Two major health information exchange (HIE) networks in the state of Kansas, the Kansas Health Information Network (KHIN) and Lewis And Clark Information Exchange (LACIE), have finalized an agreement to connect.
The agreement between the HIEs comes before an end-of-the-year deadline required by their licenses to operate in the state. $1 million in federal funding was at stake for the HIEs.
"We were able to agree on a definition of treatment that significantly limited the use of KHIN’s data by LACIE or LACIE members," Laura McCrary, chief executive of KHIN, said in a statement.
According to a report from Kansas.com, McCrary said she hopes the two networks will be ready to connect the week after Thanksgiving.
In addition to the $1 million, there is $350,000 earmarked for the networks once they connect to another state's system and complete three public health connections: electronic lab reporting, syndromic surveillance, and immunizations. This is from the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), which regulates health information in the state.
In the past, the two organizations had failed to reach an agreement on sharing data. KHIN covers most of the state, while LACIE serves providers in the Kansas City area. KHIN has connected with HIEs in Delaware, Missouri and Nebraska.
