What is Electronic Case Reporting?
Electronic Case Reporting (eCR) is the automated generation and transmission of case reports from electronic health records (EHRs) to public health agencies (PHAs) for review and action. eCR reduces the burden on healthcare providers to accomplish their reporting requirements to public health and improves the timeliness and completeness of case reports at the local, state, and national levels.
Reporting diseases and conditions of interest to public health by healthcare providers is required by law in all US states and territories. Requirements of this reporting vary by disease/condition and public health jurisdiction. Historically, healthcare providers must identify that their patient has a disease/condition of interest to public health, create a reportable condition case report using time-intensive manual processes (e.g., written reports, fax, or mail), and submit the report to the appropriate PHA. This has led to significant underreporting and, therefore, delayed identification of events, such as dangerous disease outbreaks, that require public health intervention.
