(WASHINGTON, DC) – The Department of Health Care Finance (DHCF) announced that it has awarded contracts to Accenture, LLP and Orion Health, Inc., to facilitate the development of two separate information technology (IT) systems that will ultimately improve access, quality and reduce the cost of health care for District residents.
“We are pleased to have reached this point. We selected two excellent vendors to work with us to complete crucial steps towards the creation of the District’s Health Benefit Exchange IT system and the establishment of the DC Health Information Exchange Network which is a secure, scalable, cost-effective, standards based mechanism to send health information to health care providers over the intranet.” said DHCF Director Wayne Turnage. “Accenture, LLP will work with us to design the IT framework that will be developed to permit DC residents to compare and purchase qualified health insurance plans in a consumer friendly environment. DHCF and partner agencies have been working diligently to ensure that we have the District’s Health Benefit Exchange fully operational by 2014.The second project, Orion Health’s secure messaging solution known as the Direct Project, will be implemented for the District’s Health Information Exchange (HIE).”
Accenture, LLP was awarded $800,000 in federal funds to create the blueprint for the District’s Health Benefit Exchange IT system. Accenture will work closely with District agencies to meet the requirements for the District’s new health care and human services system. DHCF and partner agencies have been working under the umbrella of the Mayor’s Health Reform Implementation Committee to pave the way for the creation of the District’s Health Benefit Exchange which must be operational by 2014 as mandated by the federal government under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA).
Orion Health, Inc. was awarded $500,000 in federal funds for the establishment of Phase1of the District’s Health Information Exchange (HIE) network. Orion will establish a secure, simple, cost-effective mechanism to send patient health information via email to health care providers, clinics and hospitals. Orion Health’s secure messaging solution known as the “Direct Project” will be implemented for the DC HIE without extensive onsite development and integration. Direct will support the integration of data from existing health information systems to include hospital electronic medical records (EMR’s), practice and clinic EMR’s, laboratories, public health (e.g., immunization and reportable diseases), and provide a unified view of region-wide health data at the patient level. Orion’s secure messaging solution will allow DHCF to move seamlessly to meet the requirements of future phases of the HIE implementation process.
DHCF is committed to implementing health care reform and leveraging opportunities in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to improve access to health care and other services for District residents, including the creation of a new health benefits exchange IT system and the secure sharing of patient’s health care information across regional and national networks.
The Department of Health Care Finance is the District’s Medicaid agency.