New This Week on HealthIT.gov

In This Issue

Blogging, blogging, blogging, get this doggy rollin'! Lots of tech news on the Buzz Blog this week that might be of interest to you.

CHPL updated

First off, Carol Bean, the director of ONC's Office of Testing and Certification, explained that the Certified Health IT Product List (known as the CHPL) is now up to date with the latest certified EHR products, and for the first time, includes links to test report summaries. So take a look and shop around.

Value set authoring tool launched

Office of Science and Technology Medical Officer Julia Skapik wrote a blog post about a new value set authoring tool unveiled recently by the National Institute of Medicine's Value Set Authoring Center (VSAC). The gist, wrote Dr. Skapik, is "People can now apply for authoring and stewardship credentials and use new features that improve search, perform code validation, and provide added guidance for authors as part of the federal government's ongoing efforts to improve the quality and utility of value sets and data elements."

Blue Button Codeathon

And since "coordinating" is what we do, read about a recent public/private codeathon in – where else – San Francisco, that resulted in a number of very creative apps built around Blue Button. Maya Uppaluru, also from OST, wrote that "Liberating patient data, or making information from data holders such as insurance companies and health care providers easily available to patients, through Blue Button will require strong partnerships between a variety of players." Read the blog post about new apps that can:

Help patients understand why their health care claim was denied.
Help COPD patients recently discharged stay connected and avoid a readmission.
Help people in California surf their health insurance exchange to pick a plan that is right for them.

Regional Extension Centers

The ONC's Regional Extension Centers (RECs), serve as a support and resource center to assist providers in EHR implementation and Health IT needs. RECs "bridge the technology gap" and help providers navigate the EHR adoption process from vendor selection and workflow analysis to implementation and meaningful use.

Find an REC in your area and get more information about how RECs can help YOU!

Designated test EHRs

We also launched a new webpage earlier this week with helpful information about the process to become a designated test EHR. This is connected to the Meaningful Use Stage 2 rules regarding transitions of care. Read all about it!

Interoperability conference

HL7 is sponsoring a policy conference on Dec. 5 and 6 in Washington D.C. that you might find interesting. The theme is "Beyond Borders: Interoperability and the Future of Healthcare."