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News 3/18/24

March 18, 2024 News No Comments

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Patient intake and engagement software vendor Phreesia reports a 24% increase in Q4 earnings, bringing in $95 million. The company saw a similar bump in fiscal year revenue, to $356 million. Prompted by an investor’s question about the Change Healthcare cyberattack, CEO Chaim Indig noted during the earnings call that “it’s been pretty terrible for a lot of our clients” and that Phreesia employees have worked diligently to shift its customers to alternate clearinghouses while Change recovers. He also emphasized the company’s commitment to continued investments in security and compliance.


Webinars

March 27 (Wednesday) 3 ET. “Houston Methodist: Deploying clinical AI at scale for improved outcomes.” Sponsor: Health Data Analytics Institute. Presenters: Khurram Nasir, MD, MPH, chief of cardiovascular disease prevention and wellness, Houston Methodist DeBakey Heart & Vascular Center; Brenda Campbell, RN, senior consultant, HM Health System Innovations; Nassib Chamoun, MS, founder and CEO, HDAI. The presenters  will share how an interdisciplinary team collaborated to successfully use predictive models and a novel AI-driven approach to address post-discharge mortality. They will also describe how they expanded use of the platform to reduce clinician time spent digging through the EHR with a one-page risk profile, including codes extracted from notes using generative AI, and targeting their highest risk patients for extra attention. They will speak to how they overcame barriers to bringing AI at scale to support clinicians across the care continuum.

Previous webinars are on our YouTube channel. Contact Lorre to present or promote your own.


Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock

Walgreens will close distribution facilities in Dayville, CT, and Orlando, FL, laying off 646 employees in the process. The closures are part of an organizational restructuring announced last summer.


People

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AllerVie Health promotes Rachel Russell to chief experience officer, a role that will shape the clinic chain’s new technology-focused patient experience division.


Announcements and Implementations

Regional Medical Associates (DE) adds Sunoh.ai medical scribe technology to its EClinicalWorks EHR.

Healthgrades automates appointment requests within physician profiles on its website using technology from Medchat.

Circle Medical selects AI-powered preventive care and clinical trial screening software from Healwell AI’s Khure Health business.

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Care collaboration company Thyme Care launches Thyme Care Oncology Partners to help oncology clinics transition to value-based care.

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United Medical Centers, an FQHC with nine locations in Texas, selects EHR and practice management software from NextGen Healthcare.


Other

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Physician practices across the country express their frustration with the impact the Change Healthcare cyberattack has had on their ability to process claims, see insured patients, make payroll, and keep the lights on. The practice of Christine Meyer, MD has gone from average weekday deposits of between $20,000 and $50,000 to just $77. Meyer sums up the situation: “It’s been one of the most stressful things we’ve gone through as a practice, and that’s saying something given that we survived COVID. …To find ourselves suddenly, you know, looking at our home and its value, and can we afford to put it up to pay our employees, is a terrible feeling.”

Meanwhile, Thomas Edwards, MD of Berkshire Allergy Care in Pittsfield, MA, says the three-clinic practice, which employs 30 people, will be broke after the next payroll. Edwards notes that the practice’s billing company, AdvancedMD, hasn’t been able to successfully push claims through a clearinghouse other than Change. Thus, BAC will have to retroactively submit paper-based claims, which could take weeks, if not months. Edwards has applied for various forms of financial aid to keep the practice afloat, including that offered by UnitedHealth Group.


Sponsor Updates

  • Nordic Consulting debuts its Cloud Innovation Lab developed in partnership with Microsoft Azure and AWS.
  • EClinicalWorks offers a new customer success story, “Empowering Population Health & Revenue Growth.”

Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

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News 3/13/24

March 13, 2024 News No Comments

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The HHS Office of Civil rights launches an investigation into the Change Healthcare attack to determine if patient data was breached and what, if any, HIPAA violations have been committed by Change and parent company UnitedHealth Group.

UnitedHealth Group has said Change Healthcare’s electronic payments systems will be restored by March 15 and its medical claims platform by the week of March 18. Its e-prescribing and pharmacy claims and payments capabilities came back online on March 7.


Webinars

March 27 (Wednesday) 3 ET. “Houston Methodist: Deploying clinical AI at scale for improved outcomes.” Sponsor: Health Data Analytics Institute. Presenters: Khurram Nasir, MD, MPH, chief of cardiovascular disease prevention and wellness, Houston Methodist DeBakey Heart & Vascular Center; Brenda Campbell, RN, senior consultant, HM Health System Innovations; Nassib Chamoun, MS, founder and CEO, HDAI. The presenters  will share how an interdisciplinary team collaborated to successfully use predictive models and a novel AI-driven approach to address post-discharge mortality. They will also describe how they expanded use of the platform to reduce clinician time spent digging through the EHR with a one-page risk profile, including codes extracted from notes using generative AI, and targeting their highest risk patients for extra attention. They will speak to how they overcame barriers to bringing AI at scale to support clinicians across the care continuum.

Previous webinars are on our YouTube channel. Contact Lorre to present or promote your own.


Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock

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Kayne Anderson Growth Capital acquires a majority stake in specialty telehealth company TeleMed2U. The company offers its services to provider groups, health systems, payers, employers, and directly to consumers.


Announcements and Implementations

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NJ Primary Care implements EZMarketer online appointment scheduling and reminders from Physicians Marketing Solutions.

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OrthoVirginia (WV) selects virtual rheumatology care from Remission Medical.

TeleVox announces GA of its patient relationship management software for physician practices.

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The Springboard Center (TX) implements Kipu Health’s EHR, CRM, and RCM technology for mental and behavioral healthcare.

Solace Behavioral Health will go live on the Cx360 EHR from Core Solutions across its four location in Florida.

Essen Health Care (NY) rolls out ReferWell’s care scheduling software and care concierge service.


Government and Politics

CMS extends the MIPS data submission deadline to April 15 in an effort to give physician practices more time in the midst of disruptions caused by the Change Healthcare cyberattack.


Other

Medical Associates of Northern New Mexico warns patients that cyber scammers have created a bogus website masquerading as the practice’s patient portal.


Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

More news: HIStalk.

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Contact us online.
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Jenn_125

News 3/11/24

March 11, 2024 News No Comments

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Chamber Cardio, a value-based care optimization company focusing on cardiology practices, raises $8 million in seed funding.


Webinars

March 27 (Wednesday) 3 ET. “Houston Methodist: Deploying clinical AI at scale for improved outcomes.” Sponsor: Health Data Analytics Institute. Presenters: Khurram Nasir, MD, MPH, chief of cardiovascular disease prevention and wellness, Houston Methodist DeBakey Heart & Vascular Center; Brenda Campbell, RN, senior consultant, HM Health System Innovations; Nassib Chamoun, MS, founder and CEO, HDAI. The presenters  will share how an interdisciplinary team collaborated to successfully use predictive models and a novel AI-driven approach to address post-discharge mortality. They will also describe how they expanded use of the platform to reduce clinician time spent digging through the EHR with a one-page risk profile, including codes extracted from notes using generative AI, and targeting their highest risk patients for extra attention. They will speak to how they overcame barriers to bringing AI at scale to support clinicians across the care continuum.

Previous webinars are on our YouTube channel. Contact Lorre to present or promote your own.


People

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Walmart Health names Ken Silverstein, MD VP of clinical operations. Silverstein, a former ChristianaCare physician executive, had been consulting on operations for the chain of clinics.


Announcements and Implementations

Premier Radiology Services implements RamSoft’s OmegaAI and PowerServer PACS software across its teleradiology operation.


Research and Innovation

A survey of 400 Medicare patients, all of whom have had telehealth visits, finds that 69% would be comfortable conducting their annual wellness visits virtually from home. A slightly higher percentage say they’d even be comfortable conducting virtual wellness visits with providers who aren’t their regular primary care doctor, provided their medical records could easily be shared with their care team.

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A survey of 1,400 adults gleans several interesting findings related to healthcare AI:

  • Nearly 70% are not comfortable with AI-powered healthcare diagnoses.
  • More than half are comfortable with using AI for online scheduling and estimating medical costs.
  • Just 2% of those surveyed have used generative AI tools to search for healthcare information.
  • While 70% of respondents turn to their physicians for healthcare information, younger patients rely predominantly on Dr. Google.
  • Though 47% believe AI will majorly impact healthcare over the next five years, just 29% think it will have the same level of impact on their own patient experiences.

Other

The latest HIStalk poll, “Have you scheduled an in-person medical visit purely online in the past year?,” is incredibly timely, given that I did that exact thing on behalf of a family member just last week. Scheduling a same-day appointment using the Walmart Health website was easy. I was even able to easily figure out what the cost would be for the type of appointment scheduled – a bonus when you’re not using insurance. The visit wound up being just $25 more than an insured neighbor paid to visit the WellStar-owned urgent care just around the corner.


Sponsor Updates

  • Nordic Consulting and SupraNet Communications extend their partnership to offer unlimited free WiFi services at Dane County Regional Airport in Madison, WI.
  • Bella Medical (TX) adds Sunoh.ai medical scribe software to its EClinicalWorks implementation.

Blog Posts


Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

More news: HIStalk.

Get HIStalk Practice updates.
Contact us online.
Become a sponsor.

Jenn_125

News 3/6/24

March 6, 2024 News No Comments

Top News

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Tava Health raises $20 million in a Series B funding round led by Catalyst Investors, bringing its total raised to over $30 million. The company connects employers to online mental healthcare, and specializes in EHR and practice management software for therapists.


Webinars

March 7 (Thursday) 1 ET. “Live Q&A: Waystar leaders answer provider questions on implementation, solutions + more” (this session will focus on ambulatory and other providers – a session specific to hospitals and health systems will be offered at 3 ET). Sponsor: Waystar. Presenters: Chris Schremser, CTO, Waystar; Laura Canzano, EVP provider and partner client experience, Waystar. Waystar leaders will explore how our secure, mission-critical software yields powerful results, like a 33% increase in staff productivity, while integrating with 530+ EHR/PM systems. We’ll talk through our smooth implementation process, which has earned us a 94% client satisfaction rate and a 74+ client NPS. And we’ll offer details about our hands-on support, which clients can reach in less than 11 seconds and which satisfies 96% of users. We’ll also explore how Waystar can accelerate implementation to alleviate disruption to your revenue cycle, all while helping you increase revenue and decrease manual efforts. For a limited time, Waystar is offering accelerated implementation for those experiencing disruptions due to data security.

March 27 (Wednesday) 3 ET. “Houston Methodist: Deploying clinical AI at scale for improved outcomes.” Sponsor: Health Data Analytics Institute. Presenters: Khurram Nasir, MD, MPH, chief of cardiovascular disease prevention and wellness, Houston Methodist DeBakey Heart & Vascular Center; Brenda Campbell, RN, senior consultant, HM Health System Innovations; Nassib Chamoun, MS, founder and CEO, HDAI. The presenters  will share how an interdisciplinary team collaborated to successfully use predictive models and a novel AI-driven approach to address post-discharge mortality. They will also describe how they expanded use of the platform to reduce clinician time spent digging through the EHR with a one-page risk profile, including codes extracted from notes using generative AI, and targeting their highest risk patients for extra attention. They will speak to how they overcame barriers to bringing AI at scale to support clinicians across the care continuum.

Previous webinars are on our YouTube channel. Contact Lorre to present or promote your own.


Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock

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WindRose Health Investors acquires CardioOne, a physician optimization company launched last year that specializes in independent cardiology practices. The private equity firm will provide up to $100 million in new capital to expand and enhance its services.

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Limbic AI raises $14 million in a Series A funding round. The startup offers AI-powered mental health triage and support tools, including patient self-referral capabilities and therapy companion technology. Limbic’s software was originally developed for the NHS.

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Healthcare-focused government and human services software vendor Healthy Together acquires the assets of Kinsa, which had offered smart thermometers equipped to feed a tracking and resource prediction system for contagious illnesses before it closed its doors last November.

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Healthcare consumer engagement company Carenet Health acquires the majority of population health management business Health Dialog from Rite Aid, which filed for Chapter 11 last October. Rite Aid will retain Health Dialog’s medication adherence management and medication therapy management solutions as a part of its clinical offerings.


People

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CareAbout Health names Rich Almada (Optum) chief strategy officer and promotes Munish Khaneja, MD to chief physician officer.


Announcements and Implementations

Answer Health Physician Organization (MI) selects population health technology from Health Focus Software Solutions.

Zynx Health announces GA of its Zynx for Primary Care clinical decision support tool.


Research and Innovation

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Researchers determine that a lack of EHR interoperability and subsequent physician reliance on fax machines or patients to carry their own records from clinic to clinic are the biggest barriers to closing referral loops. A lack of consistent information-sharing policies across healthcare facilities also contributes to breakdowns in referral processes.


Other

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David Goldberg, MD publishes “Jokes You’ll Love to Tell: The Art of the Extended Punchline” after years of sharing jokes with patients and co-workers at his family practice and in the halls of British Columbia’s Kelowna General Hospital, where he assists with orthopedic surgeries. Proceeds from sales of the book will benefit the KGH Foundation.


Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

More news: HIStalk.

Get HIStalk Practice updates.
Contact us online.
Become a sponsor.

Jenn_125

News 3/4/24

March 4, 2024 News No Comments

Top News

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MGMA asks HHS for its assistance in helping physician practices overcome the disruption Change Healthcare’s outage has caused. The trade association says its members have been experiencing:

  • Disruptions to billing and cash flow.
  • Little to no electronic remittance advice from payers.
  • Rejected or non-transmissible prior authorization submissions.
  • An inability to perform patient eligibility checks.
  • An inability to transmit electronic prescriptions.
  • Disruptions to health IT.

The American Medical Association and American Hospital Association have penned similar letters requesting that HHS step in and help providers stay financially afloat.

Change Healthcare announced on Friday that it brought an alternate e-prescribing solution online.


Webinars

None scheduled soon. Previous webinars are on our YouTube channel. Contact Lorre to present or promote your own.


Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock

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Valorant Health rebrands to Rainfall Health, The digital health company partners with local providers and government and community agencies to connect patients living in rural areas with virtual and in-person care.

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Kaid Health launches a US-based Coding Services Group to help providers supplement their coding capabilities.

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Virtual gastrointestinal clinic and “wraparound care” provider Salvo Health raises $5 million, bringing its total raised to $15.5 million.

Small to mid-sized practices are beginning to feel the effects of the Change Healthcare outage, with many revenue cycles stymied by an inability to receive reimbursements from payers. Some practices are having to decide whether or not to take out loans to make ends meet or even close up shop for good. Private practice allergist and immunologist Kiranjit Khalsa, MD is considering cutting back hours for staff and possibly closing for a few days to stretch what supplies she already has and cut back on billable employee hours.

Walgreens will close its six VillageMD clinics in Illinois, all of which are in the company’s hometown of Chicago. The news comes on the heels of the retail pharmacy’s decision to pull 50-plus clinics out of Florida. VillageMD operations will continue in 13 states.


Announcements and Implementations

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Cancer Care Specialists of Illinois selects Canopy’s Intelligent Care Platform to streamline its manual triage, care management, and remote patient monitoring processes.

Orchid Wellness in Texas implements EHR, online appointment scheduling, and text-to-pay software from EClinicalWorks.


Other

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Pandora Family Physicians (OH) warns patients of scammers who have been using a fake Pandora phone number to contact patients in an attempt to get them to divulge their insurance information and Social Security numbers.


Sponsor Updates

  • PerfectServe opens nominations for its 2024 Nurses of Note awards program.
  • Odessa General Surgery Robotics (TX) adds Sunoh.ai medical AI scribe capabilities to its EClinicalWorks EHR.

Blog Posts


Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

More news: HIStalk.

Get HIStalk Practice updates.
Contact us online.
Become a sponsor.

Jenn_125

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