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IDC Health Insights Evaluates Industry Front Runners in Both Packaged and Platform Solutions for Health Information Exchange Technology in New IDC MarketScapes
[July 13, 2015]

IDC Health Insights Evaluates Industry Front Runners in Both Packaged and Platform Solutions for Health Information Exchange Technology in New IDC MarketScapes


The market for health information exchange (HIE) technology has changed considerably from the days of grant-funded community-based initiatives in the early 2000s to today where HIE technology is being used by healthcare organizations to aggregate and normalize consumer health information to enable population health management and analytics required for managing value-based reimbursement models. To help organizations better understand the vendor landscape for both packaged and platform solutions for HIEs in this transformative environment, IDC Health Insights today unveiled two new IDC (News - Alert) MarketScape reports:

According to the new reports, today's emphasis on value-based outcomes creates new value propositions for the exchange of health information that did not exist in a fee-for-service environment where incentives to exchange data are often not aligned correctly. With the expansion of accountable care and patient-centered medical homes, the ability to aggregate and centralize health information for population health management and analytics is of growing importance. As a result, there has been a major shift in vendor focus from simply providing interoperability solutions to connect the healthcare ecosystem to providing a broader solution where health information exchange is an enabling technology for population health management and analytics.

Key findings from the reports include:

  • Consolidation continues to occur; the most recent acquisition, of HealthUnity by ZeOmega, was announced in March 2015. ZeOmega is a population health management vendr. In addition, vendors, such as AT&T (News - Alert) and Caradigm, have exited the market.
  • The pace of merger and acquisitions in the provider sector has picked up as smaller institutions and physician practices look to be acquired in order to survive. IT integration plays a major role in determining success or failure of consolidation. Increasingly, interoperability is viewed as a strategic asset.
  • There are different buyers for HIE versus population health management. When the focus was on connectivity, the buyer tended to be the CIO who was interested in cutting off fax machines and aggregating the data. As HIE evolves into care management and population health management, the new buyers are CFOs and chief medical information officers who are trying to get a handle on risk-based contracts.



"The HIE market has undergone a significant metamorphosis over the past two years. Speed to value will be an important consideration for healthcare organizations making the transition from fee-for-service care to value-based reimbursement, while also striving to achieve meaningful use milestones," said Lynne A. Dunbrack, Research Vice President, IDC Health Insights. "Platform solutions for HIE provide the tools to enable HIOs and ecosystem partners to build out new functionality to meet their constantly evolving needs in a value-based reimbursement environment."

IDC asserts there are advantages and disadvantages associated with packaged and platform solutions. IT buyers should carefully assess their unique business, technical, and clinical requirements to determine which approach is appropriate for their given situation.


IDC MarketScape criteria selection, weightings, and vendor scores represent well-researched IDC judgment about the market and specific vendors. IDC analysts tailor the range of standard characteristics by which vendors are measured through structured discussions, surveys, and interviews with market leaders, participants and end users. Market weightings are based on user interviews, buyer surveys, and the input of a review board of IDC experts in each market. IDC analysts base individual vendor scores, and ultimately vendor positions within the IDC MarketScape, on detailed surveys and interviews with the vendors, publicly available information, and end-user experiences in an effort to provide an accurate and consistent assessment of each vendor's characteristics, behavior and capability.

For additional information about this report or to arrange a one-on-one briefing with Lynne Dunbrack, please contact Sarah Murray at 781-378-2674 or [email protected]. Reports are available to qualified members of the media. For information on purchasing reports, contact [email protected]; reporters should email [email protected].

About IDC MarketScape
IDC MarketScape vendor analysis model is designed to provide an overview of the competitive fitness of IT, telecommunications, or industry-specific suppliers in a given market. The research methodology utilizes a rigorous scoring methodology based on both qualitative and quantitative criteria that results in a single graphical illustration of each vendor's position within a given market. IDC MarketScape provides a clear framework in which the product and service offerings, capabilities and strategies, and current and future market success factors of IT, telecommunications, or industry-specific vendors can be meaningfully compared. The framework also provides technology buyers with a transparent foundation to allow companies to independently compare the strengths and weaknesses of current and prospective vendors.

About IDC Health Insights
IDC Health Insights assists health businesses and IT leaders, as well as the suppliers who serve them, in making more effective technology decisions by providing accurate, timely, and insightful fact-based research and consulting services. Staffed by senior analysts with decades of industry experience, our global research analyzes and advises on business and technology issues facing the payer, provider and life sciences industries. International Data Corporation (IDC) is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events for the information technology market. IDC is a subsidiary of IDG, the world's leading technology, media, research, and events company. For more information, please visit www.idc-hi.com, email [email protected], or call 508-935-4445. Visit the IDC Health Insights Community at http://idc-community.com/health.


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