The Office of the National Coordinator announced today nearly $20 million in funding for technical assistance to help critical access and rural hospitals across the nation convert from paper-based medical records to certified electronic health records (EHRs) systems.
The grant awards will go to 46 of the 60 existing regional health IT extension centers (RECs) to target support for 1,655 critical access and rural hospitals in their areas in 41 states and Native American reservations, tribal lands and dependent communities.
ONC awarded grants amounting to $643 million earlier this year to create the 60 RECs.
The extension centers help healthcare providers to computerize their medical records and use the technology to improve care in patients in a meaningful manner to qualify for Medicare and Medicaid incentive payments under the HITECH Act.
The funding is part of the Critical Access Hospitals and Rural Hospitals Project, a priority for the REC program, to supply additional technical support to critical and rural facilities with fewer than 50 beds to deploy EHR systems.
There are about 1,300 certified Critical Access Hospitals located throughout the U.S.
RECs are designed to handle requirements unique to the community and offer hands-on assistance to accelerate provider efforts towards meaningful use, said Dr. David Blumenthal, national coordinator for health IT.
"The added level of support we are announcing today will enable the RECs to offer greater field support to these communities as they deal with the financial and workforce constraints, and work to achieve access to broadband connectivity and to overcome other barriers that critical access hospitals and other rural hospitals may confront," he said in a statement announcing the grants Sept 10.
This latest round brings to a total of more than $663 million in awards to support establishment and operations of the RECs.
