HHS calls on Innovation Fellows Program apps
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has launched its Innovation Fellows Program, which aims to bring novel ideas and expertise from outside the agency to help HHS accelerate health and healthcare innovation.
The program enables agencies to bring on board external experts and entrepreneurs to work with host innovators at HHS in taking on the department’s toughest challenges.
In the first round of the program, HHS is looking to place five to 10 external innovation fellows to the following projects, starting in the fall:
The application period for external fellows is June 20 to July 20.
The program enables agencies to bring on board external experts and entrepreneurs to work with host innovators at HHS in taking on the department’s toughest challenges.
In the first round of the program, HHS is looking to place five to 10 external innovation fellows to the following projects, starting in the fall:
- Accelerating clinical quality measures for the Patient Protection & Affordable Care Act (PPACA): The Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT, in partnership with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), would like to develop new clinical quality measures that incorporate information available in EHRs to monitor the impact of the implementation of the HITECH Act and the PPACA.
- Designing the infrastructure for Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) eligibility: CMS would like to develop an electronic infrastructure that states can integrate to implement the Modified Adjusted Gross Income method for determining eligibility for Medicaid and the CHIP eligibility that is required under the PPACA.
- Building health resilience technology to withstand natural disasters: The Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response of HHS and the Federal Emergency Management Agency in the Department of Homeland Security would like to develop innovative solutions that will allow individuals with access and functional needs to continue to use their durable medical equipment (DME) during prolonged power outages. DME includes medical devices powered by electricity, such as oxygen concentrators, ventilators and IV infusion pumps.
- Devising electronic tracking and transport of the nation’s organ transplant system: The Health Resources and Services Administration would like to revise the existing organ transplantation system to improve identification, labeling, packaging and transport of the nation’s organs for transplantation, and include electronic components for identifying organs and tracking their movement, to minimize the potential for misdirection or other delays in organ transportation and reduce the chance of incorrect transplantation.
The application period for external fellows is June 20 to July 20.