CalRHIO, CAeHC Urged To Develop Joint Plan To Oversee Health IT Funds
Officials are urging the California Regional Health Information Organization and the California e-Health Collaborative to work together on a plan to oversee billions of federal dollars for health information technology projects, the San Francisco Business Times reports.
In a Dec. 1 interview with the Business Times, Jonah Frohlich, California's secretary of health IT, said he asked two finalists for the contract to amend their earlier proposals and collaborate on a joint plan. Frohlich declined to name the finalists.
California currently is vying for nearly $40 million in federal health IT funds. The federal economic stimulus law eventually could disburse billions more through designated entities.
Timeline
CalRHIO and CAeHC have until tomorrow to submit a cooperative proposal to administer the funds.
State officials plan to review the proposal in mid-December and issue a decision by Jan. 4, 2010. Initial federal stimulus funds are expected to reach California by early next year (Rauber, San Francisco Business Times, 12/4).
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