Important Information
9/15/2026: IMPORTANT TRANSITION UPDATE: Rochester RHIO continues to work with HealtheConnections, NYeC, and NYSDOH on transition planning activities. Participants should continue using Rochester RHIO services as they do today. Critical services, including Results Delivery and clinical data access, remain available.
No Action Required for Most Participants
Organizations that have selected Rochester RHIO as their Designated or Additional Health Information Network (HIN) do not need to take any action if they wish to transition to HealtheConnections. Organizations wishing to select a different HIN must submit a HIN election change by October 15, 2026. Organizations that do not make a change by this date will automatically be included in the transition to HealtheConnections.
👉 View Updated Transition FAQs
👉 Learn More About the Transition
👉 SHIN-NY SCPA HIN Election Schedule Amendment Form
👉 HealtheConnections Rochester RHIO Transition Webpage
👉 HealtheConnections Events & Training Calendar
Questions? Contact support at 📧 support@grrhio.org or 📞 1‑877‑865‑7446
News / Article
COVID-19 Shines a Light on the Importance of Connectivity to Provide Patient Care
Rochester RHIO usually operates quietly behind the scenes, serving 1.5 million residents across 14 New York counties across the Greater Finger Lakes Region. But in a time of a public health emergency, its importance is pushed to the forefront.
As the healthcare ecosystem experienced significant disruptions and increased demands during the COVID-19 crisis, Rochester RHIO has been a vital partner.
From the beginning of the pandemic, RHIO developed COVID-19 reports for each of the county health departments it serves. These reports sort, organize and simplify the data from nearly 50 laboratory sources for Covid-19 testing. Reports provide health officials with secure and quick access to new coronavirus data on a regular basis.
The pandemic also reinforced the importance of having physicians and clinical staff understand a patient’s compete health and medical history to provide the best care—especially when that care is delivered from a suddenly expanded and dispersed group of professionals. With the expansion of telehealth, changes to hospital procedures and limited routine health office hours, RHIO’s connection to the Statewide Health Information Network of New York (SHIN-NY) became critical for patient care. With consent, physicians and other front-line healthcare professionals have been able to view critical information such underlying conditions, hospitalizations, prescription medications and lab results—including flu and COVID-19 testing—to make more informed care decisions. And now, verbal RHIO consent has been authorized to facilitate the expansion of telemedicine services during the State of Emergency and in field hospitals.
More than a million area residents have consented with a signature to use this vital service, which is helping the region manage the current crisis and prepare for the future.