21st Century Cures Act

On January 18, 2022, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) and the entity chosen as a contracting partner, The Sequoia Project, Inc., published the long-awaited Trusted Exchange Framework and Common Agreement (TEFCA) for health information exchange. In simple terms, TEFCA is a framework that health information networks (HINs) may enter into to share health data with other HINs, individuals, and entities. The stated goal of TEFCA is to develop uniform policies and technical requirements to scale health information exchange nationwide and ensure that HINs, health care providers, health plans, individuals, and other stakeholders can access real-time, interoperable health information.
Continue Reading ONC Releases a Framework for Nationwide Health Information Exchange

Last week, the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) finalized long-awaited regulations on Interoperability and Patient Access (the “CMS Rule”) to require Medicare Advantage plans, Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) managed care plans, state agencies, and Qualified Health Plan (QHP) issuers on federally-facilitated exchanges (“CMS Payers”) to provide patients easy access to their claims and encounter information, as well as certain clinical information, through third-party applications of their choice. On the same day, the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology finalized its rules on Interoperability, Information Blocking, and the ONC Health IT Certification Program (the “ONC Rule”) related to the 21st Century Cures Act (Cures Act). The CMS Rule and ONC Rule have far-reaching impacts.

As individuals and organizations covered by the rules are considering how they may facilitate their access to health information to support patients, health care providers, and others, it is important to understand when provisions in the rules will be effective and timing and what acts may constitute violations of these rules.  To help clients get familiar with these deadlines, we are providing this summary chart of compliance requirements and applicable deadlines to help your organization prepare for upcoming enforcement of the ONC Rule and the CMS Rule.  For legal advice tailored to the specific needs of your organization, please reach out to Jodi Daniel, head of the firm’s Digital Health Practice at jdaniel@crowell.com.

As you read the chart, you should keep the following in mind:Continue Reading Compliance Reference Chart for ONC and CMS Interoperability Rules

Payers, Providers, and Patients – Oh My! Is Crowell & Moring’s biweekly health care podcast, discussing legal and regulatory issues that affect health care entities’ in-house counsel, executives, and investors. In this episode, hosts Payal Nanavati and Joe Records discuss recent FDA guidance related to digital health with Jodi Daniel and Shaina Vinayek. For