The Cordova Community Medical Center (CCMC) is one of the beneficiaries of a community health grant aimed at strengthening healthcare in rural Alaska.
CCMC will share in $249,000 to the Alaska Hospital & Healthcare Association for independent critical care access hospitals. Other recipients, announced Aug. 7, are clinics in Homer and Petersburg.
The money is to be distributed as soon as possible following approval from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, according to Mirna Estrada, a public information officer of the Alaska Department of Health in Anchorage.
“These awards represent more than individual projects, they represent a long-term investment in healthier communities across Alaska,” said Alaska Health Commissioner Heidi Hedberg. “Throughout this process, we’ve heard directly from communities about the challenges they face and the solutions they believe will make the greatest difference. The selected projects reflect those local priorities while helping build a stronger, more sustainable healthcare system for future generations.”
The funds are to be used to evaluate revenue cycle efficiency, Medicare cost report optimization, service line performance and swing bed growth, with a median expectation of some $2.4 million in identified improvement opportunity per hospital. The project targets financially fragile rural hospitals who are the sole providers for their communities.
Projects were selected based on criteria that aligned with Alaska’s Rural Health Transformation Project goals, transformational potential, rural impact, sustainability and contribution to the statewide portfolio. Final award amounts and project terms are subject to completion of a budget review, resolution of any award conditions and execution of a grant agreement.
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