966 
quality information (including for purposes of the 
demonstration of meaningful use of certified elec-
tronic health record (EHR) technology by physicians 
and hospitals under the Medicare program (under 
sections 1848(o)(2) and 1886(n)(3), respectively, of 
the Social Security Act)); and 
‘‘(6) provide for dissemination of information 
and reporting under subsections (i) and (j). 
‘‘(d) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible for a grant or con-
tract under subsection (c), an entity shall— 
‘‘(1) be a nonprofit entity; 
‘‘(2) agree to work with a variety of institu-
tional health care providers, physicians, nurses, and 
other health care practitioners; and 
‘‘(3) if the entity is not the organization holding 
a contract under section 1153 of the Social Security 
Act for the area to be served, agree to cooperate 
with and avoid duplication of the activities of such 
organization. 
‘‘(e) IDENTIFYING EXISTING BEST PRACTICES.—The 
Secretary shall identify best practices that are— 
‘‘(1) currently utilized by health care providers 
(including hospitals, physician and other clinician 
practices, community cooperatives, and other health 
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care entities) that deliver consistently high-quality, 
efficient health care services; and 
‘‘(2) easily adapted for use by other health care 
providers and for use across a variety of health care 
settings. 
‘‘(f) DEVELOPING NEW BEST PRACTICES.—The Sec-
retary shall develop best practices that are— 
‘‘(1) based on a review of existing scientific evi-
dence; 
‘‘(2) sufficiently detailed for implementation 
and incorporation into the workflow of health care 
providers; and 
‘‘(3) designed to be easily adapted for use by 
health care providers across a variety of health care 
settings. 
‘‘(g) EVALUATION OF BEST PRACTICES.—The Direc-
tor shall evaluate best practices identified or developed 
under this section. Such evaluation— 
‘‘(1) shall include determinations of which best 
practices— 
‘‘(A) most reliably and effectively achieve 
significant progress in improving the quality of 
patient care; and 
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‘‘(B) are easily adapted for use by health 
care providers across a variety of health care 
settings; 
‘‘(2) shall include regular review, updating, and 
improvement of such best practices; and 
‘‘(3) may include in-depth case studies or em-
pirical assessments of health care providers (includ-
ing hospitals, physician and other clinician practices, 
community cooperatives, and other health care enti-
ties) and simulations of such best practices for de-
terminations under paragraph (1). 
‘‘(h) IMPLEMENTATION OF BEST PRACTICES.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Director shall enter 
into voluntary arrangements with health care pro-
viders (including hospitals and other health facilities 
and health practitioners) in a State or region to im-
plement best practices identified or developed under 
this section. Such implementation— 
‘‘(A) may include forming collaborative 
multi-institutional teams; and 
‘‘(B) shall include an evaluation of the best 
practices being implemented, including the 
measurement of patient outcomes before, dur-
ing, and after implementation of such best 
practices. 
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‘‘(2) PREFERENCES.—In carrying out this sub-
section, the Director shall give priority to health 
care providers implementing best practices that— 
‘‘(A) have the greatest impact on patient 
outcomes and satisfaction; 
‘‘(B) are the most easily adapted for use 
by health care providers across a variety of 
health care settings; 
‘‘(C) promote coordination of health care 
practitioners across the continuum of care; and 
‘‘(D) engage patients and their families in 
improving patient care and outcomes. 
‘‘(i) PUBLIC DISSEMINATION
OF INFORMATION.— 
The Director shall provide for the public dissemination of 
information with respect to best practices and activities 
under this section. Such information shall be made avail-
able in appropriate formats and languages to reflect the 
varying needs of consumers and diverse levels of health 
literacy. 
‘‘(j) REPORT.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall submit 
an annual report to the Congress and the Secretary 
on activities under this section. 
‘‘(2) CONTENT.—Each report under paragraph 
(1) shall include— 
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‘‘(A) information on activities conducted 
pursuant to grants and contracts awarded; 
‘‘(B) summary data on patient outcomes 
before, during, and after implementation of best 
practices; and 
‘‘(C) recommendations on the adaptability 
of best practices for use by health providers.’’. 
(b) INITIAL QUALITY IMPROVEMENT ACTIVITIES AND 
INITIATIVES TO BE IMPLEMENTED.—Until the Director 
of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality has 
established initial priorities under section 931(b) of the 
Public Health Service Act, as added by subsection (a), the 
Director shall, for purposes of such section, prioritize the 
following: 
(1) HEALTH CARE-ASSOCIATED INFECTIONS.— 
Reducing health care-associated infections, including 
infections in nursing homes and outpatient settings. 
(2) SURGERY.—Increasing hospital and out-
patient perioperative patient safety, including reduc-
ing surgical-site infections and surgical errors (such 
as wrong-site surgery and retained foreign bodies). 
(3) EMERGENCY
ROOM.—Improving care in 
hospital emergency rooms, including through the use 
of principles of efficiency of design and delivery to 
improve patient flow. 
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