Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 124.djvu/537

 124 STAT. 511 PUBLIC LAW 111–148—MAR. 23, 2010 ‘‘(3) provider assessment of such processes or systems and opportunities to minimize distress and injury to the health care workforce; ‘‘(4) the potential impact of such processes or systems on health status and function of patients, including vulnerable populations including children; ‘‘(5) the areas of insufficient evidence identified under sub- section (c)(2)(B); and ‘‘(6) the evolution of meaningful use of health information technology, as defined in section 3000. ‘‘(f) COORDINATION.—The Center shall coordinate its activities with activities conducted by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation established under section 1115A of the Social Security Act. ‘‘(g) FUNDING.—There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section $20,000,000 for fiscal years 2010 through 2014. ‘‘SEC. 934. QUALITY IMPROVEMENT TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND IMPLEMENTATION. ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Director, through the Center for Quality Improvement and Patient Safety of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (referred to in this section as the ‘Center’), shall award— ‘‘(1) technical assistance grants or contracts to eligible enti- ties to provide technical support to institutions that deliver health care and health care providers (including rural and urban providers of services and suppliers with limited infra- structure and financial resources to implement and support quality improvement activities, providers of services and sup- pliers with poor performance scores, and providers of services and suppliers for which there are disparities in care among subgroups of patients) so that such institutions and providers understand, adapt, and implement the models and practices identified in the research conducted by the Center, including the Quality Improvement Networks Research Program; and ‘‘(2) implementation grants or contracts to eligible entities to implement the models and practices described under para- graph (1). ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.— ‘‘(1) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AWARD.—To be eligible to receive a technical assistance grant or contract under subsection (a)(1), an entity— ‘‘(A) may be a health care provider, health care provider association, professional society, health care worker organization, Indian health organization, quality improve- ment organization, patient safety organization, local quality improvement collaborative, the Joint Commission, aca- demic health center, university, physician-based research network, primary care extension program established under section 399W, a Federal Indian Health Service program or a health program operated by an Indian tribe (as defined in section 4 of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act), or any other entity identified by the Secretary; and ‘‘(B) shall have demonstrated expertise in providing information and technical support and assistance to health care providers regarding quality improvement. Grants. Contracts. 42 USC 299b–34.