New York state has awarded 19 grants totaling $105 million to support community health information technology projects in the next two years.
The awards range from $1 million to $10 million and will support regional health information organizations and health care systems. The largest amount went to the Brooklyn Health Information Exchange, which received two grants that added up to $12.7 million.
The state’s new governor, David Paterson, announced the grants at a press conference during which he touted the projects as essential to delivering more coordinated, patient-centered care. “Electronic health records represent a cornerstone in the transformation of our health care system,” he said.
Lori Evans, deputy commissioner of the state Department of Health’s Office of Health IT Transformation, called the grants historic. “It’s a lot more of a commitment and investment than the federal government is making by a long shot — or any other state,” Evans said in an interview.
The grants are part of the Health Care Efficiency and Affordability Law for New Yorkers (HEAL-NY) program, which is financed by state bonds. Some of the funds were made available under an agreement between federal and state officials to invest Medicaid funds in health care reform, including health IT.
Evans said RHIOs in most parts of the state have received grants under the HEAL-NY program. An earlier round of funding invested $53 million into RHIO development.
She said she was particularly pleased that two of the grant winners were RHIOs that have joined forces to share infrastructure, though they remain separate entities. One RHIO is in the Adirondacks area, while the other is in the southern part of the state.
New York’s goals for the projects include supporting Medicaid providers, streamlining public health reporting and monitoring, increasing patients’ involvement in their own care, and improving the quality of care.
All the organizations must collaborate with one another to ensure interoperability and policy alignment. The health department will guide the projects, and the New York eHealth Collaborative will be the forum for ensuring the organizations work together. In addition, five New York universities have formed a consortium to evaluate the program.
Government Health IT presents Rick Friedman, director of the division of state systems for the Center for Medicaid and State Operations with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, in this recent eSeminar regarding how the federal Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Services is partnering with state Medicaid and health and human services officials to bring Medicaid into the digital age. Paul McCloskey, Government Health IT editor, moderates.
