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2022 Q4 Release Notes

Note: Release notes are snapshots in time. Some features mentioned may have since been retired, deprecated, moved, or updated, and certain links may no longer be active.

Enterprise2022.4.10.0 Release

The 2022.4.10.0 release from Opala includes the following updates:

New Features for Developers

  • Patient Historical Resource deployed.
  • Coverage Hx resource deployed.
  • Premera provider directory ETL deployed.
  • Updated the UniRoster ETL process to include partOf.
  • Deploy Express Scripts interface.
  • Advantasure Prior Auth ETL available.

Resolved Issues

  • Provider Directory FHIR repo repositioned.
  • Patient Access FHIR repo repositioned.

Developers

Patient Historical Resource Deployed

Opala has ingested the historical patient resource to our main FHIR repository.

Coverage Historical Resource Deployed

Opala has deployed the historical coverage resource to our production environement.

Premera Provider Directory ETL Deployed

Opala has deployed a new Premera provider directory ETL which populates the provider directory FHIR repository.

Updated the UniRoster ETL Process to Include partOf

Opala now ties together NPI-based organizations and Tax ID-based organizations using the partOf Organization attribute in the NPI-based organization. This is done so that providers have both organizations and identifiers available for their downstream workflows.

Note: The tax ID-based organization needs to be created before the NPI-based organization in order to prevent missing some of the links.

Deploy Express Scripts Interface

Opala now ingests bulk data from Express Scripts. Express Scripts hosts a FHIR Bulk API to which we’re connecting using our Data Exchange Importer. The Data Exchange Importer places the FHIR Bulk export request with the ESI API then downloads returned FHIR resources to a staging location in S3. From there a dedicated ESI ETL picks up the downloaded FHIR resources and loads them into Opala’s FHIR repository.

The following FHIR resource are available in the Patient Access API:

  • Allergyintolerance
  • Condition
  • Coverage
  • ExplanationOfBenefit
  • Observation
  • Organization
  • Patient
  • Practitioner

The Data Exchange Importer places bulk data export requests with ESI. The returned, exported resources are then placed in the Data Exchange Staging Bucket for import processing.

The data ingested is limited to members of the Alaska individuals population.

Advantasure Prior Auth ETL Available Deployed with Four Monthly Files (Reports)

The prior authorization ETL for Advatasure has been deployed with four monthly reports (file uploads). The new ClaimReponse resource has been made available through the Patient Access API; the API’s scopes have been changed to enable external users to access the data.

This is an interim process until a daily feed is available.

Resolved Issues

Provider Directory FHIR Repo Repositioned

The Provider Directory API (https://provdir.pcinc.io:59101/pcinc/fhir/r4) now points to the newly deployed Provider Directory FHIR Repo. Previously, the Provider Directory was pointing to a repo created from the IRIS instance.

Patient Access FHIR Repo Repositioned

The Patient Access API (https://api.opalahealth.io:45000/v1/fhir/r4/) now points to the newly deployed Patient Access API FHIR repo. Previously, the Patient Access API was pointing to a repo created from the IRIS instance. The new repo is refreshed by the ETLs implemented this year.

Enterprise2022.4.4.1 Release

The 2022.4.4.1 release from Opala includes the following updates:

New Features for Developers

  • Updated synthetic dataset added to the Sandbox.

Resolved Issues

  • Patient Proxy: ZeOmega Patient ETL uses only unique IDs.
  • The hyphen in a Zip+4 zip code now removed.

Developers

Updated Synthetic Dataset Added to the Sandbox

Opala’s Sandbox is used by payers and third-party app developers to test access to the Opala APIs. The data in the Sandbox’s FHIR repository has been updated to a richer synthetic dataset. The following resource types have been updated:

Patient {AllergyIntolerance, CarePlan, CareTeam, Condition, Goal, Location, MedicationRequest, Organization, Practitioner, PractitionerRole, Procedure}

Coverage

Note: The Coverage resource is a non-clinical resource and is only available via Opala’s Patient Access API; it is not available using the Payer-to-Payer API.

Resolved Issues

Patient Proxy: ZeOmega Patient ETL Uses Only Unique IDs

The ZeOmega Patient ETL now converts the ZID from a numeric value (how it is received) to a character value (how it is stored) so that a data-type error is no longer generated. Previously, the ETL was storing the ZID valued as a character type without first converting the value from a numeric data type. This created duplicate ZID values — one character type and one numeric type — causing the error.

The Hyphen in a Zip+4 Zip Code Now Removed

Opala now removes the hyphen from the Zip+4 zip code for both incoming and retrieved resources before comparing the addresses to see if they are the same. Previously, the hyphens were not removed from the retrieved data which sometimes caused address mismatches.

Enterprise2022.4.3.3 Release

The 2022.4.3.3 release from Opala includes the following updates:

New Features for Developers

  • Member ID format for Blue Card members.
  • Subscriber IDs now included for Blue Card members.
  • Databricks R8 deployed.

Resolved Issues

  • Issue with HeCAK rosters.

Developers

Member ID Format for Blue Card Members

Blue Card members ingested into Opala’s database now include the Member ID identifiers that retain the orignal spaces from the Premera data. Keeping these spaces permits Premera to link back to the orignal claim.

Subscriber IDs Now Included for Blue Card Members

When data for Blue Card members was originally ingested into Opala’s FHIR database, Subscriber IDs were not included in the the ingested data. When Opala begins receiving Subscriber IDs with Blue Card members, Those members who were orignally ingested without the IDs will have the Subscriber IDs added to their FHIR resources.

Databricks R8 Deployed

The Databricks R8 deployment to Opala’s production environment has been completed. The deployment consists of:

  • Provider Directory
    • FHIR layer – Health Care Service Resource (new)
  • Reference Data
    • NUCC Taxonomy Code Set (new)
    • Health Plans (new)
    • Taxonomy – Healthcare Service Category Mapping (new)
  • FHIR resource types added to fhir_resource_count_byday in Operations data mart.

Resolved Issues

Issue with HeCAK Rosters

Because of a batching issue, the HeCAK roster was being created every five minutes rather than once daily. This issue has been resolved and now the process is only creating one HeCAK roster daily.

Developers

Updated Synthetic Dataset Added to the Sandbox

Opala’s Sandbox is used by payers and third-party app developers to test access to the Opala APIs. The data in the Sandbox’s FHIR repository has been updated to a richer synthetic dataset. The following resource types have been updated:

Patient {AllergyIntolerance, CarePlan, CareTeam, Condition, Goal, Location, MedicationRequest, Organization, Practitioner, PractitionerRole, Procedure}

Coverage

Note: The Coverage resource is a non-clinical resource and is only available via Opala’s Patient Access API; it is not available using the Payer-to-Payer API.

Resolved Issues

Patient Proxy: ZeOmega Patient ETL Uses Only Unique IDs

The ZeOmega Patient ETL now converts the ZID from a numeric value (how it is received) to a character value (how it is stored) so that a data-type error is no longer generated. Previously, the ETL was storing the ZID valued as a character type without first converting the value from a numeric data type. This created duplicate ZID values—one character type and one numeric type—causing the error.

The Hyphen in a Zip+4 Zip Code Now Removed

Opala now removes the hyphen from the Zip+4 zip code for both incoming and retrieved resources before comparing the addresses to see if they are the same. Previously, the hyphens were not removed from the retrieved data which sometimes caused address mismatches.

Enterprise2022.4.3.1 Release

The 2022.4.3.1 release from Opala includes the following updates:

New Features for Developers

  • Updated synthetic dataset added to the Sandbox.

Resolved Issues

  • Patient Proxy: ZeOmega Patient ETL uses only unique IDs.
  • The hyphen in a Zip+4 zip code now removed.

Enterprise2022.4.3.0 Release

The 2022.4.3.0 release from Opala includes the following updates:

  • Authentication now required for OIDC Backend Service Clients.
  • Databricks R7 deployed.

Developers

Authentication Now Required for OIDC Backend Service Clients

The Smile OIDC Clients used for Backend Service Authentication have been updated to set the Authentication Required flag to Yes. All OIDC Backend Service Clients must now be authenticated.

Databricks R7 Deployed

The Databricks R7 deployment to Opala’s production environment has been completed. The deployment consists of:

  • Provider Directory — FHIR layer: Location Resource (new)
  • Audit Data — DLT Event Log (new)
  • Audit Data — Smile Transaction Log: Added clientName (updated)
  • Reference Data — NPPES Monthly Data (updated)
    • Add new column, certification_date
    • Fixed date casting issues

Enterprise2022.4.2.2 Release

The 2022.4.2.2 release from Opala includes the following updates:

  • BlueCard members now ingested into FHIR repository.
  • Custom f_bdtc extension added for Group members.

Developers

BlueCard Members Now Ingested into FHIR Repository

UniRoster ELT has been updated and a new data source added to Verato to enable the ingestion of BlueCard members into Opala’s FHIR repository.

Custom f_bdtc Extension Added for Group Members

The f_bdtc flag denotes BlueCard members — that is, members of a BCBS insurance other than Premera (e.g., BlueKC). The f_bdtc flag lets a servicing provider (e.g., Providence) separate these members out into a different cohort while keeping them in the same ATR Group.

The value f_bdtc currently comes in as an attribute of the pbc_uniroster_attribution table. This field has been added as a custom extension attribute for each member of an ATR Group that contains this value.

Enterprise2022.4.2.0 Release

The 2022.4.2.0 release from Opala includes the following updates:

  • PatientProxy (ETL Improvement).
  • New Resources Deployed to ZeOmega.
  • Advantasure ETL.

Developers

PatientProxy (ETL Improvement)

Opala has added a PatientProxy lambda that acts as a proxy/façade for ETLs. This patient proxy is used for PUT Patient updates to the main FHIR repository. The new lambda only supports the PUT operation; it also takes care of the prioritization of updates and merging of lists. All ETLs used for mastering patient identity use this lambda. This enables the Patient ETL processes to build a Patient resource as though they are the only data source — ignoring previous content, prioritization, and merging rules.

New Resources Deployed to ZeOmega

The following resources have been deployed to ZeOmega and are available in the production environment:

  • AllergyIntolerance
  • CarePlan
  • documentReference
  • Practitioner
  • Organization
  • Patient

Advantasure ETL

A new ETL has been deployed to Opala’s production environment to process Advantasure Patient resources. This process creates a new FHIR resource for the patient.

Enterprise2022.4.0.1 Release

The 2022.4.0.1 release from Opala includes the following updates:

New Features for Developers

  • 1upHealth individual payers registered in Payer-to-Payer.

Resolved Issues

  • Response to errors in Verato not triggered.

 

Developers

Individual Payers from 1upHealth Registered

Individual payers represented by 1upHealth have successfully registered with Opala. This means that the data for these payers will be available, in Opala’s production environment, to their members through Opala’s Payer-to-Payer Data Exchange feature.

Resolved Issues

Errors in Verato Not Triggering Expected Response

When errors were discovered while processing a UniRoster in Verato, the retry count feature was not triggered causing the failed queries to repeatedly attempt to run against Verato. The query now ceases running after 10 attempts.