As we mentioned in our previous coverage of 10 healthcare organizations requesting a postponement of the deadline, on October 6th the full information blocking legislation goes into effect. While those organizations asked for a delay, it does not seem this is going to happen. Every Information Blocking actor should be ready for this deadline.
Whether this was prompted by the request for a postponement or was already planned, ONC has put out a dedicated information blocking webpage and has planned 2 virtual office hours where you can get your questions answered. Plus, Steve Posnack from ONC also published a blog article with eight regulatory reminders to help prepare people for October 6th. Here’s the 8 reminders:
- Reminder #1 – The information blocking definition’s limitation on the scope of electronic health information (EHI) is lifted as of October 6, 2022.
- Reminder #2 – IB actors’ practices include acts and omissions.
- Reminder #3 – The information blocking regulations’ exceptions are not solely “one size fits all” and address the facts and circumstances of the situation at hand.
- Reminder #4 – Not all health information that’s electronic is EHI under the regulatory definition. And if such information is not EHI, then it’s not covered by the information blocking regulations.
- Reminder #5 – How IB actors make EHI available for access, exchange, and use can and will vary based on who the IB actor is, their technological sophistication, and who it is that is seeking to access, exchange or use an IB actor’s EHI.
- Reminder #6 – Information blocking is about “the data” (i.e., EHI) regardless of whether ONC-certified health IT is involved.
- Reminder #7 – Use of certain information blocking exceptions by actors will provide clear notification to requestors whether their request to access, exchange, or use EHI is delayed or denied.
- Reminder #8 – Information blocking claims are confidential and restricted from public disclosure.
Be sure to go and read the full article to get all the details and clarifications on each reminder.
Are you ready for the October 6th Information Blocking deadline? Is there still something that’s not clear to your organization? Now’s the time to be prepared. Otherwise, you’ll be added to the Information Blocking stats page.
The ramifications of this rule are enormous. We are starting finally the important process of DECENTRALIZATION of our medical records system. The power of medical records shifts back to the people.
October 6th. deserves a huge celebration!
Thank you for this list. Great guidelines and resource for IB actors.