Challenges to Implementing the Info Blocking Rule

Although the new interoperability rules could benefit both patients and health systems, new regulations could lead to new barriers that healthcare executives will need to overcome.

Drew Ivan, executive vice president of product and strategy at Rhapsody, spoke with Inside Digital Health™ about the importance of a rule promoting interoperability and challenges that health systems might face when the rule goes into effect.

Editor’s note: The following transcript has been lightly edited for style, length and clarity.

Drew Ivan: I definitely think that one of the biggest benefits of keeping data electronically is the ability to easily transfer them from one location to another. And as a result of migrating to electronic health records, it's really important to be able to do that. So, I think that anything that promotes interoperability is really going to be a big benefit to the industry.

One of the biggest challenges is that the rules aren't quite finalized yet. So, we're not exactly sure what shape they're going to take or what the exact requirements will be. That means that providers will have to be flexible because until the rules are completely specified, it's impossible to know exactly what's going to be required. So, the best you can do is be prepared and get ready for when the real rules take effect.

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