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Portland, Ore. – The Oregon Business Council (OBC) announced today that the Data Exchange Group, a sub-group of the OBC’s Health Care Task Force, has approved the next phase toward a pilot project that would focus on enhancing the exchange of health information among providers and locations of care. The information shared would include lab, imaging results and summaries of hospital and emergency room visits.
“We have a serious problem in Oregon and throughout our nation with the health care system,” said Mark Ganz, president and chief executive officer of Regence and chair of the Data Exchange group. “Consumers are not getting the maximum value from our health care system. We need to find ways to improve quality and access while reducing the current cost trends, and this data exchange pilot project is an important first step in that direction.”
The Data Exchange Group is part of a larger effort that the Oregon Business Council is leading to promote better value, outcomes and quality within Oregon ’s health care system.
The intent of the Data Exchange Group is to ensure that useful, meaningful health information is securely available among authorized providers whenever they need it, thus improving the overall safety and effectiveness of an individual’s care. Improving the exchange of information among providers will also yield cost savings for consumers through reductions in duplicate testing, paper processing and unnecessary office visits.
“All of us – consumers, employers, providers, insurers and government – are contributing to the problem, so we all need to be part of the solution,” said Duncan Wyse, president of the Oregon Business Council. “Employers have an important leadership role to play in the current system, so it’s particularly rewarding that the business and health care communities are joining forces to develop viable solutions such as this.”
For this next phase, the Oregon Business Council will contract with the Oregon Health Care Quality Corporation for the development of project requirements and a business plan. The project is expected to take six months, at which time the OBC Data Exchange group will decide whether to fully fund and launch the overall project.
“We are thrilled to have this level of commitment from these healthcare and business leaders,” said Jody Pettit , M.D., health information project chair of Oregon Health Care Quality Corporation and Health Info rmation Technology Coordinator, in the Office for Oregon Health Policy and Research, “their support of the private and secure flow of health information can go a long way toward improving the safety, quality and efficiency of health care for Oregonians.
Founded in 1985, The Oregon Business Council is an association of more than 40 top business executives focused on public issues that affect Oregon 's life and future. The organization’s mission is to mobilize business leaders to contribute to Oregon 's quality of life and economic prosperity. OBC is nonpartisan and independent, working on issues as diverse as education, watershed health, transportation, fiscal reform and economic development. While OBC is independent in its deliberations and policy positions, it often works closely with other business organizations, nonprofits and government agencies to promote policies that improve Oregon ’s communities.
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