Common Agreement Work Group

CAWG Members Have Been Selected And Notified.
Thank You To All Who Applied!

Announcing the Common Agreement Work Group

The ONC Trusted Exchange Framework and Common Agreement (TEFCA) Recognized Coordinating Entity (RCE) is forming a work group to enlist input from organizations that may seek to be early adopters of the Common Agreement as a participating Qualified Health Information Network (QHIN). The purpose of this work group, known as the Common Agreement Work Group (CAWG), is to inform the RCE’s work on the development of the Common Agreement.

This application will provide the RCE with the information needed to evaluate prospective work group participants for the CAWG. Participation in the CAWG is available to any organization that can demonstrate it has the full capability to meet the requirements for becoming a QHIN and is able to attest in good faith that it will seek QHIN designation.

Applicants will have the option of proposing up to two organizations which are Participants or Participant Members of their Health Information Network to serve on the work group.

It is anticipated that the CAWG will commence on April 1^st with a duration of approximately 120 days.

Participation criteria are based upon the QHIN Application Approval Requirements outlined in Section 2.1.3 of the draft Minimum Required Terms and Conditions (MRTCs), published in April 2019. An application will be considered complete once the organization attests to the following and provides details or documentation to support these attestations:

Already operates a network that provides the ability to locate and transmit Electronic Health Information (EHI) between multiple persons and/or entities electronically, on demand or pursuant to one or more automated processes;
Is a Health Information Network (HIN) and has the ability to qualify as a QHIN;
- Has demonstrated the ability or has partnered with another organization to provide services to exchange documents at production level for at least one of the Exchange Purposes and Modalities in the MRTCs for QHIN Query and QHIN Message Delivery in Qualified Health Information Network Technical Framework (QTF) Draft 1, including recommended standards;
Has demonstrated an ability to support production exchange on a nationwide scale;
Is exchanging EHI in a live production environment and has been using the network for at least one year at the time of application;
- Has Participants and/or Participant Members as defined by TEFCA Draft 2;
- Exchange of EHI using its network is occurring in accordance with Applicable Law; and
- Has the necessary personnel, technological infrastructure, and privacy and security safeguards, and other appropriate resources to protect the confidentiality, integrity and availability of EHI.

The RCE will complete a review of all applications as quickly as possible. The time needed for review may depend on the completeness of the application and the RCE’s ability to obtain timely clarifications from the applicant, if applicable.

It is the responsibility of the organization seeking to participate in the CAWG to provide sufficient information to allow the RCE to make an informed decision about the organization’s capabilities. However, the RCE may use its discretion to request or consider additional information to determine if the applicant is capable of meeting the obligations and responsibilities of a CAWG member.

Anticipated Work Group Selection Process

February 7, 2020: Application Available
March 6, 2020: Deadline to submit completed applications (*Updated* Previously deadline was 2.28.2020)
April 1, 2020: Work group kick-off meeting

Not Eligible for the Work Group?

Visit the Community Engagement page to find other opportunities to be involved, including the Common Agreement Public Meetings.

Common Agreement Public Stakeholder Feedback Sessions and Events

February 18 & 19: Exchange Operations ARTCs (part 1 of 2)
February 25: Common Agreement Work Group Application Q&A
February 26: Exchange Operations ARTCs (part 2 of 2)
March 4: Preserving the Stability of the QHIN Network
March 16: Governance of Exchange Activities