SOUTH EAST MICHIGAN HEALTH INFORMATION EXCHANGE (SEMHIE) WINS $2, 988, 000 CONTRACT FOR ELECTRONIC MEDICAL RECORDS FROM U.S. SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION”

April 22, 2010

Categories: Press Releases

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Detroit, Michigan, April 22, 2010 — The South East Michigan Health Information Exchange (SEMHIE) announced today that it has won a $2, 988, 000 contract for an Electronic Medical Records (EMR) initiative from the U.S. Government’s Social Security Administration (SSA). This award comes to SEMHIE in partnership with its Fiduciary, Southeastern Michigan Health Association (SEMHA), and its collaborative partners Sun Microsystems, CNSI, the Object Management Group™ (OMG™), and Computer Sciences Corporation.

Detroit, Michigan, April 22, 2010 — The South East Michigan Health Information Exchange (SEMHIE) announced today that it has won a $2, 988, 000 contract for an Electronic Medical Records (EMR) initiative from the U.S. Government’s Social Security Administration (SSA). This award comes to SEMHIE in partnership with its Fiduciary, Southeastern Michigan Health Association (SEMHA), and its collaborative partners Sun Microsystems, CNSI, the Object Management Group™ (OMG™), and Computer Sciences Corporation. The funds will be used to automate the process of filing Social Security disability insurance claims in the Detroit Metro Region, and accelerate the process from 457 days on average to six hours. Once received – decisions on these claims can be made by SSA in days – providing disabled citizens financial support on a timely basis while bringing increased federal dollars to the Detroit area faster.

On the larger scale, the infrastructure of this health information exchange will provide the start of the process for creating a comprehensive health information exchange for South East Michigan. The funds from this contract award will enable two major hospital systems that are collaborative partner members of SEMHIE, Henry Ford Health System and Oakwood Healthcare System, to link their systems to the Nationwide Health Information Network (NHIN). Ultimately, when additional funding is procured, the other four major hospital systems in the Detroit Metro area are expected to use the same infrastructure to provide a similar service.Michael J. Astrue, Commissioner of Social Security, announced that 15 healthcare providers and health information exchange networks received $17.4 million in contract awards to provide electronic medical records to the agency under the program.

The funds allocated to SEMHIE represent 17.2% of all funds awarded nationwide under the program and two times more funds than any other health information exchange awarded contracts.”Using health information technology will improve our disability programs and provide better service to the public, ” Commissioner Astrue said. “We’ve seen a significant increase in disability applications. To process them, the agency sends more than 15 million requests annually for medical records to healthcare providers. This largely paperbound workload is generally the most time-consuming part of the disability decision process. The use of health IT will dramatically improve the speed, accuracy, and efficiency of this process, reducing the cost of making a disability decision for both the medical community and the American taxpayer.”The contract awards are funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). They will require awardees, with a patient’s authorization, to send SSA the specific electronic medical records through the NHIN.

The NHIN, a safe and secure method for receiving access to electronic medical records over the Internet, is an initiative of the Department of Health and Human Services supported by multiple government agencies and private sector entities.SEMHIE’s strategic IT collaborative partners in the SSA project include Sun Microsystems, CNSI and Computer Sciences Corporation. These are three of the four entities which built the NHIN for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The top scientists and architects at Sun and CNSI worked with SEMHIE’s experts, including Program Manager Michael M. Talley, to architect the solution proposed to SSA. This solution incorporates a state of the art Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) and advanced mapping technology based on the Model Driven Message Interoperability™ (MDMI™) Standard of OMG.OMG Chairman & CEO Richard Mark Soley, Ph.D., stated, “The OMG is pleased to be a part of the SEMHIE team that will provide the first of many innovative solutions for the citizens of Michigan and the SSA. Their insight that SOA architectures need to incorporate open standards from OMG is to be commended. I am confident that the OMG MDMI Standard will provide great benefit to not only SEMHIE, but that these efforts will be leveraged to provide value to the entire U.S. healthcare community.” Michael M. Talley, who holds the triple roles of SEMHIE’s Treasurer, SSA Program Manager, and a member of the Board of Directors stated, “It is gratifying to receive this substantial support from the federal government to assist us in bringing our plans to life. I also want to thank University Bank President & CEO Stephen Lange Ranzini for the bank’s substantial donation of in-kind financial assistance to SEMHIE which made this contract from SSA possible. I am very pleased that Oracle joined our Social Security proposal, which was successful.”Mr. Ranzini, stated, “Healthcare information exchange is critically important in helping solve the long-standing problems that have hindered the manufacturing industry in Michigan and contributed to the loss of one million jobs in Michigan since April 2000.

Mr. Talley’s efforts in the health information exchange industry have been supported by University Bank as a community reinvestment activity. The bank is providing SEMHIE with free office and conference meeting space to support SEMHIE’s efforts. In my role as President of the Ann Arbor Economic Development Corporation I have also donated substantial time to mentor SEMHIE through this critical time during its start-up phase.”Shailesh Patel, CNSI’s Senior Vice President of Corporate Development added “CNSI is excited to be a part of the team that is improving disability determinations for the citizens in Michigan, where we have successfully implemented the State’s replacement Medicaid system. We are also pleased to be aiding the SSA’s utilization of the NHIN and feel that getting the southeast Michigan providers online will greatly reduce the cost and complexity of integrating additional providers to this HIE platform, thus accelerating adoption overall.”Helen Hill, SEMHIE Co-Program Manager for Public Private Initiatives, and Henry Ford Health System Director of IT Consulting and HIE, stated, “SEMHIE is pleased to partner with the Social Security Administration on this innovative project that will provide great benefit to the economically and medically distressed residents of Southeast Michigan by dramatically reducing the average wait time for a decision on eligibility for disability.

This project will advance health information exchange significantly in this region, providing standards-based interoperability between major integrated healthcare delivery systems and an agency of the federal government using NHIN Connect. This is a good first step toward achieving meaningful use under ARRA for our region’s and our state’s providers. Henry Ford Health System, a founding member of SEMHIE, is very proud to be a project participant. This is the first of many public-private initiatives for SEMHIE as we move toward full implementation of our neutral, trusted health information exchange.”Karen Schmidt, SEMHIE Director of Medical Services, and Henry Ford Health System Director of Medical Record Services, stated, “Throughout the years Henry Ford Health System (HFHS) has partnered with Michigan Disability Determination, Social Security Administration to streamline the processes for providing medical records in order to benefit our mutual customers (the patients). The importance of the e-Disability Claims Project will enable HFHS to provide patient information much faster on the 12, 000+ requests received annually; thus providing Disability Determination the ability to make faster determinations for our disabled citizens. Not only will this benefit the Michigan citizens it is also a win / win situation by simplifying the HFHS staff work load, and reducing the variance by providing standardized structure data to Disability Determination.”Paula Fusco Smith, SVP & CIO of Oakwood Healthcare System and the Vice Chairman of the board of SEMHIE stated, “This is a great step for Southeast Michigan and the SEMHIE organization. Oakwood is excited about being one of the leading health systems to initiate the health information exchange between the healthcare providers and Social Security Administration.”For the last year, Social Security has been successfully testing health IT to obtain electronic medical records.

Disability applications processed with electronic medical records from the test sites in Massachusetts and Virginia have significantly reduced processing times. Some decisions are now made in days, instead of weeks or months. SSA expects to receive more than 3.3 million applications in fiscal year (FY) 2010, a 27 percent increase over FY 2008.The full text announcement of the contract awards from the SSA is available at: http://www.socialsecurity.gov/pressoffice/pr/nhin0210-pr.htm

ABOUT SOUTH EAST MICHIGAN HEALTH INFORMATION EXCHANGE (SEMHIE)

Southeast Michigan Health Information Exchange is a diverse 60+-member non-profit multi-stakeholder consortium whose membership includes four major health systems (including Henry Ford Health System, St. John Health System, Oakwood Healthcare System and Trinity Health), payers, employers, providers, quality organizations, safetynet providers and healthcare professional associations. SEMHIE will leverage existing and additional technologies across health care settings to improve information process flow, continuity of care, and to accelerate improvement in the quality and safety of care. By decreasing costs while improving the quality of care, SEMHIE will become a selfsustaining health information exchange serving Southeast Michigan. For more information see www.semhie.org, or contact Dr. Robert Jackson at rjacksonwwp@gmail.com or 313-386-5500.

ABOUT SOUTHEASTER MICHIGAN HEALTH ASSOCIATION

The Southeastern Michigan Health Association (SEMHA) is a nonprofit corporation, 501(c)(3), dedicated to assisting local health agencies with the development and implementation of health and related programs within the southeastern Michigan region. SEMHA provides planning, organizational development and financial management services to agencies allowing them to more rapidly develop and implement service delivery while developing fiscal capability. For more information see www.semha.org, or contact Gary Petroni at gpetroni@semha.org or (313) 873-6500.ABOUT ORACLE Oracle is the world’s most complete, open, and integrated business software and hardware systems company. For more information about Oracle, please visit our Web site at http://www.oracle.com.Contact: Catharin EvansPhone: (703) 244-1994Email: catharin.evans@oracle.com

ABOUT CNSI

CNSI is a leading provider of technology-enabled solutions that accelerate business transformation. CNSI partners with its clients to align, build, and manage a continuum of technology solutions that improve process efficiencies and streamline operations. Our professionals have built a reputation for understanding what it takes to help clients align IT with their mission and business objectives. As the industry’s preeminent supplier of Medicaid replacement systems, CNSI has a unique combination of healthcare competency and the technology expertise needed to develop and host very large-scale transaction processing systems. CNSI has establishing itself as an innovative provider of web-centric healthcare solutions that leverage the latest technologies. For more information, please visit www.cns-inc.com. Contact: Kaksha Merchant Phone: +1 (301) 634-4570 Email: kaksha.merchant@cns-inc.com

ABOUT OBJECT MANAGEMENT GROUP (OMG)

OMG™ is an international, open membership, not-for-profit computer industry standards consortium. OMG Task Forces develop enterprise integration standards for a wide range of technologies and an even wider range of industries. OMG’s modeling standards, including the Unified Modeling Language™ (UML®), Model Driven Architecture® (MDA®), and Model Driven Message Interoperability (MDMI), enable powerful visual design, execution and maintenance of software and other processes, including IT and Systems Modeling, and Business Process. OMG’s middleware standards and profiles are based on the Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA®) and support a wide variety of industries. For more information, visit www.omg.org. Contact: Stephanie Covert Phone: (843) 737-0637 Email: pr@omg.org

ABOUT COMPUTER SCIENCES CORPORATION

CSC is a global leader in providing technology-enabled solutions and services through three primary lines of business. These include Business Solutions & Services, the Managed Services Sector and the North American Public Sector. CSC’s advanced capabilities include system design and integration, information technology and business process outsourcing, applications software development, Web and application hosting, mission support and management consulting. Headquartered in Falls Church, VA., CSC has approximately 92, 000 employees and reported revenue of $16.0 billion for the 12 months ended January 1, 2010. For more information, visit the company’s Web Site at www.csc.com.Contact: Chris Grandis, Media Relations Director, Corporate Phone: 703-641-2316 Email: cgrandis@csc.com

ABOUT HENRY FORD HEALTH SYSTEM

Henry Ford Health System is one of the nation’s leading comprehensive, integrated health systems. It provides financing and health care delivery, including acute, specialty, primary and preventive care services backed by excellence in research and education. Founded in 1915 by auto pioneer Henry Ford, it is committed to improving the health and well-being of a diverse community. Henry Ford Health System is also a tobacco-free organization. Henry Ford Health System is a Michigan not-for-profit corporation governed by a 24-member Board of Trustees. Advisory and affiliate boards comprising 150 Trustee volunteer leaders provide vital links to the communities served by the System. Henry Ford Health System is managed by President and Chief Executive Officer Nancy Schlichting. For more information visit www.henryfordhealth.org.Contact: Helen Hill Phone: (734) 546-3317 Email: hhill1@hfhs.org

ABOUT OAKWOOD HEALTHCARE SYSTEM

Founded in 1953 and headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, Oakwood Healthcare System is a comprehensive regional healthcare network that serves residents over a 500 square mile area. Comprised of four acute care hospitals, 45 primary and specialty care sites and four centers of excellence, Oakwood provides services to more than one million people in 35 communities. As the second largest employer in suburban Wayne County, Oakwood is home to more than 9, 000 employees and 1, 300 physicians representing nearly every medical and surgical specialty and subspecialty. Oakwood has been recognized as one of the nation’s top 100 Integrated Healthcare Networks and as one of Metro Detroit’s Best and Brightest Companies to Work For. For more information about Oakwood, visit www.oakwood.org.Contact: Paula Rivera-Kerr, Manager of Media Relations Phone: 313-791-4817 Email: riverap@oakwood.org

ABOUT UNIVERSITY BANK

Ann Arbor-based University Bancorp owns 100% of University Bank which, together with its subsidiaries, holds and manages a total of over $8.4 billion in loans and assets. University Bank is an FDIC-insured, locally owned and managed community bank. Founded in 1890, University Bank® is proud to be selected as the “Community Bankers of the Year” by U.S. Banker magazine, the recipient of the American Bankers Association’s 2009 Community Bank Award and as one of the 12 fastest growing businesses in the Ann Arbor region by the regional economic development agency Ann Arbor SPARK. University Bank President Stephen Lange Ranzini currently serves as the President of the Ann Arbor Economic Development Corporation. For more information see www.university-bank.com Contact: University Bank & Ann Arbor Economic Development Corporation, Stephen Lange Ranzini, President and CEO Phone: 734-741-5858, Ext. 226 Email: ranzini@university-bank.com