UnitedHealthcare has given $20 million in funding to help 11 rural California hospitals improve their health information technology systems, the health carrier announced.
The selected hospitals are part of California’s Critical Access Hospital Network (CCAHN), a statewide organization that provides resources for rural California Access Hospitals (CAH), which are defined as being located at least 35 miles from another hospital or 15 miles from another facility in areas with only secondary roads.
Tim McGlew, the CEO of Kern Valley Healthcare District, which received $1.5 million in funding, expressed his gratitude for UnitedHealthcare’s investment.
“Without these resources, we would not have been able to upgrade and implement our electronic medical records initiative, which is improving the quality of care and access to medical records to better care for our patients,” McGlew said in a statement.
According to the announcement, $19.4 million was for the 11 hospitals’ private placement bonds with a repayment plan that includes a rebate of 10 percent for early repayment. The company also provided $577,000 in grants for additional costs and gave $200,000 in grants to the California State Rural Health Association (CSRHA) for assessing technology needs for CAHs.
The 11 hospitals that received UnitedHealthcare fund are: Mendocino Coast District Hospital in Mendocino County ($2.5 million); Trinity Hospital in Trinity County ($1.7 million); Plumas Health Care District ($1.5 million) and Seneca Healthcare District ($1.6 million) in Plumas County; John C. Fremont Healthcare District in Mariposa County ($2 million); Last Frontier Healthcare District ($1.6 million) and Surprise Valley Health Care District ($800,000) in Modoc County; Mayers Memorial Hospital District in Shasta County ($2 million); Kern Valley Healthcare District in Kern County ($1.5 million); Southern Inyo Healthcare District in Inyo County ($1.7 million); and Biggs-Gridley Memorial Hospital in Butte County ($2.5 million).
