Our office has been inundated with questions regarding the State Innovation Model Grant. We have compiled some information for our providers and have included Valant as one of our recommended EHRs to behavioral health organizations applying for this funding.
The State Innovation Models Initiative will be awarding up to $300 million to participating states and will focus on healthcare organizations that have a high number of Medicare, Medicaid, and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).
What does this mean for behavioral health organizations? Funding for your electronic health records (EHR) software adoption. The participating states are listed on the CMS.gov site and below:
- Washington
- Oregon
- California
- Idaho
- Utah
- Colorado
- Texas
- Arkansas
- Minnesota
- Hawaii
- Indiana
- Ohio
- Michigan
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Maryland
- New York
- Vermont
- New Hampshire
The state of Maine is one of the first to be awarded the Maine SIM Grant RFP for Behavioral Health HIT Reimbursement. Behavioral Health organizations can be awarded up to $35,000 for EHR adoption.
The RFP for the state of Maine behavioral health organizations can be found here.
Organizations that apply for and receive SIM funding in any participating state will be behavioral health organizations that serve a large Medicare and Medicaid clientele. States will be looking for providers that utilize Clinical Outcome Measurements which are included in Valant’s Mobile Notes. Reporting for these organizations will be the key to securing funding.
If you are a provider or behavioral healthcare organization in a participating state, please contact Valant or our office to discuss a demonstration of their EHR. We can provide assistance during your RFP process in order to obtain funding for your EHR adoption.
AUTHOR: Kristin Walker is the owner of everythingEHR, a behavioral health provider advocacy firm focused on helping clinicians traverse the often harrowing road of EHR and Revenue Cycle Management adoption. She is also the co-host of a weekly radio show on More for your Practice which offers guidance and advice to healthcare professionals.
