The Patrick-Murray Administration of Massachusetts has announced it has awarded $20 million in infrastructure and capacity-building funding to 39 hospitals and community health centers across the state to enhance their ability to serve populations in need more effectively and efficiently.
The funding is to be used in one of five priority areas, including:
- The redirection of non-emergency hospital Emergency Department visits to community health centers.
- Conducting readiness assessments for a global payment system.
- Document implementation of health information technology (HIT) and support targeted investments.
- Developing procedures for referring MassHealth patients discharged from an inpatient psychiatric unit to a community mental health center, outpatient behavioral health department or group practice that fosters immediate access to care.
- Developing protocols for receiving psychiatric medication histories of MassHealth members from pharmacy databases in order to promote quality care.
"The hospitals and community health centers receiving funding today are key partners in our ongoing efforts to ensure that the people of the Commonwealth have access to quality, affordable health care," said Governor Deval L. Patrick. "This funding gives needed financial support to providers who will be making significant strides to improve services for patients and control rising health care costs by making investments in health information technology and promoting a global payment system."
