The Massachusetts Health Data Consortium is working with Edifecs to provide ICD-10 collaborative testing for many of the state’s health plans and provider organizations. The MHDC’s Collaborative Testing Program participants will have access to Edifecs’ testing tools and team of experts to help manage the transition and mitigate risk going into ICD-10 live production.

Testing ICD-10 codes and scenarios with trading partners is expected to increase the chances of a  smooth transition.

"We have seen that as the healthcare industry evolves and adapts to new mandates and regulations, testing is a critical component of all complex initiatives required to ensure a successful migration," said Edifecs CEO Sunny Singh, in a news release.

[See also: Providers keep sluggish pace on ICD-10.]

The ICD-10 Collaborative Testing Program, Singh said, is designed to reduce the cost and time of testing, mitigate financial and compliance risk, and improve overall ICD-10 preparation among participants. Currently, eight health plans and nine provider organizations are engaged in the program, with more expected soon.

"The State of Massachusetts is commonly known for being a pioneer in healthcare coverage and accessibility – technology and collaboration are no exception," Denny Brennan, executive director of the consortium, said in a statement. "Edifecs will help our health plans and provider organizations achieve the ICD-10 milestone and set the national standard in ICD-10 testing," Brennan added. "With access to Edifecs' collaborative testing tools and team of experts, the CTP will help members manage the magnitude of this project and mitigate any risk going into ICD-10 live production."

Health plans and provider organizations must be in compliance with the ICD-10 mandate by Oct. 1, 2014. The CTP is designed to facilitate transaction, coding quality and business impact testing within trusted, Web-based, payer-sponsored testing communities, Brennan said.

[See also: Outlook grim for docs' ICD-10 readiness.]

The solution is a secure, online testing portal that enables health plans and providers to jointly design testing requirements, share test data, exchange transactions and analyze results, Singh said, adding that it would allow the Commonwealth’s participating health plans and provider organizations to manage contracts and reimbursement rates with full transparency in expected financial outcomes for submitted claims and other transactions.

The platform will provide participating CTP organizations access to high quality clinical content -- a repository of more than 1,500 clinical scenarios to cover high-risk codes -- and a scalable technology backbone.