Public Health - HLN Consulting LLC

HLN will see you at CSTE 2026 in Boston

HLN is excited to connect with public health experts, leaders, epidemiologists, informaticians and partners at the CSTE 2026 conference in Boston.

CDC releases 2026 Public Health Data Strategy (PHDS)

The CDC has just released its 2026 Public Health Data Strategy (PHDS) annual update, providing guidelines for data modernization across the U.S. For public health organizations navigating DMI projects, these updates offer important guidance on upcoming technical requirements and federal priorities for data modernization. Read our summary of what’s changing.

The AIRA 2026 National Meeting is Coming Soon…to Pittsburgh, PA

Come hear about everything that is happening within the IIS Community, including AI, at the AIRA 2026 National Meeting in Pittsburgh, PA. Stop by our booth #8 or come hear our presentations, because together, we give public health a very loud voice!

Looking back at Public Health at HIMSS2026: From a drop in the ocean to a soft sprinkle

At a conference the scale of HIMSS, public health can feel like a single drop in a vast ocean. But as HLN’s Aasa Dahlberg Schmit reflects on HIMSS26, that presence is growing. Her takeaways capture a community in transition — one where incremental steps and collaborative strategies are slowly turning the tide toward modernized, resilient public health information systems.

The Federal AI Push and Its Potential Impact on State and Local Public Health

BY Mike Berry ON March 31, 2026 AI | CDC | Public Health

The federal government released a wave of AI strategy documents and proposed rules affecting public health IT. We reviewed them all and assessed the implications for state and local public health. Read our analysis to understand these implications and the significant gap: there are no specific funding commitments to support AI adoption at the state and local level.

HLN Submits comments to Health Data, Technology and Interoperability: ASTP/ONC Deregulatory Actions to Unleash Prosperity (HTI-5 Proposed rule)

In December 2025, the Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy (ASTP) released the draft HTI-5 proposed rule. HLN conducted a detailed review with particular attention to its implications for public health and submitted formal comments outlining key considerations for the public health community.

CMS Immunization Measures Updates to the 2026 Child and Adult Core Sets

BY Marcey Propp and Lilly Kan ON February 25, 2026 Immunization Information System (IIS) | Clinical Decision Support (CDS) | Immunization Calculation Engine (ICE) | Public Health

Recent changes by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) in immunization quality measures in the Child and Adult Core Sets fundamentally jeopardize the outlook for vaccine equity and mark a pivotal moment for public health. Read why a jurisdiction’s Immunization Information System (IIS) is now a more vital asset in data-driven vaccine decision making.

HLN Attends the 2026 ASTP Annual Meeting

The 2026 ASTP (Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy) Annual Meeting highlighted strong federal momentum around interoperability, patient access, and AI—alongside infrastructure gaps and limited public health representation.

The Sequoia Project’s Public Health Interoperability Roadmap

This post summarizes HLN Consulting’s comments on the Sequoia Project’s draft Public Health Interoperability Policy Roadmap, highlighting governance, standards, and implementation considerations.

HDUs: What Are They All About?

Health Data Utility (HDU) is emerging as a critical component of the public health data ecosystem. This blog explains what HDUs are, how they differ from HIEs and QHINs, and why their expanded data integration and analytics capabilities are increasingly important for public health, policy, and cross-sector decision-making.