2005 Idaho Code - 56-1054 — HEALTH QUALITY PLANNING

                                  TITLE  56
                        PUBLIC ASSISTANCE AND WELFARE
                                  CHAPTER 10
                       DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND WELFARE
    56-1054.  HEALTH QUALITY PLANNING. (1) It is the intent of the legislature
that the department of health and welfare ("the department") promote improved
quality of care and improved health outcomes through investment in health
information technology and in patient safety and quality initiatives in the
state of Idaho.
    (a)  Coordinated implementation of health information technology in Idaho
    will establish widespread use of networked electronic health information
    or health records to allow quick, reliable and secure access to that
    information in order to promote patient safety and best practices in
    health care. This goal is consistent with the mission of the office of the
    national coordinator for health information technology, established by the
    president of the United States in 2004, to provide leadership for the
    development and nationwide implementation of an interoperable health
    information technology infrastructure to improve the quality and
    efficiency of health care and the ability of consumers to manage their
    care and safety.
    (b)  Coordinated implementation of statewide patient safety standards will
    identify uniform indicators of and standards for clinical quality and
    patient safety as well as uniform requirements for reporting provider
    achievement of those indicators and standards.
    (2)  There is hereby created and established within the department a
health quality planning commission ("the commission").
    (a)  By May 1, 2006, and as needed after that date, the governor shall
    appoint eleven (11) voting members upon assurance of equitable geographic
    and rural representation, comprising members of the public and private
    sectors with expertise in health information technology and clinical
    quality and patient safety. The membership shall represent all major
    participants in the health care delivery and financing systems. A majority
    of the commission shall be health care providers or employees of health
    care providers. One (1) member shall be an Idaho resident representing the
    public interest. The commission chairperson shall be appointed by the
    director of the department.
    (b)  Members of the commission shall be appointed for a term of one (1)
    year. The term of office shall commence on July 1, 2006, and shall expire
    on June 30, 2007.
    (c)  The commission shall meet monthly and at the call of the chairperson.
    (d)  Each member of the commission shall be compensated as provided by
    section 59-509(d), Idaho Code.
    (e)  Upon the occurrence or declaration of a vacancy in the membership of
    the commission, the department shall notify the represented entity of that
    fact in writing and the represented entity shall, within sixty (60) days
    thereafter, nominate at least one (1) and not more than three (3) persons
    to fill the vacancy and shall forward the nominations to the governor, who
    shall appoint from among the nominees a person to be a member of the
    commission to fill the vacancy.
    (f)  Members of the commission may be removed by the governor for
    substantial neglect of duty, gross misconduct in office, or the inability
    to discharge the duties described in this section, after written notice
    and opportunity for response.
    (g)  A majority of the members of the commission shall constitute a quorum
    for the transaction of all business and the carrying out of commission
    duties.
    (3)  The department may dedicate funding to the operations of the
commission, subject to appropriation from the legislature. The department
shall seek federal matching funds and additional private sector funding for
commission operations.
    (4)  The commission shall perform the following duties related to health
information technology planning:
    (a)  Develop and issue a request or requests for proposals from health
    care information and communications technology contractors to perform a
    study on health information technology in Idaho;
    (b)  Award a contract or contracts for the performance of the study to a
    nationally recognized expert or experts in health information technology;
    (c)  Oversee and coordinate contractor performance;
    (d)  Provide quarterly progress reports to the director of the department
    and to the legislative health care task force, including an interim status
    report due to the director and the legislative health care task force by
    November 30, 2006. The final report of the commission shall be due to the
    director and the legislative health care task force on June 30, 2007. The
    final report shall review the contractor study and make recommendations
    regarding implementation of a plan for the creation of a health
    information technology system as described in subsection (4)(f)(ii) of
    this section;
    (e)  Widely disseminate requests, including through electronic media, for
    the active participation of private groups and organizations in the
    development of the plan. Before submitting the final plan to the director
    of the department, the commission shall issue drafts of the plan for
    public review and shall hold at least one (1) public meeting to receive
    public comments on the plan;
    (f)  Develop and submit a final plan that shall include, but not be
    limited to:
         (i)    An analysis of existing health information technology in Idaho
         and of national trends in the development of health information
         technology systems;
         (ii)   A plan for developing a uniform, statewide, flexible and
         interoperable health information technology system to be used by
         providers, patients and payers, including a unique patient identifier
         for all patients;
         (iii)  Identification of all major participants in the health care
         delivery and financing systems that would be affected by the health
         information technology system;
         (iv)   Analysis of the feasibility of incorporating existing
         infrastructure into the recommended system, analysis of improvements
         and additions to the existing infrastructure needed to implement the
         recommended system, and identification of potential obstacles to
         implementation, such as privacy and security laws, and recommended
         solutions;
         (v)    Development of recommended organizational and governance
         structures for implementation and maintenance of the system;
         (vi)   A business plan for financing the development and maintenance
         of the technology system, including identification of government and
         private funding and including consideration of appropriate user fees;
         (vii)  A timetable for implementation of the technology system;
         (viii) A means to assess the measurable ability of the recommended
         system to improve the quality of health care through access to
         reliable, evidence-based current treatment guidelines; and
         (ix)   Provisions to ensure that the system meets the health
         information technology needs of rural Idahoans; and
    (g)  Issue grants to selected providers including, but not limited to,
    primary care providers, in order to support the adoption of health
    information technology. The commission shall develop criteria for the
    selection of grantee providers.
    (5)  The commission shall perform the following duties related to health
quality and patient safety planning, provided that performance of these duties
may include contracting with and supervising independent entities for the
performance of some or all of these duties:
    (a)  Analyze existing clinical quality assurance and patient safety
    standards and reporting;
    (b)  Identify best practices in clinical quality assurance and patient
    safety standards and reporting;
    (c)  Recommend a mechanism or mechanisms for the uniform adoption of
    certain best practices in clinical quality assurance and patient safety
    standards and reporting including, but not limited to, the creation of
    regulatory standards;
    (d)  Recommend a mechanism or mechanisms to promote public understanding
    of provider achievement of clinical quality and patient safety standards;
    (e)  Recommend a sustainable structure for leadership of ongoing clinical
    quality and patient safety improvement in Idaho;
    (f)  Provide quarterly progress reports to the director of the department
    and to the legislative health care task force, including an interim status
    report due to the director and the legislative health care task force by
    November 30, 2006. The final report of the commission shall be due to the
    director and the legislative health care task force on June 30, 2007;
    (g)  Recommend a method of acquiring and analyzing data necessary to
    fulfill the commission's duties as set forth in this section; and
    (h)  Enhance public health through means such as population-based
    epidemiological studies and the maintenance of statistical databases and
    registries, including the creation of a health data authority if
    appropriate, provided that the privacy of individuals shall be maintained
    in all instances where personal identification is not required for public
    health necessity.