Direct Project showcases new pilot programs

On Feb. 2, two pilot projects launched promoting electronic health records exchange through the Direct Project.  The two states that are currently listed with these initiatives are Rhode Island and Minnesota, though there are several other states that will undergo a similar initiative to support both public and commercial providers with the secure transmission of records.

For Minneapolis, the pilot project is focused on sending immunization records to the Minnesota Department of Health.  This marks a significant accomplishment for the Direct Project since its creation.

As for Rhode Island, specifically the Rhode Island Quality Institute’s (RIQI) initiative, officials are focused on two goals: the demonstration of simple, direct, provider-to-provider data exchange, and leveraging Direct Project messaging as means to push data from EHR to the statewide HIE.

The one state that has an upcoming pilot – and can significantly outline the importance of an HIE and the results of all the hard work made by Direct Project stakeholders – is Tennessee.  In this state, the CareSpark organization, which supports several of the hospitals near Bristol, will support the exchange between the state HIE and the VA.  The exchange will consist of exchange the referrals and consultation reports amongst VA providers and private physician’s practices in east Tennessee and southwest Virginia.