DirectTrust, a nonprofit healthcare industry alliance formed to support the secure, identity-verified electronic exchange of protected health information, and the Healthcare Network Accreditation Commission Health Electronics has agreed to merge EHNAC into DirectTrust, effective January 4, 2023.
WHY IT IMPORTANT
The combination of EHNAC, a nonprofit standards development organization, and an accreditation body for electronically exchanged healthcare data, allows DirectTrust to promote new accreditation schemes.
According to the announcement, the initial target was the Authentication Service Provider program in relation to consumers’ access and use of health data.
“We are delighted that the long-standing relationship between EHNAC and DirectTrust is reaching its full potential with this merger,” Scott Stuewe, president and chief executive officer of DirectTrust, said in a statement. .
He added: “This clear demonstration of our shared dedication to enabling trust will allow both parties to optimize their complementary strengths to create new opportunities for cooperation. trust and assurance in the healthcare industry, especially in the age of TEFCA.”
The EHNAC committee will remain intact and will be appointed as the commissioner to oversee specific accreditation issues, while the DirectTrust board of directors will remain unchanged. Existing DirectTrust and EHNAC certifications will continue to be valid and accredited after the merger, with renewals taking place within an expanded DirectTrust organization.
The alliance says DirectTrust members can also expect a continuation of the same membership experiences and benefits, while those pursuing certification will experience an improved and streamlined process. , the union said.
EHNAC-accredited organizations that are not currently a member of DirectTrust can join the alliance, but are not required to be a member of DirectTrust to be accredited.
EHNAC senior leaders Lee Barrett, chief executive officer and CEO, and COO Debra Hopkinson will continue to work with and advise DirectTrust, along with EHNAC staff and assessors.
DirectTrust and EHNAC will hold a public information session about the merger on Friday, December 9.
TREND TO BIGGER
The two organizations have worked for many years to develop standards and systems of trust for the healthcare sector.
EHNAC recently partnered with the multidisciplinary CARIN Alliance, working in both the public and private sectors on digital health information sharing compliance to create the voluntary CARIN Code of Conduct Certification Program .
The standards organization has also updated the Trusted Dynamic Enrollment & Validation Certificate and Trusted Network Certification programs to accommodate the new CARIN program.
Earlier this year, DirectTrust launched the Privacy-Enhanced Health Record Location Services Ecosystem (PEHRLS) consensus body to support a nationwide ecosystem of compliance and voluntary patient certification. The new PEHRLS standards are expected to define electronic exchanges between providers, electronic health record systems, health information exchange, health information networks, and record location services. .
Secure direct messaging, the electronic exchange of protected health information between service providers and between clinicians and patients, will reach 945 million transactions in 2021. Growth significantly at 31% of the total in 2020 shows the significant growth of DirectTrust.
“Notably, it took five and a half years for the number of Direct Messages exchanged to reach one billion and only 18 months to surpass two billion,” Stuewe said in a February 2021 statement about the column. the alliance’s previous trading milestones.
ON PROFILE
“It’s exciting to bring together our areas of focus for standards development and accreditation, and to increase your chances of becoming a member of DirectTrust. Our goal is to be a trusted technical partner. , standards development and accreditation focus on the nation’s leading healthcare,” Stuewe said in the announcement.
“This fusion of expertise, resources, and technology drives EHNAC’s accreditation programs as a ‘recognized security framework’ and is the inevitable culmination of many years that our organizations have enjoyed. We have dedicated to ensuring the trust of the stakeholders,” added Barrett.
“By combining DirectTrust’s membership, standards development, technical trust and accreditation, we will be able to further support DirectTrust members, EHNAC-accredited organizations and industry-wide to overcome privacy and security barriers that continue to affect healthcare.Additionally, we will be able to continue to focus on a combined focus on capabilities initiatives interact to support the healthcare ecosystem to meet industry initiative timelines,” she said.
Andrea Fox is the senior editor of Healthcare IT News.
Email: [email protected]
Healthcare IT News is a publication of HIMSS.
