By Hong Truong, California Health Care Foundation, May 20, 2021
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused more than 60,000 deaths and nearly 3.7 million infections in California, a devastating event that vividly underscores the deep-seated health inequities faced by the Latinx and Black communities. The coronavirus methodically demonstrated the need for California to reengineer its health care system to eliminate those disparities and provide better care for everyone. High on the list of needed changes is a statewide health data exchange that would enable leaders to do a better job protecting public health and would provide better health care for all.
The ability to exchange data across the state would facilitate a more rapid and coordinated response from state and local public agencies and health care systems. Without it, hospitals cannot quickly report to local and state health agencies the number of admissions, discharges, and available ICU beds — information that helps identify the hardest-hit areas and guides the distribution of necessary resources. Coordinated statewide health information exchange (HIE) would automate collection of this key data, as well as information related to contact tracing, testing, and vaccinations.
The ability to share appropriate health data will be critical as the state moves forward with CalAIM, a multiyear initiative to provide a whole-person care approach to the health care needs of those enrolled in the state Medicaid program, known as Medi-Cal. The state must ensure that participating organizations can communicate data about physical health, behavioral health, and social services for Medi-Cal enrollees.
Comments (1)