(a) DHIN has the power and duty to do all of the following:
(1) Develop and maintain a community-based health information network to facilitate communication of patient clinical and financial information, designed to do all of the following:
a. Promote more efficient and effective communication among multiple health care providers, including hospitals, physicians, payers, employers, pharmacies, laboratories, and other health care entities.
b. Create efficiencies in health-care costs by eliminating redundancy in data capture and storage and reducing administrative, billing, and data collection costs.
c. Create the ability to monitor community health status.
d. Provide reliable information to health-care consumers and purchasers regarding the quality and cost-effectiveness of health care, health plans, and health-care providers.
(2) Develop or design other initiatives in furtherance of DHIN’s purpose.
(3) Report and make recommendations to the Governor and General Assembly.
(4) Adopt bylaws to govern all of the following:
a. The conduct of DHIN’s affairs.
b. The carrying out and discharge of DHIN’s powers, duties, and functions.
c. Adopt policies as appropriate to carry out and discharge DHIN’s powers, duties, and functions; to sue, but not be sued; to enter into contracts and agreements; and to plan, control facilities and DHIN’s real and personal property as DHIN may deem necessary, convenient, or desirable without application of Chapters 59, 69, or 70 of Title 29.
(5) [Repealed.]
(6) A provision pertaining to conflicts of interest and that Board members, staff, committee members, and others conducting business or associated with DHIN are required to sign conflict of interest statements.
(7) To have and exercise all powers available to a corporation organized under Chapter 1 of Title 8, the Delaware General Corporation Law.
(8) To employ personnel and provide benefits necessary to carry out DHIN’s functions and to retain by contract engineers, advisors, and other providers of advice, counsel, and services which it deems advisable or necessary in the exercise of DHIN’s purposes and powers and upon the terms DHIN deems appropriate.
(9) To exercise power and authority regarding DHIN’s operation, development, and maintenance.
(10) To do all acts and things necessary or convenient to carry out DHIN’s functions, including having the authority to open and operate separate bank accounts in DHIN’s name.
(11) To collect, receive, hold, and disburse funds related to DHIN’s operations, including user fees that DHIN sets.
(12) Implement and operate a statewide integrated health information network to enable communication of clinical health, financial health, and other information, and other related functions that the Board deems necessary.
(13) Promote efficient and effective communication among Delaware healthcare providers and stakeholders including hospitals, physicians, state agencies, payers, employers, pharmacies, laboratories, and other health care entities by serving as this State’s sanctioned health data utility.
(14) Promote efficiencies in the healthcare delivery system.
(15) Provide a reliable health information exchange to authorized users.
(16) Work with governments or other states to integrate into or with DHIN or assist governments or other states in providing regional integrated health information systems.
(17) Work towards improving the quality of health care and the ability to monitor community health status and facilitate health promotions by providing immediate and current outcome, treatment, and cost data and related information so that patients, providers, and payers can make informed and timely decisions about health care.
(18) Submit an annual report to the Governor and the General Assembly setting forth in detail DHIN’s operations and transactions, including an annual books and accounts, to be conducted by a firm of independent certified public accountants that the Auditor of Accounts and the Director of the Office of Management and Budget agree upon.
(19) Develop and maintain a process to enable a hospital to record in the patient’s electronic health record contained in DHIN the patient’s designation of a lay caregiver and the lay caregiver’s contact information, as required by § 3002J(b) of this title, and if the hospital attempted to or did interface with the lay caregiver, as required by § 3004J(b) of this title.
(20) Develop, maintain, and administer the Delaware Health Care Claims Database under subchapter II of this chapter.
(21) Perform any and all other activities in furtherance of this section.
(b) To carry out the duties listed in this section, DHIN is granted all incidental powers, without limitation, including the powers to do all of the following:
(1) Contract with sufficient third parties or employ nonstate employees, without applications of the provisions of Chapter 59, 69, or 70 of Title 29 respectively.
(2) Establish a nonappropriated special funds account in DHIN’s budget to receive gifts and donations.
(3) Establish reasonable fees or charges for provision of DHIN’s services to network participants and users of DHIN services.
(4) Sell or license copyrighted or patented intellectual property.
(5) Enter into contracts and business arrangements, including joint venture agreements, partnership agreements, sublease agreements, or other agreements, with organizations engaged in any business or health care activities permitted under Delaware law to further the underlying mission of DHIN.
(c) A contract or business arrangement entered into under subsection (b) of this section may not be construed to deem DHIN a health-care provider.
