Private Health Data Network Introduced in Florida

A new Florida company, HIE Networks, joined with the Florida Hospital Association and the Florida Medical Association to announce a new network designed to make patient medical records more easily accessible to doctors and health care providers.

The Florida Health Data Network, which is offering competition to the state-run Florida Agency for Health Care Administration, is to be operated by the Tallahassee-based HIE Networks LLC, a private, physician-owned company.

One of the greatest challenges to providing efficient, cost-effective, high-quality health care is access to patients medical history by health care providers, said Dr. Dan Kaelin, co-founder and chief medical officer of HIE Networks, during apress announcement Tuesday at the Florida Press Association building in Tallahassee.

View video from the news conference here.

Instead of the records stored at a single location, data would be based with the primary caregiver and accessible to others in the system.

The network currently has records of nearly 1 million Florida patients, and organizers estimate the subscription-based program could save medical facilities across Florida $500 million by eliminating duplications of services in maintenance of patient records. The cost estimate is based on administrative management costs in the Tallahassee region.

We connect any provider or organization and build uniformity, consistency and accessibility as needed to share information across communities, regions and, ultimately, states, said Allen Byington, co-founder and CEO of HIE Networks.

The network grew out of the Big Bend Regional Healthcare Information Organizations health information exchange network pilot program, which serves nine counties in North Florida.