Pew Charitable Trusts called on the ONC to emphasize patient matching and data standardization in its interoperability framework, according to the group's Aug. 25 letter to ONC head Don Rucker, MD.
Under the 21st Century Cures Act, ONC is required to develop an interoperability framework, which the agency released a draft of in April. The framework proposed tracking implementation of interoperability standards in health IT products, and provided assessments for how providers utilize and customize standards for their organizations.
Pew writes interoperability efforts would benefit from advances in patient matching and data standardization. Patient matching, which involves linking a patient to his or her health record across multiple locations, would enable care coordination, for example. In addition, improved standards for clinical data elements are a necessary component for successful data sharing.
"By prioritizing advances in these areas, ONC can help foster more accurate and robust data exchange — including as part of networks — to drive interoperability," the group writes.
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