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Federal Stimulus: American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) or Recovery Act was signed into law by President Obama on February 17, 2009. It is an unprecedented effort to jump start our economy, create or save millions of jobs, and put a down payment on addressing long-neglected challenges so our country can thrive in the 21st century. The ARRA is an extraordinary response to a crisis unlike any since the Great Depression. It includes measures to modernize our nation's infrastructure, enhance energy independence, expand educational opportunities, preserve and improve affordable health care, provide tax relief, and protect those in greatest need.

Implementing the Recovery Act

The Health Care Authority (HCA) was appointed by the Governor's Office, as the lead state agency to coordinate with Washington State agencies and private health care organizations to collaborate on a statewide plan for health-related and Health Information Technology (HIT) provisions of the ARRA. The HCA identified several opportunities for federal stimulus funding within the following program areas which have potential to align with funding requirements and will be the major focus of the HCA's recovery and reinvestment activities: COBRA, Comparative Effectiveness Research, and the HITECH Act.

In addition, the governor appointed the HCA's Health Care Policy Director, Richard Onizuka, Ph.D., to serve as the state's Health Information Technology Coordinator. Under Richard's direction, the eHealth Collaborative Enterprise work group was formed to coordinate statewide HITECH programs and other state HIT activities to ensure state and federal requirements of collaboration, accountability and transparency are met. Please visit the eHealth Collaborative Enterprise web page for more information and resources.