South Carolina officials have set plans to launch a health information exchange for the state's 700,000 Medicaid patients. The South Carolina Health Information Exchange, known as SCIEx, will connect hospitals, doctors, clinics and other healthcare providers with access to Medicaid beneficiaries' medical records. It was paid for by HHS, which contributed $250,000 to implement the system. It's also backed by the South Carolina Hospital Association, the South Carolina Primary Care Association and several state agencies.

The SCIEx system includes a records locator service along with a system that links disparate health databases. Providers will now have access to a broad medical history on patients, including diagnoses, medications and test results. Officials say this will be particularly helpful for beneficiaries who live in rural areas and may only get sporadic care or see varied doctors, as it will make sure that their histories travel with them. They also note that the new HIE should save money for the state, since it will avoid a wide range of paper, printing and storage costs.

To learn more about the HIE:
- read this article from The Greenville News

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