About Public Health Data Interoperability

• Interoperability, or making sure systems at every level can “speak the same language” is a critical piece of the data modernization puzzle. Right now, a lot of healthcare and public health systems can’t talk to each other. Interoperability makes the data flow automatically between entities.  
• Data sharing is currently fragmented as a result of outdated technology, not in line with industry published standards, inefficient agreements, and non-harmonized data. 

To address longstanding pain points across the public health “ecosystem”, CDC is leading an effort to co-create the future of public health data with public health agencies and national partners. In collaboration with CDC colleagues; national partners; and state, territorial, local, tribal health departments, OPHDST will focus on three priority areas: 

• Conduct end-to-end design to transform data strategies, beginning with case data, to meet the needs of public health professionals 
• Connect public health to the health IT ecosystem 
• Build capabilities to increase productivity across the public health ecosystem 

CDC’s public health interoperability strategy intends to tackle the second priority of connecting public health to the health IT ecosystem. 

Data sharing is currently fragmented as a result of outdated technology, not in line with industry published standards, inefficient agreements, and non-harmonized data. This has hindered the ability of healthcare and public health professionals to rapidly collect and share essential data to inform action. 

Essential data must be able to flow seamlessly across the public health ecosystem to better inform communities, provide faster outbreak detection, respond to public health threats, and reduce burden on healthcare and public health professionals. 

CDC and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) jointly lead the federal public health interoperability strategy. Together, we will provide the tools, support, and information to ensure timely and secure sharing of data that is usable for public health action without unnecessary effort and complexity.  

CDC and ONC are collaborating on a multipronged approach that will: 

Establish a universal floor 

• Through incentives, we will support healthcare and public health baseline IT capabilities to sharing electronic health data 
• Through uniform data elements in USCDI and USCDI+, we are working to prioritize and harmonize the data most crucial to public health  
• Through a network-of-networks (TEFCA), we will simplify and improve the timeliness and efficiency of interoperability across the country.

Accelerate progress 

• Through Implementation Centers, we will provide direct technical assistance to health departments to drive progress farther and faster 
• Through FHIR data standards, we will ensure data can be understood and reused as conditions change 
• Through improved agreements, we will establish trust and maintain flexibility to share data across the health system