Privacy and Security Solutions for Interoperable Health Information Exchange / Oklahoma

Thirty-three states and 1 territory formed the HISPC, which aims to address the privacy and security challenges presented by electronic health information exchange through multi-state collaboration. With the support of its state or territorial governor, each team engaged a steering committee and a range of local stakeholders to 1) assess variations in organization-level business policies and state laws that affect health information exchange; 2) identify and propose practical solutions, while preserving the privacy and security requirements in applicable Federal and State laws and 3) develop detailed plans to implement solutions.

In phase 1 of HISPC, the Oklahoma team completed the work summarized above. In phase 2, each state implemented a state-specific project and planned for multi-state collaboration in phase 3. Oklahoma's phase 2 project targeted 2 main goals: 1. develop a framework for an Office of Health Information Exchange (OHIE). 2. create a universal authorization to release health information form. Meeting goal 1 yielded two documents: 1, a consensus-based statement of mission, vision, and values that will serve as the basis to further define functions of the OHIE; and 2, a set of recommendations regarding OHIE structure. The Steering Committee worked with the Governor's Office to issue an Executive Order to create a Health Information Security and Privacy Council that will continue its advisory role until the OHIE is created. To achieve goal 2, a final draft of the Universal Authorization to Release Information was endorsed and approved by the Steering Committee. The Steering Committee initiated discussions for strategies to advocate the incorporation into legislation of the release form, in preparation for the next legislative session.