February 22, 2010
February 22, 2010
An additional $19.6 million grant will help health professionals use electronic records
LANSING - The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has awarded the Michigan Department of Community Health (MDCH) and the Michigan Department of Information Technology (MDIT) more than $14.9 million to accelerate the growth and progress of health information technology in the state. The grant is funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act).
"Health information technology will allow our health-care system to work more efficiently and effectively while providing greater access and quality to patient care," said Governor Jennifer M. Granholm. "This grant gives Michigan the necessary resources to revolutionize health information technology for physicians, health-care providers and citizens."
The Michigan Health Information Network (MHIN), an MDCH and MDIT-led collaborative of health-care stakeholders from across the state, will use the Recovery Act funds to implement the first statewide health information technology network and advance the state's use of health information technology (IT). The implementation of health IT will enable Michigan citizens and health-care providers to have greater access to individual patient records and health-care information.
The $14.9 million grant will be used over the next four years to build the technological infrastructure to integrate local and regional health information exchanges, health systems, State of Michigan systems, and integrated delivery networks. Once the infrastructure is in place, it will enable health-care providers from across the state to share information, reducing the overall cost of care while increasing health-care quality and patient safety.
The Recovery Act has also awarded $19.6 million to the Altarum Institute to help establish a program to assist Michigan's priority clinicians and hospitals to become meaningful users of electronic health records and enable them to realize all the benefits electronic records provide.
"If we do not use technology to improve efficiency and effectiveness in health care, administrative costs will continue to increase, redundant diagnostic tests will continue to be administered, and an increase in opportunities for medical errors will remain present," said MDCH Director Janet Olszewski. "This grant gives Michigan the opportunity to take patient care and quality to a higher level, and we are excited about that.
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