Information Blocking Claims: By the Numbers (original) (raw)
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Total number of portal submissions received, number of submissions that represent claims of possible information blocking, and number of claims by type of potential actor and type of claimant
Submissions received through the Report Information Blocking Portal.
The 21st Century Cures Act (Cures Act), signed into law by President Obama in December 2016, directed ONC to implement a standardized process for the public to report claims of possible information blocking. This Quick Stats page displays data on claims or suggestions of possible information blocking1 ONC has received through the Report Information Blocking Portal since April 5, 2021 – the applicability date of the information blocking regulations.
To best understand and use the information provided, it will be important to keep the following in mind:
- Information provided about the perspectives of those submitting claims and the types of potential actors alleged to be information blocking is based solely on an ONC analyst’s inference from the facts and allegations as presented by the claimant.
- Any claim ONC receives is simply an allegation or suggestion that information blocking has occurred. Logging a portal submission as a claim does not imply that an investigation has occurred or been started, or that any determination has been made as to whether information blocking has occurred.
- Where a claim alleges or suggests that conduct implicating the information blocking definition in 45 CFR 171.103 could possibly have occurred, any determination as to whether an information blocking actor’s conduct met the information blocking definition or not would require a fact-based, case-by-case investigation and review against all elements of the information blocking definition. To learn more about the information blocking definition and all of its elements, https://healthit.gov/informationblocking is a good place to start. Resources available include fact sheets, recorded webinars, and frequently asked questions about the information blocking regulations.
- The Cures Act authorizes the HHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) to investigate any claim of information blocking.
Information on submissions received through the Report Information Blocking Portal2
| Total number of information blocking portal submissions received | 1,239 |
|---|---|
| Total number of possible claims of information blocking | 1,162 |
| Total number of submissions received that did not appear to be claims of potential information blocking3 | 77 |
Claims Counts by Types of Claimant
- "Type of Claimant" in this context categorizes the individual or entity that submitted the claim of possible information blocking.
- Within a given claim, the claimant may be identified by more than one category.
- “Patient” in this context means an individual who appears to be seeking or to have sought access to their electronic health information.
- The “Attorney” label is added to a claim in addition to one of the other types of claimant categories. For example, a claim submitted by someone describing themself as an attorney on behalf of their client, who is a patient, would be counted in both the "Patient" and "Attorney" type of claimant categories.
- A “Health Care Provider” claimant is one who describes themselves as such in the claim, or who an analyst infers, based on what they state in the claim, could potentially meet the definition of health care provider in 45 CFR 171.102.
- A claim from a "Third Party on Patient's Behalf" is one that reads as having been submitted by someone other than the patient who is not presenting or describing themself as an attorney. For example, a claim submitted by the parent of a patient on the patient's behalf would be counted in this category.
- A “Health IT Developer” claimant is one who describes themselves as such, or otherwise appears from what is stated in the claim to develop health information technology (as “health information technology” is defined in 42 U.S.C. 300jj(5)).
- “Unknown” means ONC analysts were not able to infer the type of claimant from the facts and allegations as presented in the claim.
- An HIN/HIE claimant is one who describes themselves as such in the claim, or who an analyst infers, based on what they state in the claim, could potentially meet the definition of a health information network or health information exchange in 45 CFR 171.102.
Claims Counts by Potential Actor
- "Potential Actor" in this context refers to the individual(s) or entity/entities that the claimant alleges to be information blocking.
- To date, there is at least one (1) potential actor identified with each claim of possible information blocking that ONC has received.
- A potential “Health Care Provider” actor is an individual or entity who is described as such in the claim, or who an analyst infers, based on what the claimant states in the claim, could potentially meet the definition of health care provider in 45 CFR 171.102.
- “CHPL-listed Health IT Developer” means the claim alleges possible information blocking by a Health IT Developer of Certified Health IT that is listed in the “Developer” column of the Certified Health IT Product List.
- "Non-Actor" means that the individual(s) or entity/entities alleged by the claimant to be possibly information blocking does not appear to potentially fall within any of the defined categories of information blocking actors. One example of a “non-actor” would be a company described as providing internet services where there is no indication or suggestion that the company also does anything that could cause it to meet the definition of a HIN/HIE or “health IT developer of certified health IT” as defined in 45 CFR 171.102.
- “Unknown” means a particular type of potential actor could not be inferred from the facts and allegations as presented by the claimant.
- “Non-CHPL-listed Health IT Developer” means the claim identifies an entity that is not listed in the “Developer” column of the Certified Health IT Product List but the entity appears from the facts and allegations as presented by the claimant to develop or offer health information technology (as that term is defined in 42 U.S.C. 300jj(5)).
- A potential HIN/HIE actor is an entity that is described as such in the claim, or who an analyst infers, based on what the claimant states in the claim, could potentially meet the definition of a health information network or health information exchange in 45 CFR 171.102.
Footnote:
[1]42 U.S.C. § 300jj–52: Any information that is received by the National Coordinator in connection with a claim or suggestion of possible information blocking and that could reasonably be expected to facilitate identification of the source of the information—(A) shall not be disclosed by the National Coordinator except as may be necessary to carry out the purpose of this section; (B) shall be exempt from mandatory disclosure under section 552 of title 5, as provided by subsection (b)(3) of such section; And (C) may be used by the Inspector General or Federal Trade Commission for reporting purposes to the extent that such information could not reasonably be expected to facilitate identification of the source of such information.
[2] From April 5, 2021 – December 31, 2024.
[3] Examples of submissions that did not appear to be claims of possible information blocking include general policy questions and submissions with a description field containing random text.