HCI3 Releases Beta Version of Online, Open-Source Tool for Developers Building Health Care Apps

It’s now easier for innovators to access cost-free “episodes of care” metadata

Washington, D.C. —The comprehensive episode of care definitions provided by HCI3 already are becoming a health care industry standard, and now they can be more easily and efficiently accessed by developers building solutions for the industry. In an announcement at the Health Datapalooza conference today, the Health Care Incentives Improvement Institute (HCI3) released the beta version of an application program interface (API). The software tool connects users, free of charge, to the organization’s open-source definitions, which are procedure and diagnosis codes grouped together to outline the entire range of treatment for more than 90 conditions.

“For anyone developing apps designed to convey price and quality of care information to consumers, to facilitate bundled payments or other forms of alternative payment models, to help clinicians in managing patients along the continuum of care, or any of hundreds of other potential use cases, episode of care definitions are an essential ingredient to success. And we’re making our definitions a lot easier to use,” said François de Brantes, executive director of HCI3. “The no-cost API is in beta, and we’ll incorporate feedback from our growing community of developers and partners to improve the tool.”

The 90-plus open-source definitions formulated by HCI3 are clinically sound and evidence based, and include such episodes as pneumonia, hip replacement and coronary artery disease. The definitions are machine-readable, and include diagnosis codes and procedure codes that make up an episode, along with codes that indicate services associated with complications rather than typical care. Until now, accessing all these metadata required cumbersome downloads of XML documents. The beta API is delivered as a MySQL compatible database that supports read-only SQL queries. Users can employ any MySQL compatible SQL editor or programming language library.

Application developers with a focus on health care are invited to use the new tool at www.hci3.org/metadata, and send feedback to info@hci3.org.

About HCI3: The Health Care Incentives Improvement Institute, Inc. (HCI3®) is a not-for-profit organization that aims to create significant improvements in the quality and affordability of health care through evidence-based incentive programs and support of payment reform models. Its nationally recognized programs, Bridges to Excellence® and PROMETHEUS Payment® have been at the forefront of payment reform, and the new PROMETHEUS Analytics® offers transformational insights for payers and providers.