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Connecticut Immunization Registry Focuses on Quality, Not Expansion
All Kids Count II
- Annual birth cohort: 45,000
- Geographic area: State of Connecticut
- Legislation: 1994 law establishes registry
- Percentage of immunizations given in the private sector: 80 percent
- Other sources of funding: Federal
The Buy or Build Decision: Some health agencies develop their own immunization registry system, while others purchase software from vendors. Neither choice is necessarily the "right" one—both can be fraught with difficulties, delays, and cost overruns. The Connecticut registry begun in 1993 originally included only children in Hartford, but it was selected as the prototype for the state and expanded to include Medicaid managed care children in 1996. Its success prompted the state to expand the registry again to include all children statewide, but it needed additional functionality, and a new vendor was selected. Two years after vendor selection, the system specifications had yet to be met and, consequently, the registry continued to operate with its 1993 system, unable to roll out to the rest of the providers in the state. This delay was difficult for the registry, which in 1998 was poised to be among the first in the country to enroll all of its children in a state registry; and for providers, who had anticipated the statewide registry. At that point, CIRTS changed its focus from expansion to concentrating on quality. Through diligent staff efforts, CIRTS data on children ages 0 to 24 months was among the most complete.
All Kids Count Project Results
Individual project results from the RWJF national program, All Kids Count
Read the Program Results for All Kids Count View all