OMAHA- A new data sharing agreement has been made between Nebraska's 92 hospitals and the University of Nebraska Medical Center, allowing patients to receive better-tailored care and doctors to know which treatments work best with certain patients.

Leaders with the Nebraska Hospital Association stated that the data is extracted from every health claim that hospitals submit to insurers, and not from medical records, so no names or addresses will be revealed to doctors.

The records, and the data contained within them, could help UNMC researchers improve health care and lower cost. According to Jeremy Nordquist, Hospital Association President, the data UNMC receives will contain ZIP codes, diagnoses, treatments, and readmissions.

One UNMC researcher gave an example of what this new data would allow them to do. The researcher stated that, by using ZIP code data, they could locate a cluster of pediatric cancer patients, determine the causes, and find ways to prevent more cases.

Dr. Jeffrey Gold, chancellor of UNMC, is happy that the University got the chance to work with the new data. "The value is huge," said Dr. Gold, "Having access to administrative data, real-time data, allows us to monitor the outcomes and the distribution of access to health care across the State of Nebraska."

One of the most important reasons why the Hospital Association decided to release the data was to study the disparities between rural and urban Nebraskans, and Nebraskans of color and white Nebraskans. "The goal of all of this is to improve access, improve quality, and improve value," Gold stated, "It's very exciting. It's a very forward-thinking relationship, and we're very grateful."

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