The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) has announced that it will award $300 million through its Aligning Forces for Quality initiative to improve the quality of healthcare in the U.S.

The money will support community-based teams that will disseminate information on how individuals can partner with their healthcare provider to ensure that they receive quality healthcare, help doctors improve patient care, improve hospital care, and reduce healthcare inequities.

Resources will be focused on the following communities and states: Cincinnati; Cleveland; Detroit; Humboldt County, California; Kansas City, Missouri; Maine; Memphis; Minnesota; Seattle; south-central Pennsylvania; western Michigan; western New York State; the Willamette Valley in Oregon; and Wisconsin.

"Despite having the most expensive healthcare system in the world, patients are subject to too many mistakes, too much miscommunication, and too much inequity," said RWJF president and CEO Risa Lavizzo-Mourey. "As a result, too many Americans aren't receiving the care they need and deserve. This unprecedented commitment of resources, expertise, and training will turn proven practices for improving quality into real results."