Groups Give $4.5M for Medical Records Project

Three California health care foundations are sponsoring a $4.5 million, three-year program to accelerate electronic health records adoption in community clinics and health centers statewide, the East Bay Business Times reports.

The Blue Shield of California Foundation, the California HealthCare Foundation and the Community Clinics Initiative -- a collaboration between the Tides Foundation and the California Endowment -- each are contributing $1.5 million to the project.

Fewer than 5% of California's more than 500 community clinics and health centers currently use EHR systems because of cost and a lack of technical expertise.

Crystal Hayling, president of the Blue Shield Foundation, said the collaboration aims to help clinics increase their use of health IT "so they can more effectively serve our most vulnerable residents."

The organizations over the next three years will develop at least three centralized support hubs to supply technology, technical support, vendor management and other services needed for EHR adoption. In addition, Cisco Systems Foundation will provide a senior management fellow who will lead the design effort and provide technical assistance, the Business Times reports.

Eligible organizations must submit funding proposals by July 15 (Rauber, East Bay Business Times, 5/4).

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