Nearly $107 million has been designated to more than 1,200 health centers across the U.S. from HHS aimed at improving the quality, efficiency and value of healthcare services provided.
The funds are given as Quality Improvement Awards from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). Centers funded by HRSA meet U.S. healthcare needs and act as a “first line of care in combatting the nation’s opioid crisis.” The announcement comes just weeks after HHS awarded $400 million to HRSA-funded centers to help battle the opioid abuse epidemic.
“Community health centers have consistently delivered these kinds of results, including high-quality primary care at a significantly lower cost than their peers and above-average results in controlling chronic conditions," HHS Secretary Alex Azar said in a statement. “America's health centers are essential to producing results on our actionable public health challenges, like HIV/AIDS and the opioid crisis, as well as to building a healthcare system that delivers better value and puts the patient at the center."
The HRSA-funded centers also play a critical role in ending the HIV epidemic, providing more than 2.4 million HIV tests to more than 2 million patients in 2018 and proving care to 1 in 6 patients diagnosed with HIV, according to HHS.
The funding is going to “high-achieving health centers,” according to Azar. The awards recognize health centers ranked in the top 1% to 2% in a couple key areas, including behavioral health, diabetes prevention and management and heart health.
"HRSA-funded health centers continue to lead the U.S. healthcare system in providing quality, value-based care to their communities" HRSA Acting Administrator Tom Engels said in a statement. "Today we are recognizing nearly all HRSA-funded health centers for their continued improvements on clinical quality measures and supporting them to continue as quality leaders nationwide in the years to come."
Amy joined TriMed Media as a Senior Writer for HealthExec after covering home care for three years. When not writing about all things healthcare, she fulfills her lifelong dream of becoming a pirate by sailing in regattas and enjoying rum. Fun fact: she sailed 333 miles across Lake Michigan in the Chicago Yacht Club "Race to Mackinac."