Wisconsin’s health information exchange (HIE) planning board released on July 19 its plan for developing and implementing an electronic health information network.   The Wisconsin Relay for Electronic Data (WIRED) for Health Board’s health information technology strategic and operational plan represents the intensive, dedicated, collaborative efforts of many public and private stakeholders throughout the state. The Board was created by Governor Jim Doyle in December 2009, following enactment of the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA).  The Board’s efforts are supported by $9.4 million in ARRA funding and guided by a State law enacted in May 2010. The Board’s plan contains in-depth assessments of the current health IT infrastructure in Wisconsin and recommendations as to how Wisconsin’s HIE organization (a non-profit corporation representing a public-private partnership) should be governed going forward, methods of achieving financial sustainability, IT functionality and interoperability specifications, technical services to be offered through the HIE, and methods of maintaining compliance with HITECH, HIPAA, and other requirements related to confidentiality, data integrity, and system security. Wisconsin is seeking public comments by August 1 and expects to submit the plan for approval to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services by August 31. Wisconsin expects to begin to implement the plan by early 2011.