The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC), announced that two additional organizations—CommonWell Health Alliance and Kno2—have been designated as Qualified Health Information Networks (QHINs) capable of nationwide health data exchange governed by the Trusted Exchange Framework and Common Agreement (TEFCA).
CommonWell Health Alliance and Kno2 can immediately begin supporting the exchange of data under the Common Agreement's policies and technical requirements along with the other designated QHINs. QHINs are the pillars of TEFCA network-to-network exchange, providing shared services and governance to securely route queries, responses, and messages across networks for healthcare stakeholders including patients, providers, hospitals, health systems, payers, and public health agencies.
Common Agreement Version 2.0, which is anticipated to include enhancements and updates to require support for Health Level Seven (HL7) Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR) based transactions, is actively under development and scheduled to be adopted by QHINs within the first quarter of 2024.
