What's Happening in Health IT

In This Issue

• Where’s ONC at HIMSS16
• ONC Launches New Blog Series to Explain the Permitted Uses of Health Information Under HIPAA
• Federal Advisory Committee Schedule Feb. 7 – Feb. 13

Where’s ONC at HIMSS16

ONC is participating in a number of activities during the HIMSS16 Conference, February 29 – March 4 at the Venetian – Palazzo - Sands Expo and Convention Center in Las Vegas.

Please see the following updates to the ONC Sessions at HIMSS16.

March 1 (Tuesday)

5:30 p.m. — 6:30 p.m. (PT): A Special Session with ONC and CMS Karen B. DeSalvo, M.D., M.P.H., M.Sc., National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) and Acting Assistant Secretary for Health
Andy Slavitt, Acting Administrator Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
Location: Rock of Ages Theater

March 2 (Wednesday)

11:30 a.m. — 12:30 p.m. (PT): Listening Session: ONC Nursing InformaticsRebecca Freeman, Ph.D., R.N., P.M.P., Chief Nursing Officer, Office of Clinical Quality and Safety
Description: Join ONC Chief Nursing Officer Rebecca Freeman for a discussion on nursing informatics. Topics may include key industry issues related to data blocking, system and data interoperability, and usability for care team members as well as governance, informatics structures, and cultural barriers to adoption.
Location: ONC Meeting Room 4602

1:00 p.m. — 2:00 p.m. (PT): Safety, Interoperability, and Usability – What’s My Role?Andrew Gettinger, M.D., Chief Medical Information Officer and Acting Director, Office of Clinical Quality and Safety
Rebecca Freeman, Ph.D., R.N., P.M.P., Chief Nursing Officer, Office of Clinical Quality and Safety
Description: Join Dr. Andrew Gettinger and Rebecca Freeman (ONC CMIO and CNO) for a comprehensive discussion of safety, interoperability, and usability in health IT. This session will review key safety issues related to data blocking, system and data interoperability, and usability for care team members. Andy and Rebecca will combine their backgrounds in implementation and policy to review facility- and discipline-specific tasks that can support regulatory efforts to ease the health IT burden on bedside clinicians.
Location: Sands Expo Convention Center, Palazzo B

For more details on ONC events at HIMSS16, visit our website. Also, follow us on Twitter:@ONC_HealthIT and join the discussion using the hashtag #HIMSS16.

ONC Launches New Blog Series to Explain the Permitted Uses of Health Information Under HIPAA

The first blog article is entitled The Real HIPAA Supports Interoperability. The series emphasizes that HIPAA not only protects personal health information from misuse, it also enables personal health information to be accessed, used or disclosed interoperably, when and where it is needed for patient care. A new blog will be posted every Thursday, with the final blog in the series released on February 25, 2016.

The fact sheets and blog posts detail specific common circumstances where health care providers or payers are permitted to share PHI without prior patient authorization, such as an inpatient facility to prospective long-term care facilities, or between unaffiliated hospitals in the same community who treat the same patient.

Download the fact sheets

Permitted Uses and Disclosures: Exchange for Health Care Operation [PDF – 1.3 MB]

Permitted Uses and Disclosures: Exchange for Treatment [PDF – 1.1 MB]

Federal Advisory Committee Schedule Feb. 7 – Feb. 13

Tuesday, February 9th
10:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. The API Task Force holds a meeting. Learn more: http://ow.ly/XBTLX

Friday, February 12th
10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. The Standards: Precision Medicine Task Force holds a meeting. Learn more:http://ow.ly/XBUnt

*All times are in Eastern Time unless otherwise noted