Official State-wide Health Information Exchange (Connie)

FAQs

  • The Requirement to Connect with Connie
    • What is Connie?
      Answer:

      Connie is Connecticut’s designated statewide health information exchange (HIE), established pursuant to Connecticut General Statue § 17b-59d.  Connie is an optional benefit for residents and was created to promote patient-centered care, empower consumers to make effective health care decisions, reduce waste and duplicative services, support clinical decision-making, maintain the security of confidential health information, improve the quality, safety and value of health care, and make progress toward public health goals.  Connie provides a confidential way of sharing health information electronically, allowing health care providers to view their patients’/clients’ up-to=date clinical information to provide informed, holistic patient care.

    • Who must connect with Connie?
      Answer:

      Connecticut General Statute § 17b-59e requires all Connecticut licensed health care providers to begin the process of connecting to and participating in Connecticut’s HIE (Connie) including, all individuals, corporations, facilities, and institutions that provide health care services, regardless of how a patient pays for services. 

    • When is the deadline to connect with Connie? Are Behavioral Health Providers expected to comply with the deadline?
      Answer:

      Connecticut General Statue § 17b-59e requires that hospitals and labs begin the process of connecting with Connie by May 3, 2022, while all other health care providers begin the process of connecting with Connie by May 3, 2023. Behavioral Health Providers are also expected to begin the process of connecting to Connie by May 3, 2023. 

    • What does it mean to “begin the process of connecting” with Connie?
      Answer:

      All health care providers must submit a Commitment to Connect form electronically, providing basic information about the providers’ business organization. No health care data is exchanged when a provider submits this form.

    • What will happen after Behavioral Health providers submit the Commitment to Connect form?
      Answer:

      After a Commitment to Connect form is submitted, providers will receive an initial acknowledgment from Connie. An Account Manager will be assigned to each provider and assist in completing their connection to Connie. 

  • Patient Privacy, Data Sharing and Behavioral Health provider obligations for purposes of Connie
    • What specific data and information will be included in the mental health records submitted to Connie?
      Answer:

      Connecticut General Statue § 17b-59e(c) requires that health care providers begin the process of connecting to the HIE within 2 years of commencement. Connie, the designated state HIE will receive data that is shared by providers in accordance with Federal and State laws. Consistent with HIPAA, a patient’s data that is provided to Connie, may be shared with their treating providers.

      Based on federal and state laws, behavioral health care providers may supply administrative information and demographic information about their patients (either through the submission of a patient panel or interfaces of scheduling data or patient registration data [HL7 SIU or ADT]), and clinical data summarizing episodes of care for their patients or progress notes (typically a CCD message). If a behavioral health care provider maintains psychotherapy notes as defined by HIPAA, Connie would not expect that such notes would be provided to Connie because such notes are not part of a patient's medical record.

    • What are examples of patient data that Behavioral Health Providers may share with Connie? What patient data should Behavior Health Providers not share with Connie?
      Answer:

      The following chart lists examples of what the official statewide HIE would be interested in collecting from behavioral health providers as part of care coordination, as well as examples of what should not be shared with Connie. All providers must check with their specific licensure regulations to determine specialized privacy rules beyond HIPAA, in accordance with the regulations governing their specific license, certification, and/or specialty.

       

      HIE DATA OF INTEREST

      DO NOT SHARE

      Patient List

      Psychotherapy notes (HIPAA*)

      Symptoms and Diagnosis

      Therapist Observations

      Summary of Treatment Plan

      Therapist questions for research

      Summary of Progress

      Therapist thoughts about session

      Prescribed Medications

      Therapist hypotheses before diagnosis

      Discharge Summary

      Court-sealed, non-treatment forensic services

      Billing Information

      (e.g. CPT codes/insurance codes)

      Federal or State legally protected data

      (e.g. FERPA, CGA Chapter 899, 42 CFR Part 2**)

      Diagnosis Codes

      (e.g. CD10 codes)

      Event details or circumstances relating to symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, progress.

      Any patient consented data that will help in the holistic care and treatment of the patient, alongside patient’s other providers.

      Any information that requires patient consent under federal and state law, in which your patient/client does not consent to.

      *Behavioral health providers should not include “psychotherapy notes” a term under HIPAA meaning “notes recorded (in any medium) by a health care provider who is a mental health professional documenting or analyzing the contents of conversation during a private counseling session or group, joint, or family counseling session and that are separated from the rest of the individual’s medical record.” HIPAA excludes the following from the definition of “psychotherapy notes”: “medication prescription and monitoring, counseling session start and stop times, the modalities and frequencies of treatment furnished, results of clinical tests, and any summary of the following items: Diagnosis, functional status, the treatment plan, symptoms, prognosis, and progress to date.”  45 CFR § 164.501

      **Certain health care provider specialists may be obliged to additional federal and state privacy laws that govern their specific license, such as substance use disorder (SUD) treatment known as 42 CFR Part 2, which requires affirmative consent from the patient before disclosure to, and through Connie.

       


    • Who can see the patient/client information in Connie?
      Answer:

      Access to an individual’s data is determined by the care relationship a provider has with a patient/client. Patients/clients may view the history of who has accessed their individual data by requesting an Accounting of Disclosures from Connie. All access is tracked, and all providers are subject to being internally audited by Connie.

      Like most health care provider organizations today, Connie does participate in national health network exchanges, and shares data with other HIEs within the state. Consistent with HIPAA and state and federal laws, a treating provider in another state may query Connie for critical health care information if a Connecticut patient seeks care out of state. Similarly, a patient’s Connecticut provider may be able to access data on care that their patient received out of state.

    • How are health data privacy concerns addressed by Connie?
      Answer:

      Connie complies with all federal and state laws and regulations on data sharing and privacy. Health care organizations and providers who connect to and participate in Connie are required to sign its data sharing agreement and agree to be bound by HIPAA and, all state and federal health data privacy laws. Further, Connie has privacy and confidentiality policies and procedures that all participants agree to follow. Connie has additional security protocols and tools to flag or review suspicious behavior and a Privacy, Security, & Confidentiality Committee to provide oversight over Connie’s programs and to provide feedback and guidance to the Connie Board of Directors.

    • How is the data in Connie shared for research purposes?
      Answer:

      Connie has not yet operationalized its Research Disclosure process. As of the publication of these FAQs Connie is not sharing data for academic research purposes. Consistent with HIPAA and Connie’s enabling legislation, Connie intends to support academic research and may provide access to data for academic research purposes.

  • The Technical Specifications for Connecting with Connie
    • How do I connect with Connie if I have an EHR?
      Answer:

      Health care providers with an EHR system capable of connecting with Connie can begin the connection process by filling out the Commitment to Connect form on https://conniect.org/for-organizations/connect-with-connie. Once the form is completed, an Account Manager from Connie will contact you. The Account Manager will walk you through signing a data sharing agreement and completion of the onboarding process. The Connie team will also share communication templates including a sample Notice of Privacy Practices, posters, and emails to communicate your participation in Connie with patients including options for patients who wish to opt-out of participation.

    • How do I connect with Connie if I do not have an EHR or an EHR capable of connecting with Connie?
      Answer:

      Health care providers without an EHR or without an EHR capable of connecting with Connie can meet their initial obligation under Connecticut law by filling out the Commitment to Connect form on Connie’s website at https://conniect.org/for-organizations/connect-with-connie/. Once the form is completed, an Account Manager from Connie can facilitate next steps.

      If you wish to be able to access Connie’s HIPAA-compliant clinical query portal to enable you to view health care information about your patients, including alerts when your patients have been hospitalized, a Connie Account Manager will work with you to complete the data sharing agreements with Connie and complete the onboarding process. The Connie team will also share communication templates including a sample Notice of Privacy Practices, posters, and emails to communicate your participation in Connie with patients including options for patients who wish to opt-out of participation.

      If you do not wish to have access to the Connie portal, your Account Manager will help you secure a Direct email address, if you do not already have one. Direct email is a secure, HIPAA-compliant means of communicating with other health care providers.

  • Patient Opting Out of Data Sharing with Connie
Office of Health Strategy (OHS)

P.O. Box 340308

450 Capitol Ave MS#51OHS

Hartford, CT 06134-0308


PHONE: 860-418-7001

EMAIL: ohs@ct.gov