Health and Human Services Council
U.S. public and private healthcare and health services organizations increasingly understand the necessity to implement secure technology to curb waste, fraud and abuse and increase the user convenience. Implementing secure technologies supports a wide array of use cases including the adoption and convergence of EMV technology for medical payments, the promotion of a strong authentication solution for Medicare and Medicaid, improved patient identification and record matching, and security solutions that allow providers to focus on improved quality of patient care.
Healthcare breaches continue to sacrifice personal identification information to unauthorized sources and question the role that security and identity management play in the market. Strong authentication solutions allow organizations – including hospitals, clinics and supporting offices – to reduce costs, streamline workflow and increase security, enabling a renewed focus on patient-centered care. Issuing a single, secure, multi-purpose credential will:
- Support both identity and payment
- Be portable across a variety of form factors ranging from cards to mobile phones
- Provide a secure carrier for portable medical records
- Secure access to emergency medical information
- Enable compliance with government initiatives and mandates, outlined by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC), the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) and the National Strategy for Trusted Identities in Cyberspace (NSTIC).
Healthcare is complex. The mission of the Health and Human Services Council is to organize thought leaders to promote the adoption of secure technologies in accordance with industry-leading standards. The Health and Human Service Council fosters an environment that allows subject matter experts, including payers, providers and technologists, to work together to educate and promote the adoption of secure technologies through product- and service-agnostic white papers, presentations and discussions.
Health & Human Services Council Activities
The Health & Human Services Council activities stimulate the understanding, adoption and widespread acceptance of single and multi-application secure technologies for organizations with a healthcare focus – hospitals, payers, providers and those with an interest in healthcare. Activities include:
- Providing educational resources for health and human services organizations, consumers, government organizations and members to promote the deployment of secure technologies and privacy standards;
- Identifying the challenges and opportunities in the emerging health and human services marketplace that can be supported by secure technology;
- Promoting the development and use of standards for health and human services applications
- Educating members on new opportunities, industry trends and advancements in technology and the healthcare industry
- Hosting guest speakers who provide educational briefings on various topics and promote discussions
- Providing opportunities to present and attend conferences related to healthcare security and privacy
Council Resources
Publications
- Benefits of Smart Cards versus Magnetic Stripe Cards for Healthcare Applications, Smart Card Alliance brief, December 2011
- The Benefits of Strong Authentication for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Smart Card Alliance Health and Human Services Council response, September 2015
- Complementary Smart Card Guidance for the WEDI Health Identification Card Implementation Guide, Smart Card Alliance white paper, October 2011
- Effective Healthcare Identity Management: A Necessary First Step for Improving U.S. Healthcare Information Systems – A Smart Card Alliance Brief for Government Policy Makers and Other Stakeholders, Smart Card Alliance brief, March 2009
- EMV 101 for the Healthcare Industry, Smart Card Alliance Health and Human Services Council white paper, September 2015
- Getting to Meaningful Use and Beyond: How Smart Card Technology Can Support Meaningful Use of Electronic Health Records, Smart Card Alliance white paper, February 2011
- Healthcare 2.0: A New Paradigm for a Secure and Streamlined Healthcare Industry, Smart Card Alliance Health and Human Services Council infographic, April 2016
- A Healthcare CFO’s Guide to Smart Card Technology and Applications, Smart Card Alliance white paper, February 2009
- Healthcare Identity Authentication and Payments Convergence: A Vision for the Healthcare Industry, Smart Card Alliance Health and Human Services Council white paper, February 2016
- Healthcare Identity Management: The Foundation for a Secure and Trusted National Health Information Network, Smart Card Alliance brief, September 2009
- HIPAA Compliance and Smart Cards: Solutions to Privacy and Security Requirements, Smart Card Alliance white paper, September 2003
- Medical Identity Theft in Healthcare, Smart Card Alliance brief, March 2010
- Smart Card Applications in the U.S. Healthcare Industry, Smart Card Alliance white paper, February 2006
- Smart Card Technology in Healthcare: Frequently Asked Questions, Smart Card Alliance document, December 2013
- Smart Cards and Biometrics in Healthcare Identity Applications, Smart Card Alliance white paper, May 2012
- Smart Cards in U.S. Healthcare: Benefits for Patients, Providers and Payers, Smart Card Alliance white paper, February 2007
- Smart Health ID Cards: Addressing Challenges with Patient Identity Management and Authentication Webinar, September 2011
Industry Comments
- Smart Card Alliance Comments: Reboot: Re-Examining the Strategies Needed to Successfully Adopt Health IT, Smart Card Alliance comments submitted on May 16, 2013
- Smart Card Alliance Comments Public Comments on Stage 2 of Meaningful Use, Smart Card Alliance comments submitted to ONC, February 2011
- Smart Card Alliance Response to Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC), Department of Health and Human Services, Request for Information (RFI), “Nationwide Health Information Network: Conditions for Trusted Exchange,” 45 CFR Part 171, June 25, 2012
Other Resources
- Healthcare Identity Resources. This resource page lists Smart Card Alliance reports and industry organizations, resources and news relating to healthcare identity.
- Identity Management in Healthcare, Smart Card Alliance webinar, September 22, 2009
- Medical Identity Theft, Smart Card Alliance webinar, June 8, 2010
For more information about the Health and Human Services Council or for more information on becoming a member of the Alliance, please contact the Alliance office via email at [email protected].