Grant Supports Indiana Health Information Exchange

An $8.4 million American Recovery and Reinvestment Act award from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) is enhancing the infrastructure of the Indiana Network for Patient Care (INPC), the nation's largest health information exchange.

The grant will also support a comparative effectiveness research study using data from the INPC to compare the benefits and harms of three drugs commonly used to treat Alzheimer’s disease. Both the infrastructure expansion, already underway, and the research study, Comparative Effectiveness Research Trial of Alzheimer’s Disease Drugs (COMET-AD), which officially commences enrollment this month, will serve as national models.

The INPC enhancement will provide unique insights to regional health information exchanges and a potential national network. Results of the COMET-AD study will offer critical guidance to clinicians, patients and caretakers nationwide.

The grant is one of only ten Prospective Outcome Systems Using Patient-specific Electronic Data to Compare Tests and Therapies (PROSPECT) awards and advances the highly regarded strengths of the Regenstrief Institute in medical informatics and aging research and the clinical pharmacology expertise of the Indiana University School of Medicine.