MIAMI, FL, Feb. 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Health Gorilla, a Qualified Health Information Network™ (QHIN™) and interoperability solution provider, announced a new collaboration with Unblock Health, a master key of patient access solutions designed to give patients a competitive advantage against their health conditions. Unblock Health will participate in Health Gorilla’s QHIN to enable patients to retrieve their personal health records under the Individual Access Services (IAS) purpose of use.
As a QHIN, Health Gorilla supports data exchange for multiple purposes of use, including Treatment, Payment, Health Care Operations, Public Health, Government Benefits Determination, and IAS. Health Gorilla provides the technology and network solutions required for organizations to submit IAS queries to its QHIN under the Trusted Exchange Framework and Common Agreement℠ (TEFCA℠).
Unblock Health provides a suite of patient-focused solutions designed to reduce Patient Administrative Burden (PAB), or the work that patients and their families need to do to get the care they need. Unblock Health is collaborating with Health Gorilla on IAS solutions to ensure that patients can seamlessly and securely access their data from a vast network of participating hospitals and clinics. Patients using Unblock Health can verify their identity based on IAL2 standards using CLEAR, query Health Gorilla’s national network, and securely retrieve and store their health records. This collaboration marks a significant step towards empowering patients in their healthcare journey by providing them with easy access to their personal health information.
“One of our primary goals of becoming a QHIN was to unlock additional exchange purposes, particularly Individual Access Services, to enable patients to finally access their own data through a national network,” said Steve Yaskin, CEO & Co-founder of Health Gorilla. “We are proud to collaborate with Grace and the Unblock Health team, who have proven a relentless commitment to empowering patients through access to their health data. With TEFCA IAS now a reality, patients and caregivers have a new path to access data to inform and support their care.”
“While many have taken the stance of not prioritizing IAS, “no” was not an option for the team at Unblock Health. It was exhilarating to facilitate some of the first IAS transactions on TEFCA. This is a pivotal moment to make our mission a reality and enable patients to access and control their data,” said Grace Cordovano, Co-founder of Unblock Health. “Through the power of the Health Gorilla and Unblock Health partnership, our users can securely validate their identity, query participants in the new TEFCA framework, and combine and store their health records from different institutions. Unblock Health is designed for patient advocates, patient navigators, as well as caregivers, and care partners of patients too. This partnership is really about breaking down barriers that have traditionally hindered patient access, especially in life-altering, life-limiting situations and emergencies. We aren’t just dreaming about a future where patients are the center of healthcare delivery, we’re at the forefront laying the pavers as we speak.”
About Health Gorilla
Health Gorilla is a secure health data-sharing platform, designated as both a national Qualified Health Information Network™ and a California state Qualified Health Information Organization, powering national and regional health information exchange while protecting patient data privacy and security. Health Gorilla is uniquely positioned to enable organizations to seamlessly participate in both TEFCA℠ and the California Data Exchange Framework. Health Gorilla provides real-time access to the broadest possible network of healthcare data sources in the US, making it easy for authorized users to get the most complete view of a patient’s relevant health information. Through our collaborations with healthcare providers, insurers, and government organizations, we play a vital role in improving health outcomes, enabling participation in government-endorsed data exchange frameworks, and reducing administrative inefficiencies. Health Gorilla’s platform hosts innovative technologies designed to normalize patient data and protect patient privacy. For more information, visit healthgorilla.com or follow us on LinkedIn and X (formerly Twitter) @HealthGorilla.
About Unblock Health
Unblock Health rejects traditional barriers to patient health information. Our SaaS gives patients the competitive advantage, enabling them to more easily play an active role in their care. Unblock Health supports HIM professionals and providers to reduce, and ideally eliminate, the risk of information blocking complaints while elevating the customer and patient experience. Unblock Health provides a suite of digital tools that transform traditionally time-consuming tasks that patients and their families routinely perform into streamlined actions. Unblock Health addresses the most common healthcare delivery organization customer service issues: HIM professional staff shortages, frustrating, outdated patient request workflows, long request turnaround wait times, inability to connect with a human being, delayed patient on-boarding, and information blocking. For more information, visit unblock.health, follow us on LinkedIn, or on X (formally Twitter) @UnblockHealth
Source: https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2024/02/26/2835288/0/en/Unblock-Health-and-Health-Gorilla-Announce-Collaboration-to-Enhance-Patient-Data-Access-through-TEFCA.html#:~:text=logo.%20Unblock%20Health%20and%20Health%20Gorilla%20Announce,to%20Enhance%20Patient%20Data%20Access%20through%20TEFCA.