Community information exchange (CIE)

What’s a CIE?

HCA defines CIE as technology that helps a community-based worker coordinate the services of a network of cross-sector social care partners – social service, community, Tribal, government, physical and behavioral health organizations – who commit to delivering social care so that patients have better access to health-related social needs (HRSN) services and the supports they need to improve their health. This secure technology with role-based access and client privacy controls may include:

• Resource directories
• Client management system including shared client information
• Needs assessments
• Shared care team information
• Closed-loop referral
• Referral history and a community record of social supports provided
• Event notification
• Shared care planning

What will the CIE Program do?

The vision of the CIE program is to improve the statewide delivery of HRSN services to Apple Health clients, integrating delivery across regions. The CIE program’s key objectives are to:

• Implement standardization for the exchange of HRSN service delivery data.
• Ensure interoperability between state, regional, and local technology systems.
• Enable scalability of the efforts of Community Care Hubs in the regions.

The program will support the delivery of HRSN services such as nutrition, housing, and transportation that are coordinated by the regional Community Care Hubs at Washington’s nine Accountable Communities of Health (ACHs). Community-based ACH staff, contracted case managers, and other service providers enable the centralization of HRSN service delivery. The goals of service delivery centralization are to:

• Reduce barriers
• Reduce duplication of services
• Improve health outcomes and quality of care

This will be achieved by establishing policies and governance for information exchange along with a centralized technology infrastructure. The CIE infrastructure will knit together CIE technologies currently used by the ACHs into a statewide system under the direction of the Health and Human Services Enterprise Coalition (HHS Coalition). These technologies include capabilities such as resource directories, client management systems, and closed-loop referrals, among others.

What work has been done?

HCA responded to a 2022 supplemental budget proviso by developing a landscape review and strategic options report for the CIE planning process. The intent of the landscape review was to gather feedback to identify the impacts, priorities, and risks of implementing a statewide CIE strategy. This feedback informed the strategic options for implementing a statewide CIE program.

• CIE landscape in Washington (September 2022)
• CIE strategic options report (September 2022)
• CIE planning strategy update slide deck (October 2022)

What's happening now?

HCA is establishing the statewide CIE program. We intend to partner with a Lead Organization (LO) to support program implementation and management of the CIE program. We are currently exploring contractual and procurement options for the LO.