Gov. Tim Kaine has announced a new, secure web portal to connect Virginia health plans, health systems and state agencies in a move he says will standardize and streamline health care administrative transactions.

Tim Kaine

Kaine, a Democrat, unveiled the Virginia Health Exchange Network June 12, an initiative he expects to lower costs and improve overall service quality for all state residents.

Providers including Aetna, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, CareFirst, CIGNA, Coventry and UnitedHealth are signed up for the network, and Kaine said he expects most private health plans and public payers to participate. The network will allow providers to determine eligibility status, level of benefits and other critical information in real-time through a secure web portal, the governor’s office said. Through a single web portal, the system is expected to eliminate paperwork and unnecessary phone calls, while helping providers and their support staff improve efficiency in their daily work.

“Virginia has already demonstrated we can be a leader in the health technology field – VHEN places the Commonwealth at the front of the pack by implementing measurable and relevant changes to our health care infrastructure,” Kaine said in a statement. “More broadly, the agreement between Virginia health plans-both public and private- demonstrates our commitment to the President’s call to reduce health care costs nationwide.”

The VHEN can also be expanded into other services, including populating health records and financial management. Future plans include identifying a real-time solution to identify patient insurance coverage when it may be unknown or unavailable in order to access healthcare benefits more easily.

President Barack Obama has been a staunch advocate of improving health information technology, including the dedication of $17.2 billion in his economic stimulus package for the adoption of electronic medical records to help streamline patient treatment and promote medical research.

C. Burke King, president of Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, said the health plan members of the new network “are thrilled to be able to offer this service to healthcare providers in Virginia.”

“By bringing together health plans, provider networks, and hospital systems from around the Commonwealth, we are building a foundation for healthcare quality improvement and administrative simplification, allowing providers to focus on patients, not paperwork,” King said.

Karen Ignagni, president and CEO of America’s Insurance Health Plans, which represents nearly 1,300 insurers nationwide, said the organization’s community has “devoted significant time and attention to administrative simplification.”

“The kind of effort being launched in Virginia is what is needed to make getting medical care and providing medical care simpler and less costly,” Ignagni said. “Very soon, we will be announcing pilot projects in two other states with health plans and physicians working together.”

Availity was chosen by Virginia officials to partner with VHEN to provide Virginia’s physicians, hospitals, and allied healthcare providers with eligibility and benefits for individual patients through the Availity Health Information Network.