Louisiana fast tracks a statewide HIE

The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology has approved the Louisiana Health Care Quality Forum’s (LHCQF) strategic and operational plan for the Louisiana Health Information Exchange (LaHIE), paving the way for the organization to move forward quickly in its efforts to develop a statewide health information network.

The LHCQF, a non-profit entity that is the state’s point organization for initiatives to improve health care quality, received a $10.6 million federal grant through the HITECH Act in March 2010, as well as a grant to run the state’s regional extension center. LHCQF issued a request for proposal in December so, with the ONC’s go-ahead, officials are now free to pursue the original implementation schedule. Jenny Smith, HIE program manager for LHCQF, said that she and other officials have already begun reviewing proposals and will select a vendor and a technical infrastructure by mid-April and begin building the new system in May. The overarching technology model for the LaHIE is decentralized and will leverage existing HIEs, including the Louisiana Rural Health Information Exchange (LaRHIX) and the Louisiana Southwest Health Information Exchange (LaSWIX), Medicaid systems and numerous hospital, provider group and public health IT initiatives.