Feds Offer Free Software to Share Data
The federal government has released free software that will enable health care organizations to exchange information over the Nationwide Health Information Network in the near future.
The Nationwide Health Information Network (NHIN) is currently under development as a "network of networks," designed to securely link the electronic health records at hospitals, physician offices, pharmacies, payers, and labs.
The new software is designed to be an "on-ramp," allowing different systems to connect to the NHIN once it is fully operational in the next few years. The open source software, called CONNECT, is available online at
The release of the CONNECT software is just a first step, according to the DHHS. At this stage, vendors in the health information technology market are likely to begin examining CONNECT and may integrate some of its elements into their products for health care providers.