HP Wins $30 Million Texas Medicaid ContractHP Wins $30 Million Texas Medicaid Contract

17 Leading EHR Vendors

HP has signed a multi-year technology services agreement worth $30 million with the Texas Health and Human Services Commission to build a statewide Medicaid health information exchange (HIE) and e-prescribing network.

Announced Wednesday, the 52-month contract calls for the replacement of the current paper-based Medicaid identification cards with plastic magnetic strip cards for automated eligibility verification, as well as the creation of an electronic health history system for all Medicaid clients.

Under the contract, HP will also develop Web-based tools to make it easier for physicians to access health information. The new system will also help the commission improve prescription services which will provide Medicaid recipients with better access to their health information.

Susan Arthur, VP of U.S. healthcare at HP Enterprise Services, said in a statement that the technology will help Texas provide cost-effective healthcare solutions. "States need to improve health outcomes and enable better access to healthcare records," Arthur said.

The enhancements include:

-- Permanent ID Cards: HP will replace monthly distributed individual paper Medicaid ID cards with permanent plastic cards for more than 3 million Medicaid recipients. By taking this action, the state expects to recover its technology investment in less than three years.

-- Provider Web Portal: HP will create a solution for more than 70,000 Medicaid providers to give them access to Medicaid recipients' health histories via an electronic HIE network. As providers access the information they need, they can make better-informed care decisions for Medicaid recipients, especially when seeing a patient for the first time.

-- E-prescribing: Providers will have access to a Web-based e-prescribing tool, allowing doctors to send electronic prescriptions directly to patients' pharmacies. This is designed to assist in minimizing medical errors, reduce prescription abuse, increase patient convenience, and trim administrative costs. The new system can identify and flag certain prescriptions with dosages that may exceed safety recommendations or drugs that could react adversely with other medications prescribed to a patient.

--Recipient Care Web Portal: HP will develop a Web site for recipients to access their personal health information and check program eligibility. Recipients will be more informed and can play a more active role in managing their own health, as well as the health of their families. The system will include automated messaging capability that will provide reminders to clients about the availability of periodic services. The HP infrastructure is designed to support the commission's efforts to meet expected increases in the Medicaid recipient population in a secure, reliable, and cost-effective manner.

HP executives said the solution will be powered by InterComponentWare's eHealth Framework, an extensible and interoperable platform technology that will enable the creation of a common patient health history across the state.

The HIE will complement federal healthcare reform initiatives and meaningful use regulations, and will offer a secure mechanism for providers to access to patients' personal health information.

Protection of personal health information is mandated by state and federal regulations, and HP said the new system will include a roles-based security model that will enable the state to control access and privileges within the system.