Data Sharing Agreement (DSA): Stakeholders Weigh In on Pivotal Policies

On March 21, Manifest MedEx joined other key voices in Sacramento to advise and advocate on crucial DSA decisions that are set to be finalized by the CalHHS Center for Data Insights and Innovation (CDII). In a joint meeting of its stakeholder advisory committees, CDII outlined its proposed responses to public comments on draft DSA policies—the most critical being whether to require hospitals to send ADT event notifications to at least one Qualified Health Information Organization (QHIO).

Manifest MedEx has channeled many of our participants in our strong support for keeping this ADT requirement to advance digital equity and provide a health data safety net that all DSA signatories can rely on to receive the ADTs they need for their patients, members, and clients. A diverse array of stakeholders—including physician groups, health plans, and care team partners in CalAIM and practice transformation—also called into the meeting to express their collective need for ADTs to flow through a robust and streamlined source that only QHIOs can provide.

Manifest MedEx also leveraged our technical and policy expertise to recommend immediate real-time standards for sending ADTs and no more than an hour for query responses, and to caution against overly broad restrictions on the scope of queries and information delivery.

Lastly, CDII updated stakeholders on the upcoming DSA Signatory Grants, which should be released in the second quarter of 2023 to allow organizations required to sign the DSA to begin applying for financial support with implementing data exchange, including QHIO onboarding. CDII newly proposed allowing “umbrella organizations” such as IPAs and MSOs to apply for these grants on behalf of multiple DSA signatories. CDII is now targeting April to release the QHIO Program application and June to announce its QHIO designation decisions.