IHIE News

PRESS RELEASE

Contact:
Jenny Siminski
Office: (317) 644-1724 Cell: (317) 213-5466
E-mail: jsiminski@ihie.org

FSSA Announces $1.3 Million Medicaid Transformation Grant

Indiana Health Information Exchange Selected to Implement Service for Evansville Community

EVANSVILLE, Ind.--(January 29, 2008)--The Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA) announced the award of a $1.3 Medicaid Transformation grant. The grant has been awarded to FSSA from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and is financed with 100 percent federal dollars. The Indiana Health Information Exchange (IHIE) has been selected by FSSA as the entity that will drive improvements in the quality, safety and efficiency of healthcare through the health information exchange within the Evansville area.

"We are extremely excited about developing this pilot in the Evansville area," said Medicaid Director, Jeff Wells, M.D. "By improving the speed and accessibility of information to providers about the patients they serve, we are not only able to cultivate an environment that allows for improved quality and safety of care, but are also able to eliminate unnecessary costs resulting from duplicate testing."

The Evansville pilot is one of the first in the United States, which is focused on aligning Medicaid goals with an operating health information exchange effort. Deaconess Health System, St. Mary's Health System, the Vanderburgh County Health Department and Welborn Clinic have all agreed to participate in the project. In the future, the exchange could enable providers to proactively reach out to patients, without requiring costly software packages or new equipment.

"Gathering and supplying patient information in an accurate and efficient manner is an essential element for providing quality health care," said Evansville Mayor, Jonathan Weinzapfel. "We are pleased our City was chosen as a pilot for this innovative program which recognizes the effort that Evansville has already put forth to come up with a plan for a health care information exchange."

The funding for this project will allow clinical information about patients to be available to healthcare providers when and where it is needed, at the point of care, electronically.

"Many patients visit more than one provider at various sites of care over time," said Dr. J. Marc Overhage, President and CEO of the Indiana Health Information Exchange and Director of Medical Informatics at the Regenstrief Institute, Inc.

"In order to make the best decisions with their patients, providers need accurate, complete and up-to-date data."

The Evansville community is the latest addition to the Indiana Health Information Exchange service network, which includes 33 hospitals, 7,200 physicians and 2,445 practices throughout Indiana.

About the Indiana Health Information Exchange
Indiana Health Information Exchange, Inc. (IHIE) is a non-profit corporation formed by the Regenstrief Institute, private hospitals, local and state health departments, BioCrossroads, the state's life sciences initiative, and other prominent organizations in Indiana. IHIE is the nation's most respected health information exchange organizations and one of the nation's only health information exchange organizations providing chronic disease and preventive health services (www.qualityhealthfirst.org). It is dedicated to supporting communities by providing services that enable the right medical information to get to the right provider at the right time to enhance patient care. To learn more, visit www.ihie.org.