As you begin to prepare for the 2016 National Quality Award cycle it is important to consider the Intent to Apply (ITA) process. The ITA is not mandatory to apply for the National Quality Award Program but members who submit an ITA payment will gain specialized benefits during their application process. On September 15 members can begin to submit their ITA fees. The ITA payment is only accepted online via credit card. For all three award levels, the deadline to submit the ITA fee is November 19 at 8:00 pm EST.

A primary benefit of the ITA is the reduced application costs. Read more here.

Not sure how to start? Check out the 2016 Bronze Criteria Series on YouTube prepared by the American Health Care Association. This is a great resource that can help you complete your Bronze application in 10 hours!

As always, feel free to reach out to Quality Award staff at qualityaward@ahca.org. They are ready to help you join the ranks of the over 4,000 Quality Award recipients!

Important Dates to Know

• November 19: Intent to Apply deadline
• December 7: Applications accepted online
• January 28: Bronze, Silver and Gold application deadlines