Feds Give More State MU Planning Funds

Five more states and the District of Columbia will receive matching federal planning funds to implement programs to administer Medicaid incentive payments for meaningful use of electronic health records


Five more states and the District of Columbia will receive matching federal planning funds to implement programs to administer Medicaid incentive payments for meaningful use of electronic health records.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is awarding the funds, authorized under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. New grantees include Connecticut ($695,000), Delaware ($247,000), Indiana ($2.31 million), New Hampshire ($335,000), Rhode Island ($401,000) and the District of Columbia ($817,000). CMS now has awarded a total of $73.32 million to 45 states, as well as D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

States and territories must submit plans for CMS approval before receiving matching funds. They will use the funds for such activities as analyzing the current status of health information technology, examining barriers to EHR adoption, establishing eligibility for incentives and creating a long-term state Medicaid HIT plan.

--Joseph Goedert