~ Minnesota Health Information Exchange to be among largest “e-initiatives” in the nation ~

MINNEAPOLIS – Governor Tim Pawlenty joined with leaders from Minnesota’s largest health care organizations to announce an electronic health information exchange that will connect doctors, hospitals and clinics across health care systems so they can quickly access medical records needed for patient treatment during a medical emergency or for delivering routine care.

The Minnesota Health Information Exchange will improve patient safety, increase efficiency among health care providers, and reduce administrative costs for all health care organizations.

“This exchange is the only public-private partnership of its kind,” Governor Pawlenty said. “It will support and build on the critical initiatives taking place in the health care system today, including quality improvement efforts of our providers, the availability of quality and pricing information to consumers, paying providers for good outcomes and the adoption of evidence based guidelines.”

A public-private partnership

The founding partners include Allina Hospitals & Clinics, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota, HealthPartners, Medica, and the state of Minnesota. UCare is also an initial financial contributor to the exchange. Others supporting the project include Community Health Information Collaborative, Fairview Health Services, FirstPlan, HealthEast Care System, Hennepin County Medical Center, North Memorial Medical Center, Park Nicollet Health Services, and Preferred One. When the exchange goes live in early 2008, it will be one of the largest health information exchanges in the nation, serving more than three million Minnesotans, and additional Minnesotans will be served as more health care organizations join the exchange.

The exchange will create an electronic superhighway that allows for a secure interchange of clinical information among provider and payer. This will allow doctors to get medical information about a specific patient more quickly and cost-effectively than relying on phone, facsimile, couriers or the mail. Initially, Minnesota Health Information Exchange will provide the connectivity needed to obtain medication histories, lab orders and test results across health systems. Future electronically based services will include radiology reports; Minnesota Department of Health disease surveillance reporting; and electronic prescriptions, which will eliminate the need for doctors to write prescription orders by hand.

Patient privacy protected

The exchange creates a network to access information that already exists; it does not create a new database. Rather, it provides the technology whereby selective clinical information can be exchanged to provide the best health care possible, and only with the consent of the patient. To protect patient privacy in accordance with state and federal law, patients must grant permission before doctors or other health care providers can access any information.

Nonprofit corporation

Minnesota Health Information Exchange will operate as a nonprofit corporation. It is funded by start-up money from its founding organizations and by subscriber fees, which, together with the public-private partnership nature of the exchange, make it unique among other health information exchanges around the country. Any excess revenue generated from Minnesota Health Information Exchange operations will be used to develop additional electronic health care services.

About the founders

Allina Hospitals & Clinics is a not-for-profit health care system of hospitals, clinics and other patient care services that provides exceptional care to communities throughout Minnesota and western Wisconsin and employs more than 22,000 people. Allina Hospitals & Clinics facilities, services and jobs can be found online at www.allina.com.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota, with headquarters in the St. Paul suburb of Eagan, was chartered in 1933 as Minnesota’s first health plan and continues to carry out its charter mission today: to promote a wider, more economical and timely availability of health services for the people of Minnesota. A nonprofit, taxable organization, Blue Cross is the largest health plan based in Minnesota, covering 2.7 million members in Minnesota and nationally. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, headquartered in Chicago. Go to www.bluecrossmn.com to learn more.

HealthPartners (www.healthpartners.com) is the largest consumer-governed, nonprofit health care organization in the nation, with the mission of improving the health of its members, patients, and the community. HealthPartners provides care and coverage to more than one million members nationwide through a broad network of physicians and hospitals, including HealthPartners Clinics and Regions Hospital. In addition, Health Partners conducts medical research and offers medical education.

Medica (www.medica.com) is a 1.3 million-member health insurance company headquartered in Minneapolis and active in the Upper Midwest. The company is comprised of a mix of for-profit and non-profit operations that provide health care coverage in the employer, individual, Medicaid, Medicare and Medicare Part D markets in Minnesota and adjacent counties in Wisconsin, North Dakota and South Dakota.

The Minnesota Department of Human Services (www.dhs.state.mn.us) oversees the state’s public health care programs -- Medical Assistance (Medicaid), MinnesotaCare and General Assistance Medical Care – which served roughly 666,000 Minnesotans in FY 2006. Program enrollees include children and families, seniors, and people with disabilities. DHS contracts with health plans to deliver health care services to most enrollees. DHS also partners with health plans to develop programs to serve people with special needs, such as disabilities or complex medical issues.