FARMINGTON, Conn., Dec. 18, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Electronic Healthcare Network Accreditation Commission (EHNAC), a non-profit standards development organization and accrediting body for organizations that electronically exchange healthcare data, announced today that the first two organizations have achieved accreditation under its Accountable Care Organization programs.
EHNAC offers two accreditation programs related to Accountable Care Organizations – ACOAP is designed for the organizations themselves, whereas OSAP-ACO is designated for ACO technology providers. As beta participants throughout the consultative and consensus-driven process of program development, Capital Clinical Integrated Network (CCIN) and HEALTHEC were the first to undergo evaluation on their compliance with the criteria. CCIN achieved full accredited status for ACOAP, whereas HEALTHEC achieved full accredited status for OSAP-ACO.
"As CCIN's care teams maintain a dedicated focus on improving care delivery and health outcomes, it is crucial that we can reassure our stakeholders that their data is safe," said Gina Pistulka, chief nursing officer at CCIN. "We pursued accreditation through EHNAC's rigorous, nationally recognized program because it allows us to establish that trust by clearly documenting our streamlined information-sharing workflows and demonstrating improved process efficiencies."
Arthur Kapoor, chairman and founder of HEALTHEC added, "The industry is rapidly evolving. As ACOs turn their attention to enhancing community-wide care coordination, the onus of ensuring transparency in data transfer, privacy and security is also on their partnering vendors. HEALTHEC has always taken the lead role in these crucial areas, and supports the needs of our customers through effective ACO services that can manage their entire population. Our solutions coordinate the clinical, financial and administrative data into one comprehensive repository to perform analytics that identify and close gaps in care."
The accreditation programs recognize excellence on the part of ACOs and related IT service organizations by assessing network infrastructure and exchange connectivity. In addition, the programs focus on technical performance, business processes and resource management, as well as other key performance quality metrics from areas such as population health, care coordination and other facets to establish trust with all stakeholders within the ACO environment. While the two accreditation programs are similar, ACOAP includes criteria related to their governance structure, how they administer their ACO to a region or community, ACO-specific government requirements, etc.
"As ACOs and other healthcare providers embrace the value-based care model to improve patient outcomes, the need to maintain a strong focus on information privacy and security measures has never been greater," says Lee Barrett, executive director of EHNAC. "CCIN and HEALTHEC are leading the way in demonstrating this commitment to providing the highest levels of assurances and demonstrating their compliance with industry standards in the management of protected health information. We congratulate them both on their accreditation achievements."
EHNAC accreditation recognizes excellence in health data processing and transactions, and confirms compliance with industry-established standards and HIPAA regulations. Visit www.ehnac.org for more details on ACOAP, OSAP-ACO and the many other EHNAC accreditation programs.
About EHNAC
The Electronic Healthcare Network Accreditation Commission (EHNAC) is a voluntary, self-governing standards development organization (SDO) established to develop standard criteria and accredit organizations that electronically exchange healthcare data. These entities include accountable care organizations, electronic health networks, EPCS vendors, eprescribing solution providers, financial services firms, health information exchanges, health information service providers, management service organizations, medical billers, outsourced service providers, payers, practice management system vendors and third-party administrators.
EHNAC was founded in 1993 and is a tax-exempt 501(c)(6) nonprofit organization. Guided by peer evaluation, the EHNAC accreditation process promotes quality service, innovation, cooperation and open competition in healthcare. To learn more, visit www.ehnac.org, contact info@ehnac.org, or follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.