New programs, new ideas

This seems to be the week for launching new programs.

A group called the Electronic Healthcare Network Accreditation Commission is going to start accrediting ASPs and other hosted EHR systems. Government Health IT has a story, which asks the obvious question of whether this will compete or complement the efforts of the Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology, but doesn’t exactly answer it.

Health EDI firm Edifecs has started HIPAApedia. I think that one is self-explanatory, but here is the press release.

But the big news so far this week is the Markle Foundation has come up with a framework document for discussing and defining “meaningful use,” which is the standards by which providers will qualify for health IT funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.