The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has announced two projects that focus on supporting and scaling quality improvement organizations.

Quality Innovation Network-Quality Improvement Organizations (QIN-QIOs) can collaborate with healthcare providers and/or partners to compete for 28 Special Innovation Project (SIP) awards that fall within two topic categories totaling $8 million. Statements of Objectives will be released in early April to the QIO community. Information regarding award dates will be included in the Statement of Objectives.

SIPs are two-year quality improvement projects that align with the goals of the CMS Quality Strategy and emphasize the power of partnerships, according to the agency.

The following are the two SIP categories for QIN-QIOs to consider:

1. “Innovations that Advance Local Efforts for Better Care and Smarter Spending,” address healthcare quality issues that occur within specific QIN-QIO regions.

1. “Interventions that are Ripe for Spread and Scalability,” focus on expanding the scope and national impact of a quality improvement project that has experienced proven but limited success. The expectation is that similar benefits would be experienced on a large scale if spread throughout the greater healthcare community.

The scalability category aligns with the CMS Strategic Innovation Engine (SIE), launched in August of 2015, which is working to rapidly move innovative, evidence-based quality practices from research to implementation through the QIO Program.

In consultation with the SIE Executive Leadership Council, CMS is seeking projects that streamline patient flow in various healthcare settings; work with health plans and/or care coordination providers to deploy an integrated approach to post-acute care that results in enhanced care management, safe transitions from one care setting to another, improved health outcomes, and reductions in harms; increase value; address acute pain manaement; and use big data analytics.