Interoperability and metadata standards have received a lot of attention lately. However, some groups are warning federal officials to proceed with caution, as decisions made now could have serious implications for the future of electronic health records and other healthcare technology.

For example, the Health Information and Management Systems Society recently sent a letter to the Department of Health and Human Services and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT asking the agencies to reconsider a recent decision on the adoption of a set of metadata standards.

The ONC recently moved to adopt a set of standards known as HL7 CDA R2, but HIMSS believes that an updated set of standards known as IHE XDS would more completely satisfy the needs of the healthcare system when it comes to entering information in a standardized manner and exchanging it.

The HIMSS letter reiterated the importance of getting interoperability right. The free exchange of patient data among various providers is key to unlocking the full benefits of EHR systems. Creating a situation in which this is possible will require careful consideration on the part of policymakers.