The North Carolina Health Information exchange, also known as NC HealthConnex, is a digital tool that gives providers a holistic view of their clients’ medical records, including allergies, diagnoses, medications, and more. All providers who accept state-based insurance plans within the state of North Carolina are required to enroll in the NC HealthConnex. 

SimplePractice is an approved EHR vendor with NC HealthConnex, which allows us to create a streamlined process within our platform for providers in North Carolina to remain compliant with state regulations.

Note: Connection with the NC Health Information Exchange through SimplePractice is only available in Essential and Plus plan accounts.

In this guide, we’ll answer the following:

• Who is required to connect to the NC HealthConnex?
• How do I connect with the NC HealthConnex?
• How do I enable information sharing for my clients?
• How do I know if this feature is enabled for a client?
• What if I'm not seeing the setting in my client's insurance information?  
• I don’t file claims in SimplePractice, can I still use this feature?

Note: See the North Carolina Department of Information Technology's website for more information on the NC HealthConnex. 

Who is required to connect to the NC HealthConnex?

All healthcare providers within North Carolina who receive state reimbursement for health care services are required to connect with the NC HIE. This includes providers that work with payers such as Medicaid, NC Health Choice, and State Health Plan. For Blue Cross Blue Shield clients, this will depend on the client's specific policy. We recommend calling the payer directly for confirmation, so they can review the client's member ID.

How do I connect with the NC HealthConnex?

To connect with the NC HealthConnex, you can complete the NC HIEA Full Participation Agreement.

When HealthConnex is ready to finalize your approval, one of their representatives will send you the NC HealthConnex Roll-On Connection Scoping Checklist to be completed by you and our team. Please submit a help request so we can assist further. 

Note: When reaching out to our team, you don’t have to include the blank Scoping Checklist provided by HealthConnex. We’ll provide you with a copy that includes the information required from SimplePractice.

How do I enable information sharing for my clients?

You can enable information sharing for your clients from their Billing and Insurance page. To do this:

• Navigate to the client’s Overview page > Edit > Billing and Insurance
• Scroll down to the Insurance info section
• Click Edit next to their insurance payer(s)  
• Select Send information under Health information exchange

• Check the box next to I agree
• Choose Continue
• Click Save 

Note: There isn’t a functionality to enable information sharing for multiple clients.

How do I know if this feature is enabled for a client?

You can see whether this feature is enabled for a client in two places: your Clients list, and a client's Billing and Insurance page.

To check from the Clients list:

• From your calendar, click Clients on the left side
• Use the filters to search for the client
• If information sharing is enabled for them, you'll see the HIE tag next to the client's name:

To check from an individual client's Billing and Insurance page:

• Navigate to the client's Overview page > Edit > Billing and Insurance
• Scroll down to the Insurance info section
• Click Edit next to their insurance payer(s)
• If Send information is checked under Health Information Exchange, then the HIE is enabled for the client for that payer

What if I'm not seeing the setting in my client's insurance information?  

If you choose a participating insurance payer in your client’s Insurance Information, you’ll see the Health information exchange field populate:

If you aren't seeing the HIE option in your client's Insurance Information section, you either don't have this feature enabled in your account, or the feature is not set up for the client's insurance payer.

If you see the feature available for other insurance payers, but not the one in question, you can reach out to our Customer Success team with the insurance payer ID for further investigation.

I don’t file claims in SimplePractice, can I still use this feature?

To make sure that a copy is created and sent to the HIE each time a claim is filed, claims will need to be submitted via SimplePractice. This confirms that the HIE information sharing requirements are all met.

If you're using a different system to file claims, we recommend reaching out to the HIE directly for clarification on alternative ways to connect, including their Clinical portal access method. For additional options on connecting, see the NC HIE's page on How to Connect.