The Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) is testing the market for a digital medical information exchange service that could handle more than 140,000 requests annually across general practice, allied health and hospitals.
ACC has issued a request for information (RFI) to assess alternatives to its existing Medical Notes Service, which has operated under a single supplier arrangement since 2021.
The service allows ACC to securely request and receive medical information from GPs to support decisions on accident cover, entitlements, rehabilitation and recovery. It also manages follow-up activities, invoicing and some provider relationship management functions.
According to the RFI, ACC issued approximately 96,000 requests for GP consultation notes in the most recent 12-month period, with information expected to be received within an average of five working days.
ACC is considering whether a future service could also accommodate approximately 14,000 allied health information requests and 31,000 hospital information requests each year.
Those requests are currently handled outside the Medical Notes Service, with ACC estimating that an expanded system could process approximately 142,000 requests annually.
The agency said the existing digital service represented a significant improvement over historical manual processes but identified opportunities to improve request status visibility, provider administration and turnaround and digital-first interactions.
It is seeking information on existing solutions capable of securely managing requests and transfers at scale, including integration with enterprise workflows, identity systems, content management platforms and API-based environments.
ACC is also examining privacy and security requirements, provider engagement, reporting, support arrangements and the implications of transitioning from its existing service.
The RFI specifies that ACC is not interested in solutions that rely primarily on manual processes, cannot meet its privacy, security and information management requirements or significantly increase administrative workloads for ACC or healthcare providers.
The market exercise will help ACC determine whether viable alternatives exist and inform any future procurement process.
ACC has stressed that the RFI is for information gathering only and will not result in supplier selection, shortlisting, contract negotiations or a contract award.
Responses close at 4pm NZDT on 27 October 2026, with ACC yet to decide whether it will proceed to a formal procurement.
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