Agencies that Provide Behavioral Health Services May Soon Be Eligible for New Federal Funding  

On October 24th, the President signed into law comprehensive bipartisan legislation that includes the “Improving Access to Behavioral Health Information Technology Act”, which – for the first time — authorizes the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) to offer federal funding to behavioral health providers for the adoption and implementation of electronic health records systems (EHR). These funds will be crucial in coordinating care and saving lives. The Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA) have been advocating for federal funding to be made available to behavioral health providers for this purpose since 2009, when behavioral health providers were left out of a measure that established EHR financial incentives for most other health care providers.

JFNA’s Strategic Health Resource Center is now collaborating with CMMI to implement the landmark legislation, but we need your help. We need to show CMMI that the absence of federal financial incentives for behavioral health providers has indeed delayed the adoption and use of EHRs in the behavioral health care sector. If your agency would benefit from this federal funding, please contact JFNA’s Elizabeth Cullen and help us share your story.