The prospective QHIN Application, Onboarding, and Designation process has been divided into a series of five phases. Each phase is explained in detail below. If you have questions regarding the Application, Onboarding, or Designation process please feel free to contact us at rce@sequoiaproject.org. Additional resources can be found here.
Applicant reviews QHIN Onboarding and Designation SOP and RCE® Communication Protocols.
Applicant notifies RCE of their intent to apply, as instructed in the QHIN Onboarding & Designation SOP.
RCE provides applicant with required documents, including:
The RCE will schedule a virtual consultation with the entity to review the Eligibility Requirements, Onboarding process documents, and answer any clarifying questions.
Applicants are encouraged but not required to successfully pass testing via the test platform outlined in Part 4, Section III of the QHIN Onboarding & Designation SOP prior to submitting their QHIN Application to mitigate the risk of delay in the Conformance Testing Process related to the system under test.
Days 1 – 30 from date of submission*
Applicant submits online application and signed Common Agreement and Means to Demonstrate U.S. Ownership and Control of a QHIN SOP Questionnaire (If not previously submitted) to RCE for review.
RCE verifies that the application is complete and contains all necessary information.
RCE notifies the applicant within thirty (30) calendar days of receipt of the application what information is required to make the application complete.
RCE notifies applicant in writing that its application is complete, and Applicant now proceeds to Phase 2.
Up to 60 days following Phase 1 Step 2: Completion Notification*
RCE notifies applicant that the application has been denied.
Note: If an application is denied, the applicant can reapply six months after the date shown on the notice of denial.
RCE notifies applicant of issues/discrepancies with application. Applicant has 10 business days to send a satisfactory response.
Note: Applicants that do not satisfactorily respond within 10 business days are automatically withdrawn. Applicants that are withdrawn can reapply six months after the date on which its previous application was submitted.
Up to 12 months to complete following application accepted for testing*
Applicants accepted for testing must complete technical prerequisites prior to beginning Conformance Testing and Non-Production Partner Testing.
RCE will verify that the entry for the organization in the directory is complete, with proper certificate bound to endpoints and refer applicant to Conformance Testing.
The Conformance Testing Process is intended to be a largely automated process augmented by minimal manual review to verify conformance of systems and technology used by applicants.
Each prospective QHIN will complete a series of non-production tests against the test instances of other QHIN gateways. Prospective QHINs are responsible for conducting partner tests with all other QHINs.
Applicants who fail to complete all necessary testing and project plan steps within 12 months will be denied QHIN Designation status.
Note: If QHIN Designation status is denied, applicants must wait 12 months from status denial date to reapply.
RCE verifies that the applicant has completed all necessary steps within the testing and project plan process.
RCE notifies applicant that all testing requirements have been met, and provides information on next steps. Applicant proceeds to Phase 4.
Note: If QHIN™ Designation status is terminated, applicants must wait 12 months after the date of termination to reapply.
Applicant completes a successful validation transaction within 30 days.
Note: QHINs™ Designated with Provisional Status or Provisional Governance Status must abide by the applicable timelines in the QHIN™ Onboarding & Designation SOP.
Following successful completion of the Application, Onboarding, and Designation process, QHINs begin Production QHIN™ Exchange.
Note: All QHINs have an obligation to serve as testing and validation partners at the request of other QHINs or the RCE™ for other potential QHIN™ applicants.
In order for applicants to retain their QHIN Designation, they must meet the responsibilities and reporting tasks set forth by the RCE.
Review and complete the QHIN™ Application to begin your Onboarding process. If you have questions regarding the Application, Onboarding, and Designation process please feel free to contact us at rce@sequoiaproject.org.
