WEDI, pronounced "wee dee", is a not-for-profit user group in the United States for users of Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) in public and private healthcare. It is sometimes referred to by other names including some or all of the words Workgroup for Electronic Data Interchange.
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It was established to provide leadership and guidance to the healthcare industry on how to use and leverage its collective knowledge, expertise and information resources to improve the quality, affordability and availability of healthcare, via forums, conferences and online resources, especially in matters of conformance to EDI standards required by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, also known as HIPAA which was enacted by the U.S. Congress in 1996.
WEDI has regional affiliates in 27 US States and the Virgin Islands.
History
In November 1991, the Workgroup for Electronic Data Interchange (WEDI) was established in response to the challenge from the Bush administration, specifically, Louis Sullivan MD, Secretary of HHS, to reduce administrative costs in the nation's health care system by up to 10%.
Joseph Brophy, President of Travelers Insurance Company, and Bernard Tresnowski, President of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, agreed to establish and lead a voluntary, public-private task force, named WEDI, to develop an action plan to streamline health care administration by standardizing electronic communications across the health care and health insurance industry.
Initial task force
The initial task force included members from the following organizations:
The Travelers Insurance Company
Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association
Self-Insurance Institute of America
American Medical Association
ANSI ASC X12
Mutual of Omaha
American Hospital Association
Drug Benefit Management
United Healthcare Group
American Clinical Laboratory Association
Columbia Healthcare Corporation
Medical Group Management
American Nurses Association
Aetna Life Insurance Company
American Dental Association
Health Insurance Association of America
National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare
Health Technology Management, Inc
National Association for Home Care
Health Care Financing Administration
American Association of Retired Persons
American Health Information Management Association
Blue Cross of California
American Health Care Association
Department of Income Maintenance State of Connecticut.
WEDI 1992 report highlights
In July 1992, WEDI published a report that outlined the steps necessary to make electronic data interchange (EDI) a routine business practice for the health care industry by 1996. The Workgroup envisioned the entire health care industry transacting business electronically, under a nationwide set of coding and format standards for all transactions. The transaction records would be transmitted electronically, in a secure manner to protect privacy, over private and public interconnecting networks like the internet and intranet. In the year following the publication of the WEDI report, the health care industry made substantial gains with EDI implementation:
ANSI ASC X12 approved the claim and eligibility standards for trial use
The Insurance Subcommittee of ANSI ASC X12 formed new workgroups to develop other standards required by the health care industry HCFA initiated the use of Health Care Claim and Health Care Claim Payment/Advice standards and developed Efforts toward standardizing data content increased. EDI implementation guidelines for Medicare Part A Intermediaries and Part B Carriers consistent with the ANSI ASC X12 standards The private sector began developing EDI implementation guides EDI awareness and participation heightened as well as efforts to standardize data content
WEDI 1993 report highlights
WEDI reconvened in 1993 to resolve remaining implementation obstacles and to: