The College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME) is taking on regulations preventing a national patient identifier calling calls the lack of a consistent patient identity matching strategy “the most significant challenge inhibiting the safe and secure electronic exchange of health information. As our healthcare system begins to realize the innately transformational capabilities of health IT, moving toward nationwide health information exchange, this essential core functionality—consistency in patient identity matching—must be addressed.”

An identifier will require an approach facilitating information exchange while protecting patient safety and privacy, the association said. “Robust information exchange and nationwide interoperability can flourish only once we can confidently identify a patient across providers, locations and vendors.”

CHIME's letter tells lawmakers that a standard patient identifier would support the promise of a patient longitudinal care record. “Unfortunately, the development of longitudinal health records—reflecting the patient’s experience across episodes of care, payers, geographic locations and stages of life—remains only an ideal at this time.”

Read the complete letter.