States have been ramping up data sharing efforts to help healthcare providers and public health officials get ahold of the most up-to-date COVID-19 data to treat patients and track the spread of the disease.
Here are seven state health information exchanges that have launched new systems or expanded access since the start of the pandemic.
1. CMS approved a COVID-19 emergency-funding request for $7.9 million for Colorado's state HIE and telemedicine services in response to the pandemic.
2. The Nebraska Health Information Initiative partnered with the state's health department to deploy a COVID-19 data-monitoring platform.
3. The Indiana Health Information Exchange launched a new data initiative with the state government and Indiana University that shares social determinants of health data, such as housing stability and food access, with researchers and healthcare providers fighting COVID-19 and other diseases on the front lines.
4. HIE Networks in Tallahassee, Fla., deployed a new system that allows health systems to view patient medical records from health plans, hospitals, urgent clinics, public health departments and other providers across the state.
5. HealtheLink, an HIE that covers Western New York and is part of the state's Statewide Health Information Network, began waiving the requirement for patient consent prior to delivering COVID-19 test results to providers who have previously treated the patient, according to The Buffalo News.
6. Nevada's HealtHIE began offering free access to its provider portal, which contains medical records from all state residents.
7. Michigan Health Information Network Shared Services teamed up with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services to expand the number of patients it covers throughout the state. The HIE added Detroit Medical Center, Trinity Health System and Henry Ford Health System to its network.