How is the U.S. represented in the international organization that owns SNOMED CT?
A. NLM is the U.S. Member of the IHTSDO – one of the nine original Charter Members. As an IHTSDO member, NLM has rights and responsibilities that include the distribution of SNOMED CT (both English and Spanish versions) in multiple formats. Details are available in the IHTSDO Articles of Association. NLM supports this effort through a contract with the IHTSDO under which NLM pays an annual fee (approximately $6 million per year) to make SNOMED CT available free of charge to anyone in the U.S. NLM is a voting member of the General Assembly of the IHTSDO and serves as a focal point for U.S. input to the ongoing development of the terminology. The U.S. is currently represented on the IHTSDO Management Board by Andrew Wiesenthal, MD, SM, Kaiser Permanente. Permanent executive officers have been appointed including Kent Spackman, MD, Oregon Health Sciences University, as the Chief Terminologist. The IHTSDO has four standing Committees: Content, Research & Innovation, Quality Assurance, and
