BILLINGS, Mont. – Together with Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) Director Adam Meier and Big Sky Care Connect (BSCC) Chief Executive Officer Ben Tyrrell, Governor Greg Gianforte today announced a $20 million investment in the state’s health information exchange (HIE).
“This critical investment in Montana’s health care IT ecosystem will support ongoing efforts to improve the overall experience for patients and clinicians across the state, while saving lives, creating efficiencies, and saving taxpayer dollars,” Gov. Gianforte said. “The ability to have quick and secure access to medical records – regardless of location – is vital, especially in emergency situations when time is of the essence.”
Gov. Gianforte, Billings Clinic CEO Scott Ellner, and Ben Tyrrell of BSCC discuss Montana’s investment in the state’s HIE
BSCC is Montana’s state-designated HIE, a platform that allows doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and other health care providers to appropriately access and securely share a patient’s vital medical information electronically – improving the speed, quality, safety, and cost of patient care.
Currently over 75 medical provider organizations and more than half of Montana hospital systems are signed on as partners with Big Sky Care Connect. These organizations encompass more than 350 provider locations throughout the state.
“BSCC is committed to serving as Montana’s HIE, and excited for the opportunity to move this project forward in the years ahead,” Tyrrell said.
Tyrrell said DPHHS connected its Medicaid claims system in November 2021. BSCC is working to add other health insurance organizations and other payors. BSCC is also working with more than 40 additional providers to connect to the HIE.
Tyrrell said he’s hopeful more providers will enroll now that this contract is in place. “This investment should reassure providers that Montana is committed to providing a quality HIE well into the future,” he said.
Meier said the bottom line is increasing efficiencies. “No matter where an individual is seeking treatment in Montana, it’s more efficient if providers can access patient health information at the point of care,” he said. “Once fully implemented, this platform will bring together every health care community across the state, and critical patient information will follow the patient when and where it is needed most.”
Meier acknowledges that, while there’s more work to do, access to a comprehensive patient medical record saves valuable time, which providers otherwise would spend searching for and retrieving a patient’s information, and gives providers more time with a patient.
Most of the funding will be allocated to continued design, development, and implementation of the current system, including work to build out the current technology, while also adding new participants and implementing new services. The development and implementation phase will continue through 2023. Due to support from DPHHS, the project was able to leverage $15 million in federal funds. Other funding sources include over $4 million in private contributions and $800,000 in state funds.
The announcement also included a roundtable discussion with several Billings public health leaders, including Dr. Steven Arbogast, a neurologist with Billings Clinic; Dr. Justen Rudolph of Intermountain Healthcare; Dr. Randy Thompson, chief health analytics officer at Billings Clinic; Dr. Eric Arzubi, Frontier Psychiatry; Lenette Kosovich, CEO of Rimrock Foundation; and Aubrey Peterschick, CEO of Advanced Care Hospital.
Other planned improvements to BSCC include:
For more information, visit the BSCC website.
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