Strengthening Public Health Data Exchange and Interoperability
Overview
Public health agencies rely on timely, accurate data to detect emerging threats and guide decision-making. Yet many agencies still work with fragmented systems that make data exchange difficult and limit access to the information needed to protect community health. Through the Public Health Infrastructure Grant (PHIG) Implementation Center Program, Altarum is partnering with Mathematica to help these agencies strengthen their data exchange capabilities and advance their data modernization goals.
Challenge: Legacy Systems Hinder Timely Data Exchange
Public health agencies are under growing pressure to exchange information more quickly and efficiently with health care providers, laboratories, and other partners. However, many agencies continue to rely on systems and processes that were not designed for today's interoperability requirements. These limitations can slow information sharing, increase reporting burdens, and make it more difficult to respond to public health needs.
To help agencies address these challenges, the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, National Network of Public Health Institutes, and Public Health Accreditation Board launched the Implementation Center Program, supported through CDC's Public Health Infrastructure Grant. The program provides hands-on assistance so agencies can adopt modern health IT standards and strengthen how they exchange critical public health data.
Solution: Bringing Technical Expertise and Hands-On Support
As part of Mathematica's Implementation Center team, Altarum provides technical expertise and implementation support grounded in public health interoperability experience. Our team works alongside public health partners to support the adoption of current health information technology standards and participation in emerging data exchange networks. Altarum also helps agencies build capacity through technical assistance and guidance on emerging standards and data exchange networks. This approach helps public health agencies make progress on near-term priorities while preparing for future interoperability mandates.
Focus Areas
Public Health Information TechnologyExamples of Our Work
Data Interoperability & TechnologyOutcome: A Stronger Foundation for Public Health Data Modernization
The first cohort of participating agencies (Wave 1) launched in February 2025, ultimately including 30 state, local and territorial public health agencies. Altarum and Mathematica continue to support this work today, helping agencies exchange information more effectively across the public health and health care systems and share what they're learning with the broader community. As more agencies come on board in Wave 2, lessons learned across jurisdictions will help build lasting capacity for modern, interoperable public health data exchange.