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Center for Technology and Aging's

February 15, 2011
Marketwire

OAKLAND, CA -- The Center for Technology and Aging (www.techandaging.org) has awarded a total of $500,000 to California, Indiana, Rhode Island, Texas and Washington. The grants will enable each state, through their Aging and Disability Resource Centers (ADRCs), to gain more experience with and to evaluate the benefits of technologies that improve patients' transitions from hospitals to their homes or other settings.

According to Medicare data, the United States has an 18% rate of hospital readmissions within 30 days of discharge and as many as 76% of these are preventable. It is estimated that as much as $25 billion could be saved each year if these unnecessary readmissions were avoided.

The Technologies for Improving Post-Acute Care Transitions, Tech4Impact, grants were made in collaboration with an Administration on Aging (AoA) and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) initiative that helps older Americans and persons with disabilities manage their long-term care support services: "Implementing the Affordable Care Act: Making it Easier for Individuals to Navigate their Health and Long-Term Care through Person-Centered Systems of Information, Counseling and Access."

In remarks today in Baltimore, MD, at the 2011 AoA and CMS grantee national meeting, Kathy Greenlee, Assistant Secretary for Aging, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, said, "I want to thank the Center for sponsoring this innovative grant program that encourages ADRCs to expand the use of technologies that support their existing care transitions initiatives. I'm certain this public-private partnership will serve as a national model and will have a ripple effect across the nation for those seeking better transitional care solutions for their patients."

"Better management of transitional care can dramatically improve an individual's quality of life, as well as avoid billions of dollars in unnecessary health care expenses," said David Lindeman, PhD, Executive Director of the Center for Technology and Aging. "It is a privilege to be a part of a national effort that encourages broader use of exciting, but underused technologies that enable clinicians and other caregivers to keep patients from being readmitted to hospitals unnecessarily."

States will use the Tech4Impact funds to further expand technology use in ADRCs that are already implementing transitional care interventions. Two states are expanding use of technologies that enhance care transitions program evaluation and planning and three states are expanding use of technologies that better empower consumers in the care transitions process.

Additional detail on each of these grants is available at www.techandaging.org.

The Center for Technology and Aging (www.techandaging.org) supports more rapid adoption and diffusion of technologies that enhance independence and improve home and community-based care for older adults. Through grants, research, public policy involvement and development of practical tools and best practice guidelines, the Center serves as an independent, non-profit resource for improving the quality and cost-effectiveness of long-term care services. The Center was established with funding from The SCAN Foundation (www.thescanfoundation.org) and is affiliated with the Public Health Institute (www.phi.org) in Oakland, CA.