Today, the 做厙TV (NAM) released guidance on outlining how a cohesive, comprehensive digital and data architecture can address persistent interoperability challenges across the health ecosystem. The paper also identifies concrete actions to align stakeholders and establish long-term strategies for implementing a seamless national digital architecture that can revolutionize the potential health gains from a system that continually learns and improvesa learning health system.泭
Much of todays society runs on interconnected digital data,泭from global communications and financial transactions to retail and泭logistics. Yet the health sector continues to lag in building the robust digital infrastructure needed to fully泭promote and capture the benefits of泭innovation. This gap constrains progress in efficiency, access, prevention, diagnosis, treatment, discovery, and public health. A strong digital and data architecture would provide the foundation for seamless information exchange and true interoperability, accelerate innovation, ensure that providers, payers, and patients can access the right information at the right time, and reduce fragmentation across the health care ecosystem.泭
Architecture is more than a technical specificationit is the foundation for breaking down silos and unlocking system-wide impact, said泭Peter Lee,泭President of Microsoft Research泭and泭co-author of the 做厙TVpaper. It signals a commitment to a clear, adaptable roadmap for the future.泭
Standardized, well-designed infrastructure is essential to enable seamless data flow across disparate systems. Without a coherent data architecture, organizations risk fragmented technologies that impede care delivery. A strong data architecture reduces duplication, lowers costs, and supports more efficient, high-quality care. This framework泭aligns泭well泭with the泭aims of the泭Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)泭initiatives泭to modernize and strengthen the nations digital health ecosystem:泭CMS Health Technology Ecosystem initiative and CMS Aligned Networks.泭
CMSs Health Technology Ecosystem is demonstrating how an active convener can accelerate implementationaligning technical standards, incentives, and workflows across hundreds of organizations, said Aneesh Chopra,泭Chairman泭of the Arcadia Institute and泭former (and first) Chief Technology Officer of the United States. This paper offers a path to reinforce that progress as durable national infrastructure.泭
In a complementary project, the 做厙TVis also developing a forthcoming publication on泭positioning泭health data泭as an essential public泭utilitybuilding泭on the architectural foundation outlined in this paper. That publication will泭articulate a comprehensive, multilevel strategy for data stewardship, governance, and regulation through a roadmap泭to the establishment of泭health data as a trusted泭and泭secure泭resource for泭continuous泭health system泭learning and improvement.泭
Read the 做厙TVDiscussion Paper: /perspectives/toward-a-national-health-digital-and-data-architecture-laying-the-foundation-for-digital-transformation/https://doi.org/10.31478/202603b
This paper is the first in a series produced by the 做厙TVs Commission on Investment Imperatives for a Healthy Nation. Established to reimagine a US health care system泭that puts people first, the Commission will release泭additional泭papers over the coming year outlining its泭vision for a new health system, the priorities that must be addressed, and the actions needed to turn that vision into reality.泭Authored by experts assembled under the charge of the 做厙TV, the泭paper was completed with support from泭Healing Works Foundation, Doris Duke Foundation,泭and泭the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation. The views presented are those of individual contributors and do not泭represent泭formal consensus positions of the sponsoring organizations, authors organizations, the 做厙TV, or the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.泭
