HHS awards funds to improve quality of care and electronic reporting capabilities

The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Administrator, Dr. Mary Wakefield, and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, Dr. Farzad Mostashari, announced awards of $8.5 million to 85 community health center programs, located in 15 of the 17 Beacon Communities throughout the United States.

These funds, made available through HRSA under the Affordable Care Act, help support health centers with the adoption of health information technology (HIT) to support long-term improvements in quality of care, health outcomes and cost efficiencies.

Beacon Communities receive funds through the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) to build and strengthen their HIT infrastructure and exchange capabilities to improve care coordination, increase the quality of care, and slow the growth of health care spending. Today’s awards from HRSA are intended to enable existing health centers located in Beacon Communities to participate in community-wide health care improvement initiatives that include a strong information technology component. Recipients include health centers in cities across the country.