Both the health care industry and federal government have recognized a critical need for a national health information network to facilitate secure electronic communication between health care providers (including physicians, nurses, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants). The lack of such a network has limited the potential for providers to electronically exchange clinical information to improve the quality of patient care.

In response to this need, Surescripts is expanding the scope of its national health information network to establish a common platform that allows health care providers, pharmacists, PBMs, EHRs, HIEs, and IDNs to electronically exchange clinical messages across a national network. Surescripts' best-in-class service offerings will allow operators of regional networks to openly connect their users to Surescripts' national network and exchange clinical information with other providers across the country. To help enable the secure electronic exchange of clinical messages, Surescripts will provide tools to electronic health record systems and all network participants to access these new services. The new services are supported by Surescripts' strategic investment in Kryptiq, one of the nation's leading developers of clinical integration technology that enables transport and local last-mile integration. These offerings will allow EHRs, HIEs and IDNs to provide this connectivity in a way that complements their own products and services. Providers not yet affiliated with a clinical messaging network will be able to achieve a level of this connectivity by using a secure Web portal offered by Surescripts. Surescripts' service expansion will reflect our core principles of trust, neutrality, collaboration and quality. This expansion will also support all federal and state health information standards, including those dealing with privacy and security, Meaningful Use, transport methods including National Health Information Network Exchange and Direct Project, and data formats such as HL7, CCR, CCD and other recognized standards.

Ultimately, the expansion of Surescripts' national health information network will further contribute to reducing the cost, and improving the quality, safety and efficiency, of health care across the country. It will also provide deeper support for a physician's achievement of "meaningful use." [contents form Surescript]

Surescripts' new Clinical Interoperability Services will leverage the nation's largest network of physicians and the secure, private, reliable and scalable Surescripts network. When combined with Kryptiq's best-in-class clinical messaging technology, the new services enable Surescripts to offer several options to electronic health record vendors, health systems, health information exchanges and the physicians they serve. All options are designed address the specific needs and current capabilities of Surescripts' network participants and be complementary to existing investments in electronic health record systems while offering varied levels of functionality and integration.

As a network of networks, Surescripts will support and enable the exchange of all types of clinical messages between EHRs, HIEs and health systems that, today, are not connected with each other.

Surescripts Net2Net Connect -- Designed to support healthcare providers currently connected to regional networks for electronic clinical message exchange Surescripts Net2Net Connect is an enabling connectivity technology that links regional networks to the Surescripts national network to electronically send and receive clinical information with other healthcare providers on a national basis This service provides an out-of-the-box, certified connection for HIEs, IDNs and EHR networks, compatible with existing technology and industry standards and makes it easy for networks to attach themselves to an open, neutral, complementary network for national interoperability.

Surescripts Message Stream -- Designed to support healthcare providers using EHR technologies. Surescripts Message Stream is an enabling clinical messaging technology that helps facilitate and manage messaging inside your EHR or HIE provided software. The service connects to Surescripts' interoperable healthcare network - a nationwide backbone - to send and receive clinical information with other healthcare providers across the country. It also creates flexible, robust internal and external messaging capabilities across regional and proprietary networks The service provides secure platform solutions that enable easy communication, interaction and send/receipt of many types of clinical healthcare information (like CCRs, CCD, referrals, and discharge summaries.) that support Meaningful Use, and insurance reform efforts The service also provides ongoing support to assure alignment and compliance with relevant industry and policy standards to support transport protocols, security and privacy, message structures and types.

Surescripts Clinical Message Portal -- For healthcare providers not yet connected to a regional or EHR provided clinical messaging network. Surescripts Clinical Message Portal is a simple online connectivity solution with intuitive browser technology to enable electronic communication with healthcare providers across the country for the secure exchange of clinical information. A useful tool as you evaluate options to adopt connectivity through an EHR or HIE. [contents form Surescript]

EHR Vendors, HIEs, and IDNs: Surescripts' suite of clinical interoperability solutions provides an on-ramp for EHR vendors, HIEs and IDNs that wish to connect their affiliated physicians and health care providers to Surescripts' national clinical network. By doing so, they will allow these providers to see their messaging capability transform from local to national, in a manner that integrates well with their current workflows and network experience.

Healthcare Providers: Surescripts' clinical interoperability solutions allow physicians and health care providers with a means to communicate with colleagues regardless of their technology or place of practice. By enabling secure electronic clinical message connectivity, the network supports improvement in health care quality, cost reduction and the achievement of "meaningful use". It also facilitates electronic exchange of clinical information with other providers locally or nationally, in a secure manner with intuitive, easy-to-use tools.

Connecting Pharmacy for More Coordinated Care: By expanding Surescripts' focus to enable the sharing of all types of clinical information, the nation's retail pharmacies and PBMs aim to realize further gains efficiencies while improving outcomes and reducing the cost of health care for all. This move is also part of a long-term commitment by Surescripts to enable the pharmacist as a critical component of a patient's coordinated care. There are key trends occurring in healthcare right now with technology being deployed and electronic connections being established to the point of care that promise to redefine patient care. In this environment, Surescripts' role as the nation's network for clinical interoperability supports and enhances pharmacists' ability to connect with physicians, patients and their information for more coordinated care.