National Council of Urban Indian Health

Funding Opportunity For Electronic Case Reporting (eCR) Implementation

NCUIH Sub-Awards:                   Up to $80,000 per UIO

# of UIOs to be awarded:             3 UIOs, based on availability of funds

Application is open

 

What is eCR? According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Center, “electronic case reporting (eCR) is the automated, real-time exchange of case report information between electronic health records (EHRs) and public health agencies. It moves data quickly, securely, and seamlessly from EHRs in healthcare facilities to state and local public health agencies.” Here at National Council of Urban Indian Health, we are providing grant and technical assistance support to Urban Indian Organizations to transition towards using eCR systems. This is an incredible opportunity to have access to groundbreaking advancements within public health, along with support during the process.

ECR is a collaborative effort between the Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL), the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). eCR can eliminate the manual reporting burden on providers and securely transfers vital patient and clinical information from healthcare to public health for disease tracking, case management, and contact tracing. eCR provides faster, more complete data than manual reporting, including patient data on demographics, comorbidities, immunizations, medications, and other treatment. eCR uses standard codes to automatically trigger the transfer of relevant, clinical data to a shared services platform for processing against jurisdictional reporting laws and delivery to appropriate state and local public health agencies for case investigation and follow-up.

Using eCR, healthcare providers can:  

• Eliminate manual data entry, faxing, and reduce follow-up calls from public health agencies
• Report mandated health data without disrupting the clinical workflow
• Engage in real-time, bidirectional data exchange with public health agencies
• Automatically send the required information to all appropriate public health agencies
• Improve COVID-19 reporting now and expand to all reportable conditions in the future

Urban Indian Health Organizations (UIOs) are encouraged to apply for a one time award of up to $80,000 to implement an eCR real-time information exchange system to enhance case reporting between electronic health record (EHRs) systems and public health agencies. 

NCUIH will consider all applications received and will be considered based on the availability of funds and review of eligibility requirements being met as listed below. Funding is provided by NIHB as part of a CDC funding opportunity. 

Interested UIOs are eligible based on these core requirements;

Core Requirements

• Must use an eligible Electronic Health Records system (EHR) that is NOT RPMS. Any commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) EHR platforms that connects and integrates to eCR may be eligible. 
• UIO must ensure appropriate approvals (agreements) from UIO Leadership to coordinate with National Council of Urban Indian Health, National Indian Health Board, Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, and American Public Health Laboratories, eCR Technical Advisors, EHR operations and any other relevant parties to enhance existing Electronic Health Care systems ability to transmit case reporting electronically. (Agreements must be signed between parties identified and as needed). 
• Attend monthly meetings with NCUIH and NIHB to obtain technical assistance support, discuss progress, troubleshoot barriers/challenges, and review workplan activities.  
• Create and submit a workplan with a budget for how the $80,000 will be utilized (i.e. software, applicable trainings, EHR upgrades, staffing for eCR project, etc.). Subject Matter experts in eCR onboarding will help you create your work plan, establish predicable costs and time ranges, and coordinate with any EHR system. 
• Submit a final report on work plan. 
• Complete the NCUIH eCR Implementation Activities Checklist accordingly. 
• Work with CDC onboarding team to implement strategies for eCR outlined in work plan. 
• Work with NCUIH and NIHB to develop a Tribal eCR Roadmap for eCR implementation for urban Indian health facilities and tribal healthcare organizations.  

Funding Timeline 

• 25% of the $80,000 ($20,000) will be provided to the UIO following the signing of the eCR contract.  
• The remaining $60,000 will be divided into two payments of $30,000 each following the completion of the specified set of deliverables listed in the Activities Checklist. 
    

NCUIH recognizes the unique barriers UIOs may face, such as limited IT staff, infrastructure gaps, and data privacy concerns. To support successful eCR implementation, NCUIH will provide tailored technical assistance, guidance on data security compliance, and flexibility in using funds to address critical infrastructure or staffing needs. These measures aim to ensure equitable access and long-term success for all UIOs involved.  

Open Office Hours will be provided to UIOs to help address any questions about application eligibility, funding, timeline, etc. If none of the times work, please reach out to staff listed below.  

For more information or questions, please reach out to Tiffani Stark, Public Health Program Manager at tstark@ncuih.org