Health Level Seven International

Health Level Seven International (HL7) is a not-for-profit, ANSI-accredited standards developing organization founded in 1987. The organization develops comprehensive frameworks and standards for the exchange, integration, sharing, and retrieval of electronic health information that supports clinical practice and health services delivery.

HL7 is best known for creating FHIR (Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources), the modern API-based standard for healthcare data exchange, alongside legacy standards like HL7 V2 messaging. The organization operates through working group meetings, maintains training and certification programs, and provides resources like the OID Registry for healthcare organizations worldwide.

In January 2026, HL7 appointed Professor Rachel Dunscombe as CEO and Patrick McGinn as Chief Operating Officer, marking a new leadership era for the organization as it continues advancing interoperability in the age of AI and emerging healthcare technologies.

Organizations should engage with HL7 when they need authoritative, industry-standard frameworks for healthcare data interoperability. HL7 membership and training provide access to the specifications, community expertise, and governance processes that underpin most modern healthcare integration projects.

Expect structured learning through online courses, participation in standards development through working groups, and access to comprehensive documentation. HL7 serves as the foundation for regulatory requirements and industry interoperability initiatives rather than providing custom implementation services.

HL7 exists exclusively to serve healthcare interoperability needs. The organization develops standards that enable clinical data exchange across hospitals, health systems, payers, pharmaceutical companies, and medical device manufacturers. HL7 standards address security and privacy requirements including HIPAA compliance, support clinical workflows from patient registration to care coordination, and enable emerging use cases like AI-driven health analytics.

The organization maintains specialized programs including FHIR Accelerators for specific healthcare domains and provides security guidance aligned with healthcare-specific regulations and requirements.

Software vendors building healthcare applications, health systems implementing interoperability solutions, digital health startups requiring standards compliance, medical device manufacturers needing data exchange capabilities, and IT professionals seeking HL7 certification. Best suited for organizations with technical teams capable of implementing standards-based solutions using HL7 specifications.