The HITECH Act seeks to improve patient care and make it patient-centric through the creation of a secure, interoperable nationwide health information network. A key premise is that information should follow the patient, and artificial obstacles -- technical, bureaucratic, or business-related -- should not be a barrier to the seamless exchange of information. Therefore, secure information exchange needs to occur across institutional and business boundaries so that the appropriate information is available to improve coordination, efficiency, and quality of care.  The HITECH grants are specifically designed to work together to provide the necessary assistance and technical support to providers, enable coordination and alignment within and among states, establish connectivity to the public health community in case of emergencies, and assure the workforce is properly trained and equipped to be meaningful users of EHRs.

There are currently no funding opportunities available. However, if grant opportunities become available they will be posted on this page. Check back for updates, or sign up for our Health IT News updates for the latest projects and funding from the ONC.

• Health Information Technology Extension Program (cycle 2)
  • Objective: This program provides grants for the establishment of Health Information Technology Regional Extension Centers that will offer technical assistance, guidance and information on best practices to support and accelerate health care providers’ efforts to become meaningful users of Electronic Health Records (EHRs).

• Beacon Community Cooperative Agreement Program
  • Objective:  This program will provide funding to communities to build and strengthen their health information technology (health IT) infrastructure and exchange capabilities to demonstrate the vision of meaningful health IT.

• Curriculum Development Centers
  • Objective:  This funding opportunity, one component of the Health IT Workforce Program, will provide $10 million in grants to institutions of higher education (or consortia thereof) to support health information technology (health IT) curriculum development.

• Community College Consortia to Educate Health Information Technology Professionals
  • Objective: This program, one component of the Health IT Workforce Program, seeks to rapidly create health IT education and training programs at Community Colleges or expand existing programs.  Community Colleges funded under this initiative will establish intensive, non-degree training programs that can be completed in six months or less.

• Program of Assistance for University-Based Training
  • Objective:  The purpose of this program, one component of the Health IT Workforce Program, is to rapidly increase the availability of individuals qualified to serve in specific health information technology professional roles requiring university-level training.  

• Competency Examination for Individuals Completing Non-Degree Training
  • Objective:  This funding opportunity, one component of the Health IT Workforce Program, will provide $6 million in grants to an institution of higher education (or consortia thereof) to support the development and initial administration of a set of health IT competency examinations.

• Strategic Health IT Advanced Research Projects (SHARP) Program
  • Objective:  The purpose of these awards is to fund research focused on achieving breakthrough advances to address well-documented problems that have impeded adoption: 1) Security of Health Information Technology; 2) Patient-Centered Cognitive Support; 3) Healthcare Application and Network Platform Architectures; and, 4) Secondary Use of EHR Data.

• State Health Information Exchange Cooperative Agreement Program
  These grant programs will support states and/or State Designated Entities (SDEs) in establishing health information exchange (HIE) capacity among health care providers and hospitals in their jurisdictions. Such efforts at the state level will establish and implement appropriate governance, policies, and network services within the broader national framework to rapidly build capacity for connectivity between and among health care providers. State programs to promote HIE will help to realize the full potential of EHRs to improve the coordination, efficiency, and quality of care.
  Awards expected in early 2010.