$1B healthcare grant program announced

WASHINGTON, Nov. 14 (UPI) -- Up to $1 billion will be awarded to projects that test creative ways to deliver high-quality medical care while saving money, the White House announced Monday.

The Health Care Innovation Challenge, launched by the Department of Health and Human Services, also will give preference to projects that rapidly hire, train and deploy healthcare workers, the Obama administration said in a release.

"We've taken incredible steps to reduce healthcare costs and improve care but we can't wait to do more," Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said. "Both public and private community organizations around the country are finding innovative solutions to improve our healthcare system and the Health Care Innovation Challenge will help jump-start these efforts."

The program funded through the Affordable Care Act, will award grants in March to applicants to help implement ideas to deliver better healthcare and lower costs for people enrolled in Medicare, Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program, the White House said. The program will support projects that can begin within six months and give priority to projects that focus on rapid workforce development.

Awards will range from about $1 million to $30 million for a three-year period, officials said. Applications are open to providers, payers, local governments, community-based organizations and public-private partnerships, among others.

Each recipient project will be evaluated and monitored for measurable improvements in quality of care and savings generated, officials said.