TALLAHASSEE, Fla.  – HIE Networks, LLC today announced a collaboration with Cerner (Nasdaq: CERN) to promote the acceleration of community-wide health information exchanges (HIE) in the state of Florida. These HIEs enhance interoperability and improve patient care by connecting local physicians, hospitals, health systems and other community health care providers. Local, provider-driven HIEs are the basis for the Florida Health Data Network (FHDN), a statewide network developed and operated by HIE Networks.

“Through health information exchange, physicians are able to counter some of the inefficiencies that plague our current health care system,” said Dr. Dan Kaelin, co-founder and chief medical officer of HIE Networks. “Working with Cerner, a leader in the health care IT space, was a natural fit as we look to enhance future HIE growth.”

HIE Networks is the preferred HIE vendor for the Florida Medical Association and, together with Cerner, HIE Networks will work to support hospitals and initiatives for local, provider-driven HIEs with the intent to connect community-based physicians, hospitals, and health systems, and to foster the expansion of interoperability among all providers of care, inclusive of public health. Cerner and HIE Networks will collaborate to bring Cerner client hospitals and physicians together in population centers across Florida to efficiently and effectively share data in a secure, HIPAA- and HITECH-compliant environment for the benefit of health care providers and patients.

“The secure exchange of health information between health care providers is an essential component of maximizing the value of an EHR system,” said Michael Robin, senior director and general manager, Cerner. “What Dr. Kaelin and his team at HIE Networks are working to accomplish in Florida will have a definite positive impact on the quality of patient care, and we are proud to work with them to accomplish that goal.”

About HIE Networks

HIE Networks is a leading provider of local health information exchange (HIE) services, with secure, standards-based exchanges that create and operate efficient, effective and sustainable health information networks at the local and regional levels. By acting as a region’s single reference point for patient records, HIE Networks allows hospitals, physicians and medical practices, laboratories, pharmacies and insurers to collaborate and streamline patient care, thereby improving the safety, outcomes, privacy and efficiency of healthcare services in their local communities. The HIE Networks service mix includes practice consultation, social architecture, legal structure, hardware support, software implementation, networking, integration, training and support.

HIE Networks operates the Florida Health Data Network  (FHDN) a privately funded statewide HIE network created to connect hospitals, physicians, laboratories, pharmacies and insurers without geographic boundaries using “cloud” technology that allows for the networking and sharing of patient clinical records in a secure, fully integrated, health information exchange. For more information about HIE Networks and the FHDN please visit www.hienetworks.com.

Media Contact: Zach Finn, (850) 702-0365, zach@HIEnetworks.com