The Standard

Those of us working across health policy, technology, and standards are reimagining a system where individuals experience better outcomes, lower costs, and greater trust in how their health information is used and shared.

At HL7® International, a global standards development organization with members and affiliates in more than 50 countries, we are meeting our challenge head-on through collaboration and innovation. The HL7® FHIR® at Scale Taskforce (FAST) Accelerator takes that mission further by tackling the hard problems of scalability: Identity, Security, Consent, and National Directory services. These components are the backbone that supports the CMS Health Tech Ecosystem and Aligned Networks Pledge.

Paired with the Da Vinci Project, which applies FHIR to payer–provider workflows like prior authorization, clinical data exchange, payer data exchange, and patient cost transparency. HL7 is aligning infrastructure with real-world use cases. Da Vinci has recognized the value of FAST standards by selecting FAST Security as part of their security recommendations in their core health record exchange (HRex) specifications, showing a convergency across the ecosystem.

Where Sequoia’s RCE Role Elevates the Work: TEFCA as the National Trust Layer

FAST isn’t building infrastructure in a vacuum. Its work aligns with the Trusted Exchange Framework and Common Agreement (TEFCA), led by The Sequoia Project as the Recognized Coordinating Entity (RCE) for ASTP/ONC. TEFCA is a national framework for the secure and trusted exchange of clinical data across networks.

Join Us for the January Da Vinci Project Community Roundtable on January 28, 2026, from 4 - 5:30 pm ET

As we enter 2026, the healthcare industry continues to move from planning to active implementation of standardized data exchange. Because the first phase of the CMS-0057-F Interoperability and Prior Authorization Final Rule took effect this month, the stakes for technical and operational alignment have never been higher. The HL7 Da Vinci Project Community Roundtable, taking place on January 28, 2026, from 4 – 5:30 pm. ET,  will provide insights and resources to navigate this pivotal year.

What You'll Learn

Our previous sessions focused on how using Da Vinci burden reduction and payer data exchange IGs are transforming healthcare and how best to meet prior authorization regulatory requirements. This January session builds on that foundation by outlining key use cases, IGs, and the progress made in standardized data exchange.

Gain valuable knowledge on operational enhancements and resources to optimize your planning for smoother HL7 FHIR implementations, including implementation guides referenced in federal regulations. Additionally, hear about Da Vinci's 2026 priorities and the HL7 Da Vinci Community Champions program. 

October Da Vinci Community Roundtable on October 22 from  4:00 – 5:30 p.m. ET

As healthcare organizations continue to operationalize CMS-0057 requirements, understanding how to align technology, workflows, and policy is more critical than ever. The HL7® Da Vinci Project Community Roundtable, taking place on October 22, 2025, from 4:00 – 5:30 p.m. ET, will bring together industry leaders to share practical, actionable insights on how Da Vinci Implementation Guides (IGs) are transforming interoperability and reducing administrative burden across the healthcare ecosystem.

This month’s session, “Actionable Insights on Improving Burden Reduction, Payer Data Exchange, and Patient Cost Transparency,” will highlight the real-world value of HL7 FHIR®-based standards in improving efficiency, streamlining workflows, and driving measurable progress in value-based care.

What You'll Learn

The last HL7 Da Vinci Community Roundtable explored how regulatory, technical, and business drivers are shaping the future of prior authorization reform, with a focus on implementation strategies and interoperability alignment. That session underscored a key message: collaboration across payers, providers, and vendors is essential for scaling FHIR adoption.

The upcoming October Roundtable builds on that foundation connecting the dots between Burden Reduction, Payer Data Exchange (PDex), and Patient Cost Transparency (PCT) by highlighting Da Vinci’s pilots to show how these efforts can deliver tangible impact. First-hand accounts from Providence and Multicare as well as an update on recent testing work will be featured.    

August Community Roundtable Provides Multi-Faceted View of Prior Authorization Regulatory Requirements and Da Vinci Implementation Resources   

For the August HL7 Da Vinci Project Community Roundtable, industry leaders will offer an insightful, holistic discussion targeting those who want to better understand how best to meet prior authorization regulatory requirements aiming to increase efficiency and improve patient outcomes.   

With a focus on the latest developments surrounding the Da Vinci Prior Authorization Implementation Guides (IGs), the session begins with an examination of clinical and business drivers and a level-setting overview of federal and state level-activities impacting prior authorization requirements. Then we highlight technical standards, focusing on the underlying requirements of CMS-0057,  HTI-4 and the current status of the IGs.  The session concludes with how Da Vinci responds to industry needs, fostering a supportive environment for implementation and providing education, resources, and learnings from real-world implementers and piloting opportunities for those on their implementation journey. 

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), in collaboration with over 45 of the nation’s largest health insurers, has announced an important step forward in transforming the problematic processes of prior authorization. By pledging to reduce delays, increase transparency, and standardize processes by 2027, these organizations have signaled a long-overdue shift toward easing administrative burdens and improving access to evidence-based care.

The pledge spans insurance markets (commercial coverage, Medicare Advantage and Medicaid managed care) and will benefit an impressive 257 million Americans. But turning that vision into reality will require more than declarations. It will demand the kind of trusted technical infrastructure that HL7’s community has built together for over 35 years.

 As implementation begins, prior authorization reform demands scalable, open and consensus-driven standards.

Are you a member of a technical team that’s beginning its journey toward implementing HL7's Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR^®) application program interfaces (APIs)? Then don’t miss an upcoming three-day online educational event offering two technical tracks tailored to your needs. 

Two days of interactive content delivery and demonstrations will be followed by a Connectathon that will provide implementers and developers with the opportunity to test FHIR-based solutions and exchange data with other FHIR interfaces.  

Organizations that want to fast-track implementing HL7 FHIR APIs to automate workflow, maximize efficiency and meet federal requirements of the CMS Interoperability and Prior Authorization Final Rule (CMS-0057-F) should encourage their technical teams attend this online event. 

“We designed two tracks for technical team members at provider and payer organizations, as well as technology vendors, who are looking for a crash course on making the most of FHIR,” says Viet Nguyen, M.D., Technical Director of the HL7 Da Vinci Project. (Da Vinci has developed implementation guides for putting FHIR to use in supporting value-based medicine.) 

Early Bird Registration Ends Soon

Time is running out to take advantage of early bird registration discounts for an upcoming three-day online educational event that will offer practical insights on how to implement Health Level Seven's (HL7®) Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR®) application program interfaces (APIs).

Early bird discounts end March 31 for the event, “Strategy to Execution: Better Prior Authorization by Integrating Operations, FHIR and CMS-0057.”

Two days of interactive content delivery and demonstrations will be followed by a collaborative Connectathon testing event on day three that will provide implementers and developers with the opportunity to test FHIR-based solutions and exchange data with other FHIR interfaces.

If you’re looking to fast-track your organization’s efforts to use HL7 FHIR APIs to automate workflow, maximize efficiency and meet federal requirements of the CMS Interoperability and Prior Authorization Final Rule (CMS-0057-F), then don’t miss this virtual, hands-on training and testing event.

January Roundtable also features Providence’s Clinical Data Exchange Implementation Journey

Are you interested in hearing federal officials provide an overview of the CMS Interoperability and Prior Authorization Final Rule (CMS-0057)?

If so, register now for next week’s HL7 Da Vinci Project Community Roundtable, “CMS Interoperability Final Rule Overview and a Clinical Data Exchange Success Story: How Standardization Improves Value Based Care Performance,” scheduled for Jan. 24 from 4 – 5:30 p.m. ET.

The HL7 Da Vinci Project is thrilled to have CMS join next Wednesday’s Community Roundtable to offer highlights of the final rule in addition to the scheduled program showcasing Providence’s Da Vinci Clinical Data Exchange (CDex) Implementation Guide implementation journey.

Providence became the first major health system to implement CDex standards, and their journey included piloting with Premera Blue Cross and the vetting and approval by internal quality teams and external Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS) auditors. The session concludes with a discussion of benefits experienced using CDex, including improved decision making, reduced burden, improved patient outcomes and enhanced quality of care to patients.

The Da Vinci Project is a private-sector initiative that accelerates the adoption of HL7 FHIR as the standard to support and integrate value-based care (VBC) data exchange across communities. The goal of the project is to help payers and providers positively impact clinical, quality, cost and care management outcomes, enabling providers to see the right data at the right time for patient-centered care.

The presenters will include:

• Lorraine Doo, Senior Policy Advisory,Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Service
• Alex Mugge, Deputy Chief Health Informatics Officer, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Service
• Semira Singh, Director, Population Health Informatics, Providence  
• Michael Westover, Vice President, Population Health, Providence 

The session will be  moderated by Alix Goss, HL7 Da Vinci Project PMO, and Senior Consultant, Point-of-Care Partners.

Last December, the Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services (CMS) issued two notices of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that will greatly influence how FHIR advances.

Da Vinci officially commented March 13 on one the rules, the Advancing Interoperability and Improving Prior Authorization Processes, or “Interop 3,” and submitted comments last week to the other rule, the Attachments NPRM, due on March 20. This rule is a set of HIPAA attachment standards and related definitions for electronic exchange of clinical administrative data to support both prior authorizations and claims adjudication, according to Alix Goss, moderator for the HL7 Da Vinci Project Community Roundtable and HL7 Da Vinci Project PMO, as well as vice president and senior consultant with Imprado.

Da Vinci is not in favor of finalizing the proposed regulations, Goss said. A final rule would require investments across the country that essentially will hardwire the approach making further evolution that much harder and burdensome, and redirecting the industry’s focus, taxing resources.

“Industry payers, providers, clearing houses, vendors, patients and more have to make choices at each step of the interoperability journey, and finalizing these regulations brings complications to the choices already made, and those to come,” Goss said. “We all know that the reality that technology moves faster than policy advancements and we're still working out how to work with this reality.”

Goss advises those who want a deeper dive into these rules to review the January 25 Community Roundtable, where the CMS Office of Burden Reduction and the National Standards group delivered an extensive overview.

Learn about the rules, how innovators are reaping the benefits of HL7 FHIR APIs and the value of automation at this month’s  Da Vinci Project Community Roundtable

In this month’s Community Roundtable, the HL7 Da Vinci Project is exploring healthcare interoperability with a full line-up of speakers. The virtual roundtable, titled, “Advancing Interoperability via FHIR APIs: An Industry Discussion on Progress, Proposed Rules and the Value of Automation,”will be held Wednesday, Feb. 22, from 4:00 - 5:30 PM EST.

The session will break down the latest federal proposed rules impacting interoperability, the Prior Authorization and Attachments Rules, published last December. Continuing where the January Roundtable left off, Da Vinci guest speakers will address the complex rules and explain their significance in moving forward with FHIR APIs to seamlessly exchange information between payers and providers. CMS is awaiting March comments on the rule, and this roundtable will be a good prep for those who are preparing to comment on this landmark regulation impacting interoperability and seeking to invest in FHIR.