organizations develop electronic health records, information exchange software and other
products that are used by a wide range of hospitals and providers and touch the lives of millions of healthcare consumers each year.1
- Aprima
- Athenahealth
- Allscripts
- Cerner
- CPSI
- CureMD
- Epic
- GE Healthcare
- Intel
- McKesson
- MedHost
- Meditech
- NextGen
- Phillips
- SureScripts
- Optum
- Greenway Health
Healthcare Systems: Among the providers below are the five largest private healthcare systems in the nation. In total, the health systems below operate in 46 states.2
- Ascension Health
- Carolinas Healthcare
- Catholic Health Initiatives
- Community Health Systems
- Dignity Health
- Geisinger Health System
- Hospital Corporation of America (HCA)
- John Hopkins Medical
- Intermountain Healthcare
- Kaiser Permanente
- LifePoint Health
- Mountain States Health Alliance
- Partners Healthcare
- Tenet Healthcare
- Trinity Health
- University of Utah Health Care
Leading provider, technology, and consumer organizations: The organizations below represent a wide range of professional associations and stakeholder groups that support providers, hospitals, and consumers and provide a range of education, technical assistance and best practices to their members. Their pledges demonstrate the shared commitments among the diverse stakeholders they represent, including providers, consumers, and the technology industry.
- American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP). AAFP and its chapters represent 120,900 family physicians, residents, and medical students.
- American College of Physicians (ACP). ACP is a national organization representing approximately 143,000 internists-physician specialists.
- American Medical Association (AMA). AMA represents approximately 225,000 members, comprising physicians, residents, and medical students.
- American Medical Informatics Association (AMIA). AMIA is an organization of more than 5,000 healthcare professionals, informatics researchers, and thought-leaders in biomedicine, healthcare, and science.
- American Hospital Association (AHA). AHA is a national organization that represents and serves all types of hospitals, healthcare networks, and their patients and communities, including nearly 5,000 hospitals, healthcare systems, networks, other providers of care, and 43,000 individuals members.
- American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA). AHIMA is a national, non-profit association representing 103,000 health information management professionals with component state associations in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
- American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO). ASCO is a leading professional organization representing more than 40,000 physicians worldwide who care for people with cancer.
- Center for Medical Interoperability. The Center is an organization led by large health systems to change how medical technologies work together. The Center leverages market presence and the expertise of their members to compel change and improve the safety, quality, and affordability of healthcare.
- College of Healthcare Informatics Management Executives (CHIME). CHIME is an executive organization with more than 1,800 Chief Information Officer (CIO) members and 150 healthcare IT vendors and professional services firms.
- CommonWell. CommonWell is a not-for-profit trade association comprising nearly 40 health IT developers and organizations with a focus on the development and promotion of interoperability for its members.
- Health Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS). HIMSS North America represents 61,000 individual members, 640 corporate members, and over 450 non-profit organizations.
- Healthcare Leadership Council (HLC). HLC is a coalition of chief executives from all disciplines in American healthcare. Members of HLC lead hospitals, health plans, pharmaceutical companies, medical device manufactures, biotech firms, health product distributors, pharmacies, and academic health centers.
- Premier healthcare alliance. Premier is a healthcare performance improvement alliance of approximately 3,600 U.S. hospitals and 120,000 other providers nationwide.
- Sequoia Project. The Sequoia Project, previously Healtheway, advances the implementation of secure, interoperable nationwide health exchanges and supports key interoperability initiatives such as Carequality.
- National Partnership for Women and Families. The Partnership is a national organization that advances policy to help women and families and advances access to quality affordable healthcare.
- National Rural Health Association (NRHA). NRHA is a national non-profit membership organization with more than 20,000 members that provides leadership on rural health issues through advocacy, communications, education and research.
To view the individual pledges, or to make the pledge to the commitments on behalf of your organization, visit www.healthit.gov/commitment.
1 Hospital EHR market share percentages are based off of Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC) staff analysis of products reported through participation in the EHR Incentive Program. http://dashboard.healthit.gov/datadashboard/documentation/ehr-products-mu-attestation-data-documentation.php.
2 Size of healthcare systems is based off of ONC staff analysis of HIMSS Analytics and healthcare system websites.