Kansas Regional Extension Center (REC) is getting a funding extension from the Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) for its $9.5 million grant, originally received in 2010 as part of the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act.
The Kansas REC still has more than $2 million in funds from the initial grant, which were going to lapse earlier this month. However, ONC has given the REC another year until Feb. 7, 2015. The extension means it can continue to provide "Preferred Primary Care Providers" with subsidized assistance in setting up their systems, even though the organization already surpassed the 1,200 qualified provider threshold in 2011.
"The win for us is this gives us another year to continue doing the work that we've been doing for the last four," REC Director Michael Aldridge said in a statement. "We do believe there are additional providers that would qualify for subsidized assistance."
According to the article from Kansas Health Institute, nearly every REC requested an extension. However, ONC is reviewing those requests and nothing else has been announced. Some RECs, like the one in New Jersey, have made noted attempts towards sustainability.
