Opportunity Information: Apply for EP HIT 09 003 W3
Apply for EP HIT 09 003 W3
- The Office of the National Coordinator in the recovery act sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, Health Information Technology Extension Program Regional Centers" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.718 Health Information Technology Regional Extension Centers Program.
- This funding opportunity was created on Jul 7, 2010 and posted on Jul 7, 2010.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Aug 6, 2010. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- The funding agency has allocated a total of $14,000,000.00 to eligible and selected applicants.
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $12,000,000.00 in funding.
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 5 candidate(s).
- Eligible applicants include: Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education.
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Opportunity Summary:
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) Health Information Technology Extension Program Regional Centers opportunity was a federal grant initiative designed to speed up and support the real-world adoption of electronic health records (EHRs) across the United States. It sits under the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act, which is part of ARRA, and reflects the federal government s broader push to modernize health care through secure, interoperable electronic health information. The overall policy goal behind the program was to improve the quality and value of care by helping providers use certified EHR technology in ways that actually change clinical workflows and performance, not just install software.
A key driver of urgency in the program was the HITECH incentive and penalty structure tied to "meaningful use." Under HITECH, eligible Medicare and Medicaid providers could qualify for incentive payments if they demonstrated meaningful use of certified EHR technology, with the detailed criteria set by the Secretary of Health and Human Services through formal rulemaking. At the same time, the program description emphasizes the coming enforcement timeline: by 2015, providers were expected to have adopted and be actively using EHRs in line with meaningful use requirements or face financial penalties under Medicare. In practice, this meant many clinics and small practices needed fast, practical help to choose systems, implement them, and redesign workflows to meet federal requirements.
The funding opportunity specifically sought applicants to operate Regional Extension Centers (called Regional Centers in the announcement) as part of the Health Information Technology Extension Program authorized under Section 3012 of the Public Health Service Act as amended by ARRA. The Extension Program was structured as a national support system with two main components: a national Health Information Technology Research Center (HITRC) and multiple Regional Centers. The Regional Centers were intended to provide hands-on, local or regional technical assistance to health care providers trying to adopt and meaningfully use EHRs. The underlying assumption, supported by prior experience noted in the announcement, was that strong, community-level technical assistance can materially improve implementation success and lead to measurable quality improvement across a defined geographic area.
The problem the program aimed to solve was not simply a lack of funding for software, but the practical difficulty providers face when trying to move from paper or basic digital tools to a fully functioning EHR environment. The announcement highlights common obstacles such as assessing organizational needs, selecting and negotiating with vendors or resellers, managing EHR implementation projects, and making workflow changes that improve clinical performance and outcomes. Regional Centers were therefore expected to function as trusted advisors and implementation partners for providers, helping them navigate vendor selection, project planning, and operational change so they could meet meaningful use standards and ultimately improve care delivery.
Administratively, this was a Recovery Act funding opportunity managed by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. ONC, established by HITECH as the principal federal entity for coordinating national health IT strategy, served as the lead agency for this initiative. The funding mechanism was a cooperative agreement, which typically implies more active federal involvement and ongoing collaboration than a standard grant, reflecting the program s national coordination goals and the need for consistent implementation approaches across regions.
In terms of basic solicitation details, the Funding Opportunity Number was EP HIT 09 003 W3 and the CFDA number listed was 93.718 (Health Information Technology Regional Extension Centers Program). The opportunity was posted July 7, 2010, with an original and current closing date of August 6, 2010, and an archive date of September 5, 2010. The estimated total funding amount was $14,000,000, with expected awards listed as 5. Individual awards were projected to range from a floor of $1,000,000 up to a ceiling of $12,000,000. The announcement also specified a cost sharing or matching requirement, meaning recipients would need to contribute non-federal resources or otherwise meet matching expectations as part of the award conditions.
Eligibility was limited to nonprofit organizations with 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, excluding institutions of higher education. In other words, this round focused on qualified nonprofit entities positioned to provide regional technical assistance and coordination rather than universities. The announcement also points readers to ONC s meaningful use website for the most current information, reinforcing that the details of meaningful use standards were evolving through the federal notice-and-comment rulemaking process at the time.
Overall, the grant opportunity was about building and staffing regional capacity to help providers adopt certified EHRs and meet meaningful use requirements, using a coordinated national framework (HITRC plus Regional Centers) but delivering support locally where implementation barriers actually show up. It combined the policy pressure of upcoming Medicare penalties with a support model aimed at making EHR adoption achievable for providers who lacked the technical staff, negotiating leverage, or change management experience needed to implement health IT successfully.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. What is the ARRA Health Information Technology Extension Program Regional Centers opportunity?
It was a federal grant initiative created under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), within the HITECH Act framework, to speed up and support real-world adoption of electronic health records (EHRs) across the United States by funding organizations to operate Regional Extension Centers (called Regional Centers in the announcement).
2. What was the main purpose of funding Regional Centers?
The purpose was to build and staff regional capacity to provide hands-on, local or regional technical assistance to health care providers adopting and meaningfully using certified EHR technology. The program emphasized workflow change and performance improvement, not just installing software.
3. Which federal agency managed this funding opportunity?
The opportunity was managed by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
4. How does this opportunity relate to the HITECH Act and ARRA?
The initiative sits under the HITECH Act, which is part of ARRA. It reflects a broader federal push to modernize health care through secure, interoperable electronic health information and to increase adoption of certified EHR technology.
5. What policy goal was the program trying to achieve?
The stated policy goal was to improve the quality and value of care by helping providers use certified EHR technology in ways that change clinical workflows and performance, rather than simply purchasing or installing EHR systems.
6. What is "meaningful use" and why was it important in this program?
"Meaningful use" refers to federal requirements for demonstrating effective use of certified EHR technology, with criteria set by the Secretary of Health and Human Services through formal rulemaking. It was important because providers could qualify for Medicare and Medicaid incentive payments for demonstrating meaningful use, and later faced Medicare-related financial penalties if they did not adopt and actively use EHRs in line with meaningful use requirements.
7. What timeline pressure did the opportunity emphasize for providers?
The program description highlighted that by 2015, providers were expected to have adopted and be actively using EHRs consistent with meaningful use requirements or face financial penalties under Medicare.
8. What types of challenges were Regional Centers expected to help providers overcome?
The announcement identified practical obstacles such as assessing organizational needs, selecting and negotiating with vendors or resellers, managing EHR implementation projects, and making workflow changes intended to improve clinical performance and outcomes.
9. What kind of support model did the Extension Program use?
The Extension Program was described as a national support system with two components: a national Health Information Technology Research Center (HITRC) and multiple Regional Centers delivering hands-on assistance locally or regionally.
10. What role did the Health Information Technology Research Center (HITRC) play compared to Regional Centers?
Based on the program structure described, HITRC served as the national component and Regional Centers served as the local/regional component providing direct, hands-on technical assistance to providers.
11. What was the funding mechanism for this opportunity?
The funding mechanism was a cooperative agreement, which typically indicates more active federal involvement and ongoing collaboration than a standard grant, consistent with the program's national coordination goals.
12. What was the Funding Opportunity Number and CFDA number?
The Funding Opportunity Number was EP HIT 09 003 W3, and the CFDA number was 93.718 (Health Information Technology Regional Extension Centers Program).
13. When was the opportunity posted and when did it close?
The opportunity was posted on July 7, 2010. The original and current closing date was August 6, 2010. The archive date was September 5, 2010.
14. How much total funding was estimated to be available?
The estimated total funding amount was $14,000,000.
15. How many awards were expected?
The announcement listed an expected total of 5 awards.
16. What was the anticipated award size range?
Individual awards were projected to range from a floor of $1,000,000 up to a ceiling of $12,000,000.
17. Was there a cost sharing or matching requirement?
Yes. The announcement specified a cost sharing or matching requirement, meaning recipients would need to contribute non-federal resources or otherwise meet matching expectations as part of the award conditions.
18. Who was eligible to apply?
Eligibility was limited to nonprofit organizations with 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, excluding institutions of higher education.
19. Were universities or institutions of higher education eligible in this round?
No. The eligibility criteria explicitly excluded institutions of higher education.
20. What kinds of organizations was this round trying to fund?
This round focused on qualified nonprofit entities positioned to provide regional technical assistance and coordination to help providers adopt and meaningfully use EHRs.
21. Did the program focus on paying for EHR software purchases?
The problem statement emphasized that the challenge was not simply lack of funding for software. The focus was on practical implementation barriers and the need for trusted, hands-on assistance to make adoption and meaningful use achievable.
22. What were Regional Centers expected to do for providers in practical terms?
Regional Centers were expected to act as trusted advisors and implementation partners by helping with vendor selection and negotiation, implementation project management, and operational/workflow changes to support meeting meaningful use standards and improving care delivery.
23. Why did the announcement emphasize local or community-level technical assistance?
The underlying assumption described was that strong, community-level technical assistance can materially improve implementation success and lead to measurable quality improvement across a defined geographic area.
24. Where did the announcement direct readers for the most current meaningful use information?
It pointed readers to ONC's meaningful use website for the most current information, noting that meaningful use standards were evolving through the federal notice-and-comment rulemaking process at the time.
25. What was the broader health care modernization theme behind this opportunity?
The program reflected the federal government's push to modernize health care through secure, interoperable electronic health information and to support providers in using certified EHR technology in ways that improve quality and value of care.
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