Through October 2014, the Illinois HIE reported a $390,000 loss, and Gov. Bruce Rauner has left the state exchange out of the new budget, set to take effect July 1. Smaller, private exchanges have encroached on its territory, such as the MetroChicago exchange, which recently announced that it had surpassed 1 million patient records. Rush Health, a Chicago-based health system that manages four hospitals, is using the state exchange until it can develop its own exchange, according to Crain’s Chicago Business.
The state exchange approached insurer Blue Cross Blue Shield about potentially paying for access to the HIE to help fund it. The connection would connect BCBS to real-time data, which would aid in coordinating care. However, nothing has been officially determined yet, according to the report.
