Work to improve shift data from manual processes is part of Availity’s ongoing efforts to reduce care gaps as outlined in recent industry resource
JACKSONVILLE, Fla.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Availity, the nation’s largest health information network, today announced its participation in the National Committee for Quality Assurance’s (NCQA) Data Quality Solutions Implementation Beta, an industry initiative exploring how standards-based clinical data quality assessment can support the healthcare industry’s transition from manual, point-in-time verification toward more scalable digital quality measurement. Through the program, participants are evaluating how proposed HEDIS® Data Quality Specifications can be translated into machine-readable logic and implemented programmatically at scale.
As health plans and providers increasingly rely on structured clinical data to support quality programs, one of healthcare’s biggest challenges remains ensuring that information is complete, accurate and usable. Data quality issues can affect quality reporting, care gap closure efforts, and confidence in measurement results. NCQA’s Data Quality Solutions initiative is designed to help organizations evaluate clinical data quality using a consistent, standards-based framework.
“We continue to spend too much time figuring out whether information can be trusted and not enough time acting on it,” said Russ Thomas, CEO of Availity. “Participating in this beta will help the industry explore a more consistent approach to measuring clinical data quality. Healthcare is going to rely more heavily on digital quality measurement, so we need greater confidence in the data that powers it.”
Availity’s participation builds on the company’s broader work helping health plans and providers improve the flow of clinical information across the healthcare ecosystem. In its recently released eBook, The Missing Link Between Care Delivery and Gap Closure, Availity explores how many open care gaps stem not from missing care, but from missing or unusable evidence that never reaches the quality measurement systems.
“Quality improvement increasingly depends on making evidence work across the healthcare system, not simply identifying more gaps,” said Madeline Hasegawa, Senior Product Manager at Availity. “This beta will help evaluate how standards-based data quality assessment could support the industry’s move toward digital quality measurement. By identifying data quality issues earlier, organizations may be better positioned to distinguish unprovided care from missing or unusable evidence.”
Connecting Quality Measures to Closing Care Gaps
To learn more about how health plans can improve care gap closure by making evidence work across the healthcare system, download Availity’s eBook, The Missing Link Between Care Delivery and Gap Closure. The eBook examines the distinction between missing care and missing evidence and explores how better evidence exchange can support quality performance and care gap resolution.
About Availity
Availity empowers payers and providers to deliver transformative patient experiences by enabling the seamless exchange of clinical, administrative, and financial information. As the nation’s largest real-time health information network, Availity develops intelligent, automated, and interoperable solutions that foster collaboration and shared value across the healthcare ecosystem. With connections to over 95% of payers, more than 3 million providers, and over 2,000 trading partners, Availity provides mission-critical connectivity to drive the future of healthcare innovation. For more information, including an online demonstration, please visit www.availity.com or call 1.800.AVAILITY (282.4548). Follow us on LinkedIn or follow up on Substack at The In-Between.
About NCQA
NCQA is a private, nonprofit organization dedicated to improving health care quality. NCQA Accredits and Certifies a wide range of health care organizations. It also Recognizes clinicians and practices in key areas of performance. NCQA’s Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS®) is the most widely used performance measurement tool in health care. NCQA’s website (ncqa.org) contains information to help consumers, employers and others make informed health care choices. NCQA can also be found at Twitter/X @ncqa and on LinkedIn at linkedin.com/company/ncqa.
HEDIS® is a registered trademark of the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA).
More Information
What is Availity’s role in NCQA’s Data Quality Solutions Implementation Beta?
Availity is participating in the beta to help evaluate how NCQA’s proposed HEDIS® Data Quality Specifications can be translated into machine-readable logic and applied programmatically at scale.
Why does clinical data quality matter for digital quality measurement?
Digital quality measurement depends on clinical information that is complete, accurate, and usable. A consistent, standards-based approach can help organizations identify data issues earlier, before they affect reporting, analytics, or other downstream workflows.
Why is Availity participating?
Availity operates across payer, provider, administrative, and clinical-data environments. Participation provides an opportunity to contribute real-world implementation insights and explore how standards-based data quality assessment could work within existing healthcare workflows.
How does this connect to closing care gaps?
An open care gap does not always mean recommended care did not occur. Sometimes the evidence is missing, incomplete, unusable, or has not reached the quality measurement system. Improving the quality and movement of that evidence can help organizations better understand why a gap remains open.
What should health plans focus on now?
Health plans should consider both measurement readiness and evidence readiness: where evidence originates, how it is captured and validated, whether it can be trusted, and whether it can move to the people and systems that need it.
Where can readers learn more?
Download Availity’s eBook, The Missing Link Between Care Delivery and Gap Closure, to explore how evidence exchange, provider workflow and data usability can support care gap resolution.
Contacts
Media Contact
Megan Smith
Availity
Sr. Public Relations Manager
[email protected]
