UnitedHealthcare Gives Critical Access Hospitals $20M for Health IT
UnitedHealthcare has announced that it will provide $20 million in grants to help 11 critical access hospitals in Central and Northern California implement electronic health records, Payers & Providers reports.
UnitedHealthcare worked with the California State Rural Hospital Association, the California Critical Access Hospital Network and the California Rural eHealth Information Network to determine the funding each hospital needs to implement EHRs.
About the Grant Recipients
The grants are being awarded to hospitals that have 25 or fewer beds and are at least 35 miles from another hospital or are located in mountainous regions accessible only by secondary roads.
The recipients typically have annual operating budgets under $25 million and treat large numbers of uninsured and elderly patients, as well as Medi-Cal beneficiaries. Medi-Cal is California's Medicaid program.
The grant recipients are:
- Biggs-Gridley Memorial Hospital in Butte County, which will receive $2.5 million;
- John C. Fremont Healthcare District in Mariposa County, which will receive $2 million;
- Kern Valley Healthcare District, which will receive $1.5 million;
- Last Frontier Healthcare District in Modoc County, which will receive $2 million;
- Mayers Memorial Hospital District in Shasta County, which will receive $2 million;
- Mendocino Coast District Hospital, which will receive $2.5 million;
- Plumas Health Care District, which will receive $1.5 million;
- Seneca Healthcare District in Plumas County, which will receive $1.6 million;
- Southern Inyo Healthcare District, which will receive $1.7 million;
- Surprise Valley Health Care District in Modoc County, which will receive $800,000; and
- Trinity Hospital, which will receive $1.7 million.
Comments
Steve Barrow -- executive director of the California State Rural Hospital Association -- said, "The interests of rural people must not be lost or dismissed because of distance, geographic isolation and lack of concentrated resources."
Dan Rosenthal -- CEO of UnitedHealthcare's western region -- said that it is important for critical access hospitals to "have access to technology that will enable them to deliver quality care to their patients" (Payers & Providers, 10/4). This is part of the California Healthline Daily Edition, a summary of health policy coverage from major news organizations. Sign up for an email subscription.