History

1997

Pioneering Access

The health care safety net providers in Travis County came together in the spring of 1997 to form the Integrated Care Collaboration (ICC), now Connxus, to address access and financing issues and obstacles to care for low-income and uninsured residents of Central Texas. Among the original goals of the ICC was the development of collaborative programs and projects that would help increase access, improve quality, and lower the costs of providing primary, specialty, and behavioral health care services and would lay the foundation for a more coordinated and integrated system of services for the region’s unfunded population.

2000

Growing Our Network

As the ICC began to develop programs, it became necessary to create a more formal structure in which to implement and monitor its efforts. As a result, the ICC was organized as a 501(c)(3) under Texas law. Members have been added to include health and social services providers, payers, and purchasers, including hospitals, health care networks, clinics, government agencies, non-profit organizations, individual providers, and others. In 2000 the ICC extended its membership into Williamson, Caldwell, and Hays Counties.

2002

Transforming Care

Through the efforts of these visionary providers, the foundation of a community health record was initiated and the first exchange of data among safety net providers began in 2002. As the ICare system grew in both the type and volume of data collected, the ICC was able to generate data and reports on a variety of disease specific (Diabetes, Asthma) conditions and service utilization issues across the area’s safety net system. The system gained a new wealth of information and the ability to begin to stratify patients by severity of need. Safety net providers had a new source of information for coordinating the care of their patients.

The strength of the ICC is that it is an organization established and led by safety net providers across a multi-county region. These providers work collaboratively to address multiple healthcare issues to the benefit of both the medically indigent and the community at large. The ICC has grown over time into a nationally recognized organization for their efforts in assisting community-wide transformation of care through their HIE system, ICare.

2018

A New Direction

In 2018, ICC conducted a comprehensive assessment of the Health Information Exchange (HIE) environment in Texas, focusing on data completeness and quality. The assessment identified opportunities to improve data integrity, optimize platform use, and enhance service delivery, leading to a set of recommendations for addressing key challenges and implementing technical improvements

2019

Transformation

Building on insights from the previous year, ICC took steps to strengthen the HIE infrastructure by implementing real-time alerts and notifications for emergency department (ED) and inpatient (IP) admissions across participating organizations. Additionally, ICC developed a new strategic plan to guide future enhancements and support continued progress.

• Data: The organization achieved more complete and timely data collection and transitioned to an opt-out model to enhance data inclusivity.
• Infrastructure: ICC migrated from a physical data center to a cloud-based environment using Amazon Web Services (AWS) and established an annual risk assessment to enhance privacy and security. Additionally, ICC developed a notification solution for high-risk patients, adopting Collective Medical to provide a comprehensive ED/IP alerts and notification system.
• Operations: The data release policy was updated and enhanced. Specialized activities were outsourced, allowing ICC to maintain a nimble and highly qualified in-house team.

2020

Diversion and Reassessment

The COVID-19 pandemic shifted the focus of health systems and community organizations toward crisis response, temporarily limiting attention to healthcare challenges central to ICC’s mission, such as care coordination and cross-sector collaboration

At the same time, ICC began evolving its brand and identity to highlight its core values of collaboration, wellness, innovation, empowerment and equity and to clarify its long-term goals:

• Foster enhanced community collaboration in data exchange.
• Advance data-driven solutions to improve health outcomes for all.
• Strive for operational excellence to deliver valuable services.
• Build a sustainable, adaptable organization that promotes health equity.

2023

A New Name, A Renewed Commitment

In 2023, the ICC rebranded to connxus, reaffirming its commitment to transforming community health by connecting care organizations, policymakers, and stakeholders across all sectors, overcoming longstanding barriers and data silos.

As part of its evolution, connxus launched the Social Health Information Platform (SHIP) to streamline data sharing between clinical and social service providers and create a clear, comprehensive care record for everyone they serve.

SHIP is designed to:

• Integrate with various electronic health record (EHR) systems.
• Turn complex data into easy-to-read, actionable visuals.
• Deliver relevant data directly within care teams’ workflows
• Improve efficiency and care coordination across providers and sectors
• Offer deeper insights into community health trends, service gaps, and potential solutions.

2024

Texas Invests in HIEs

In 2024, connxus supported the launch of Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC)’s ATLIS program, designed to leverage secure, established HIEs to address inconsistencies in data-sharing connectivity across the state’s healthcare ecosystem.

In the first year of the program, connxus is using its well-established secure infrastructure and data connections to build partnerships with hospitals and Managed Care Organizations (MCOs).

2025

Setting the Standard

Connxus continues to expand ATLIS partnerships, providing a ready-to-connect secure network that makes it easy for hospitals and MCOs to meet program requirements and unlock valuable incentive payments.

With over 20 years of HIE leadership, connxus is already working closely with the Texas State Health Authority to support critical statewide tools like EDEN and PULSE. Its commitment to security adheres to strict HITRUST and TX-RAMP standards, ensuring a robust, compliant, and future-ready data-sharing ecosystem for all of Texas.