FALLS CHURCH, VA -- (Marketwire) -- 12/20/12 -- The Workgroup for Electronic Data Interchange (WEDI) and ASC X12 announced today they are working together to prepare the industry for a smooth Health Plan ID (HPID) implementation.

In September of this year CMS published a final rule adopting a standard for the creation of a national Health Plan Identifier. Large health plans will be required to obtain their HPID by November 5, 2014, while small health plans will have until November 5, 2015 to obtain their HPID. All covered entities must be using HPID on November 7, 2016.

WEDI has formed a Health Plan ID workgroup whose goals include identifying the activities, risks, solutions and educational opportunities to support implementation of HPID for all industry stakeholders.

ASC X12N's Entity Workgroup is evaluating whether the HPID mandate impacts the ASC X12 version 005010 Technical Report Type 3 (TR3) implementation guides.

"WEDI is committed to helping the industry meet compliance with HPID and has held a number of public forums and a recent CMS listening session in order to help gather public input," said Jim Daley, WEDI Chair-Elect. "Through our new Health Plan ID workgroup and our partnership with ASC X12, we look forward to helping industry identify and overcome critical implementation challenges."

Adds Cathy Sheppard, ASC X12 Chair, "ASC X12 is pleased to work with WEDI to ensure efficient, effective and coordinated forums are available to assist the industry stake-holders assessing the business, technical, and transaction set implications of the HPID mandate. We are poised to respond if the ASC X12 standards need to be revised to support the new identifier."

WEDI and ASC X12 will host a joint webinar addressing industry questions about the impact of HPID on the HIPAA adopted ASC X12 TR3s. Watch for more details soon.

In addition, WEDI is planning a number of educational offerings to help industry prepare for HPID implementation, including a virtual event in June 2013.

If you are interested in participating in the ASC X12 Entity Workgroup, please send an email to info@disa.org with the subject "X12N Entity Workgroup" and participation information will be provided.

About WEDI
The Workgroup for Electronic Data Interchange (WEDI) is the leading authority on the use of Health IT to improve healthcare information exchange in order to enhance the quality of care, improve efficiency and to reduce costs of our nation's healthcare system. WEDI was formed in 1991 by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) and was designated in the 1996 HIPAA legislation as an advisor to HHS. WEDI's membership includes a broad coalition of organizations, including: hospitals, providers, health plans, vendors, government agencies, consumers, not-for-profit organizations and standards bodies.

About ASC X12
ASC X12, chartered by the American National Standards Institute for more than 30 years, develops and maintains EDI and CICA standards along with XML schemas which drive business processes globally. The diverse membership of ASC X12 includes technologists and business process experts, encompassing health care, insurance, transportation, finance, government, supply chain and other industries. For additional information, visit www.x12.org.