Community information exchange (CIE)

In 2024, the Washington State Legislature appropriated funding to the Health Care Authority (HCA) to implement a statewide Community Information Exchange (CIE) program. The CIE program is an initiative funded by the Medicaid Transformation Project (MTP 2.0).

What’s a CIE?

HCA defines CIE as technology that helps a community-based worker coordinate the services of a network of cross-sector social care partners – social service, community, Tribal, government, physical and behavioral health organizations – who commit to delivering social care so that patients have better access to health-related social needs (HRSN) services and the supports they need to improve their health. This secure technology with role-based access and client privacy controls may include:

Resource directories
Client management system including shared client information
Needs assessments
Shared care team information
Closed-loop referral
Referral history and a community record of social supports provided
Event notification
Shared care planning

What will the CIE Program do?

The vision of the CIE program is to improve the statewide delivery of HRSN services to Apple Health clients, integrating delivery across regions. The CIE program’s key objectives are to:

Implement standardization for the exchange of HRSN service delivery data.
Ensure interoperability between state, regional, and local technology systems.
Enable scalability of the efforts of Community Care Hubs in the regions.

The program will support the delivery of HRSN services such as nutrition, housing, and transportation that are coordinated by the regional Community Care Hubs at Washington’s nine Accountable Communities of Health (ACHs). Community-based ACH staff, contracted case managers, and other service providers enable the centralization of HRSN service delivery. The goals of service delivery centralization are to:

Reduce barriers
Reduce duplication of services
Improve health outcomes and quality of care

This will be achieved by establishing policies and governance for information exchange along with a centralized technology infrastructure. The CIE infrastructure will knit together CIE technologies currently used by the ACHs into a statewide system under the direction of the Health and Human Services Enterprise Coalition (HHS Coalition). These technologies include capabilities such as resource directories, client management systems, and closed-loop referrals, among others.

What work has been done?

HCA responded to a 2022 supplemental budget proviso by developing a landscape review and strategic options report for the CIE planning process. The intent of the landscape review was to gather feedback to identify the impacts, priorities, and risks of implementing a statewide CIE strategy. This feedback informed the strategic options for implementing a statewide CIE program.

What's happening now?

HCA is establishing the statewide CIE program in partnership with the Lead Organization (LO), Comagine Health. The LO is currently forming advisory groups and starting community engagement activities. On March 18, we held two sessions of a CIE Kickoff Webinar to provide interested community members with an introduction to the CIE, discuss progress thus far, and present opportunities that lie ahead.

Upcoming activities

The CIE team is working across communities and sectors to gather information and insights. The following table has details on upcoming activities. We invite you to join us at our Public Input Virtual Walk-ins beginning March 26.

CIE activity	Date	More information
Key Informant Interviews	March 2-April 3	Part of a series of private, in-depth conversations with community partners to: Shape care coordination tools Guide technology requirements
Interim Data and Technical Advisory (IDATA) Workgroup meeting	March 19	Closed working session
Federally Qualified Health Centers Focus Group	TBD	Part of a series of private, in-depth conversations with community partners to: Shape care coordination tools Guide technology requirements
Justice Involved Focus Group	TBD	Part of a series of private, in-depth conversations with community partners to: Shape care coordination tools Guide technology requirements
Interim Advisory Committee (IAC) Meeting	March 25	Closed working session
Local Housing Assistance Focus Group	March 26	Part of a series of private, in-depth conversations with community partners to: Shape care coordination tools Guide technology requirements
Managed Care Organizations Focus Group	TBD	Part of a series of private, in-depth conversations with community partners to: Shape care coordination tools Guide technology requirements
Public Input Virtual Walk-in	March 26	Drop in any time between 11 a.m. and noon (no registration required)
Youth, Families, and Households Focus Group	March 27	Part of a series of private, in-depth conversations with community partners to: Shape care coordination tools Guide technology requirements
Interim Data and Technical Advisory (IDATA) Workgroup meeting	March 30	Closed working session
Interim Data and Technical Advisory (IDATA) Workgroup meeting	April 13	Closed working session
Interim Data and Technical Advisory (IDATA) Workgroup meeting	April 30	Closed working session
Human-centered Design Workshop	May 1-8	Closed working session to prioritize key insights from interviews and focus groups.
Interim Data and Technical Advisory (IDATA) Workgroup meeting	May 13	Closed working session
Public Input Virtual Walk-in	May 28	Drop in any time between 11 a.m. and noon (no registration required)
Human-centered Design Workshop	June 24-July 1	Closed working session to prioritize key insights from interviews and focus groups

We want to connect with you!

Let us know if you have questions, comments, or ideas for activities to engage with communities across Washington about the CIE. Please send us an email or send a message through the CIE Public Input Box.

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Additionally, the CIE team is available to speak to organizations, professional societies, community groups, and others about the CIE. Please send us an email to get started.