RD219 - Virginia Health Information (VHI) 2013 Annual Report and Strategic Plan Update


Executive Summary:
VHI’s 2013 Annual Report and Strategic Plan Update is our way of sharing information about what we’ve been doing, our plans for the future and how we’ll get there. Our theme, "Bringing it All Together" speaks to you and your help with our partnerships to move "From Numbers to Knowledge."

During our most recent fiscal year, http://www.vhi.org enjoyed record numbers of visitors – anywhere from 1,100 to 2,000 a day. As Virginia’s official Consumer Health Information Portal, VHI’s primary focus is information for consumers and employers. We do this with consumer guides to health insurance, hospitals, long-term care, obstetric care and heart (cardiac) care. Reports include cost, quality and efficiency information on many different types of health care providers and HMOs. During this year, we added a new tool, MONAHRQ, to our website. MONAHRQ allows visitors to learn more about rates of hospital care for many conditions such as uncontrolled diabetes, low birth weights babies and other conditions that may be avoided when good primary care is available and used.

In April, a nationally-recognized report on transparency in health care pricing graded Virginia a “B”, one of the top 7 states in the country. The report, jointly produced by the Catalyst for Payment Reform and the Health Care Incentives Improvement Institute, recognized Virginia’s health care pricing laws and how we’ve implemented them on our website http://www.vhi.org. While I personally prefer an “A,” only two states received one while 29 states scored an “F.” Learn more at http://vhi.org/transparency_laws.asp.

Our newest work in progress is development of Virginia’s All Payer Claims Database. This is truly a collaborative effort from initial talks to our current implementation. With the APCD, we’ve been asked to work with stakeholders with the goal of "Bringing it All Together," and then, to take these data and move "From Numbers to Knowledge." Stakeholders have stepped up to contribute data and privately fund this legislatively-sponsored initiative.

You’ll find much more in the pages that follow, including more on VHI’s work, how we pay for it and our strategic steps to position VHI to continue to serve the citizens of the Commonwealth.

Michael T. Lundberg
Executive Director