Kansas Health Information Network, Inc., DBA KONZA announced today it is one of the first organizations to have its application approved to continue to the testing and onboarding phase to become a Qualified Health Information Network (QHIN) under the Trusted Exchange Framework and Common Agreement (TEFCA) by the Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) for Health IT. Partnering with the TEFCA-Recognized Coordinating Entity (RCE), The Sequoia Project, one of the primary objectives of ONC is to develop a trusted exchange framework where QHINs enable national interoperability in a network-of-networks approach.

KONZA National Network enables the sharing of clinical information at the point of care, while supporting transformative value-based payment models, care management and data analytics. As a credible, trusted, and strategic partner for physical and behavioral health providers, patients and payers across the country, KONZA will leverage its 12 years of health information exchange (HIE) expertise by working closely with the RCE and prospective QHINs to operationalize TEFCA.

KONZA partners with State Medical Societies and Independent Physician Associations (IPAs) to provide physician-led and governed health information exchanges in the following states: Carolina eHealth Network (South Carolina), CTHealthLink (Connecticut), HealtheParadigm (Georgia), HealthSync (Louisiana), GenesisLink (Texas), KHIN (Kansas), OneHealth New Jersey (New Jersey), SHINE (Missouri) and MHAX (Mississippi).

KONZA President and CEO Laura McCrary, Ed.D. stated, “We could not be prouder to have our QHIN application approved. Our team has worked hard to build a grass roots network from the ground up. KONZA meets the needs of a wide variety of healthcare providers in the last mile. With a primary objective of improving patient care, we utilize our experience and technical expertise to deliver high quality data solutions and products that build national interoperability.”

“We are pleased to support KONZA as they join the first group of organizations applying to become a Qualified Health Information Network,” said Scott Stuewe, President and CEO of DirectTrust™. “As demonstrated by their EHNAC accreditation and their pursuit of HITRUST certification with DirectTrust as their compliance partner, they are committed to the highest level of privacy and security and are dedicated to our country’s healthcare system, making them well-positioned to have their application accepted.”

Achieving QHIN designation will allow KONZA’s existing and future participants to connect into the TEFCA structure, helping navigate the complexities of regulatory compliance with greater ease while avoiding the need to participate in multiple exchanges.

KONZA and the handful of other organizations that achieved QHIN application approval will now move into the third phase of the QHIN designation process, where the focus will shift to pre-production testing and project plan completion.