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News 6/27/22

June 27, 2022 News No Comments

Top News

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Kins announces a seed funding round of $7.2 million. The Boston-based company offers its virtual and in-home physical therapy programs to payers and directly to consumers. CEO Dan Smith was formerly head of Asics Digital, which included overseeing the development and management of the footwear company’s RunKeeper app.


Webinars

July 12 (Tuesday) 1 ET. “Digital Data Stewardship for Trusted, High-Quality Data Exchange.” Sponsor: Clinical Architecture. Presenter: Carol Graham, MS, RN, product manager, Clinical Architecture. Organizations face challenges in ensuring that the patient data they received and send is consistent, accurate, and usable. Use cases include receiving multi-source data across health information networks with variation in formats and content; merging and de-duplicating provider, payer, and research data; uplifting legacy data for current use cases and formats; and normalizing and formatting data for public health surveillance, quality measure reporting, and providing directly to the patient. This webinar will cover Pivot, a comprehensive Digital Data Steward solution that orchestrates format harmonization, content (vocabulary) normalization, de-duplication, and data quality validation into a single solution.

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


People

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Virtual musculoskeletal medical practice Vori Health names John Walsh (Zipari) CTO.


Government and Politics

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CMS announces the Enhancing Oncology Model, a new five-year payment program designed by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation that will incentive oncology practices to improve the delivery of high-quality, coordinated care, including social support, and improves patient and caregiver support. Participating practices will provide enhanced services that include patient navigation, care planning, collection of electronic patient-reported outcomes, and screening for social needs.


Research and Innovation

A survey of 50 leaders at FQHCs across the country finds an overwhelming majority are determined to remain independent, and nearly 75% are willing to work with similar organizations and pool data for greater insights into workforce and service line trends, patient populations, payment models, and the impact of regulatory requirements and Medicaid expansion.


Other

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Interesting: I noticed a local McDonald’s advertising telemedicine benefits as part of a hiring push. Turns out the company offers full- and part-time employees access to virtual care benefits that include 10 free urgent or mental healthcare visits per year. I wonder how many employees take advantage of the benefit. Having been self-insured now for several years, I also wonder how common telemedicine is as a benefit included within a health plan or as an employer add-on. Is it par for the course these days, or definitely a perk? Readers, please weigh in.

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Hopefully, telemedicine hasn’t become so routine that The Onion’s portrayal of virtual care providers is anywhere near accurate.


Sponsor Updates

  • The Health Information Resource Center recognizes Healthwise with seven Digital Health Awards for its medical illustrations and health education videos.
  • Medicomp Systems releases a new Tell Me Where It Hurts Podcast, “On Innovation with Dr. Nick van Terheyden.”

Blog Posts


Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

More news: HIStalk.

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News 6/22/22

June 22, 2022 News No Comments

Top News

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Physical therapy-focused practice management software startup Spry raises $7 million in a funding round led by Eight Roads Ventures.


Webinars

July 12 (Tuesday) 1 ET. “Digital Data Stewardship for Trusted, High-Quality Data Exchange.” Sponsor: Clinical Architecture. Presenter: Carol Graham, MS, RN, product manager, Clinical Architecture. Organizations face challenges in ensuring that the patient data they received and send is consistent, accurate, and usable. Use cases include receiving multi-source data across health information networks with variation in formats and content; merging and de-duplicating provider, payer, and research data; uplifting legacy data for current use cases and formats; and normalizing and formatting data for public health surveillance, quality measure reporting, and providing directly to the patient. This webinar will cover Pivot, a comprehensive Digital Data Steward solution that orchestrates format harmonization, content (vocabulary) normalization, de-duplication, and data quality validation into a single solution.

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


People

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DispatchHealth promotes Reza Alavi, MD (Optum) to president of its Advanced Care hospital-at-home program.


Announcements and Implementations

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Bizmatics integrates Zocdoc’s appointment finder and booking software with its PrognoCIS EHR.

Therapy Brands makes its pediatric Fusion EHR, practice management, and billing system available to physical, occupational, and speech therapy practices serving adult patients.


Research and Innovation

Patient preferences for online conveniences are growing, according to a Phreesia survey of 4,136 patients:

  • An average of 83% say they’d book or reschedule an appointment online if given the option.
  • Sixty-four percent prefer to see providers who offer online check-in; 29% consider it a must-have when selecting a provider.
  • Seventy percent would opt for online payments if given the option.
  • Nearly 90% have digitally messaged their physician; 41% say it’s also a must-have.

Other

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The American Medical Association highlights physician (and patient) frustrations with prior authorization denials. Several, including Tauseef Ali, MD have taken to Twitter to post de-identified denial letters: “Patients ‘love it – and they get very excited and encouraged that there is a doctor who is advocating on their behalf.’”

Other physicians take a more satirical route. I’d label it as comedy if patient lives weren’t on the line.


Sponsor Updates

  • AdvancedMD recognizes Product Developer Kylie Jensen with a FIT Award.
  • Nordic posts DoctTalk Ep. 106, “Redefining health for a new era of care.”

Blog Posts


Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

More news: HIStalk.

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

News 6/20/22

June 20, 2022 News No Comments

Top News

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NBC News points out the decreasing levels of telemedicine access across the country as pandemic emergency waivers lapse and states revert back to traditional licensure rules, giving patients access to virtual visits only with physicials licensed within their same state. Last year, 26 states still allowed patients to be seen by physicians licensed in other states. Now just a dozen still allow for that type of telemedicine access. Several within that group will soon revert back to pre-pandemic access.


Webinars

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


People

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Violetta Ostafin (Aon) will join CVS Health as EVP and chief strategy officer.

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Former ConnectiveRx and Surescripts executive Rick Ratliff (CAQH) joins Australian medication management app company MedAdvisor as its US-based CEO and general manager.

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Rich Steinle (Innovista Health Solutions) joins Carium as CEO. Co-founder and CEO Scott Pradels will transition to COO.


Announcements and Implementations

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AdvancedMD notifies users that outages and related performance issues resulting from a code update on June 15 have now been resolved.


Other

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You can’t make this stuff up: US Coast Guard and US Customs and Border Patrol officials pick up Ernesto Graveran aboard a broken down jet ski near Key West, thwarting his attempt to escape to Cuba to avoid prosecution for allegedly bilking Medicare out of $4.2 million in fraudulent charges made through his durable medical equipment company.


Sponsor Updates

  • EClinicalWorks announces its continued partnership with Witham Health Services (IN) to further improve patient communications and achieve overall operational efficiency in more than 30 locations.

Blog Posts


Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

More news: HIStalk.

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News 6/15/22

June 15, 2022 News No Comments

Top News

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Florida-based startup Constellation4Health raises pre-seed funding and acquires Vulcan Health, an offshoot of Florida Eye Specialists & Cataract Institute that specializes in digital referral management technology.

Constellation4Health offers provider data and network management, referral management, and analytics.


Webinars

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


People

Charika Wilcox-Lee (Waystar) joins Health Recovery Solutions as VP of RCM.

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Epocrates promotes Andrew Johnson (Athenahealth) to executive director of commercial strategy, and names Bridget Seay (Wiley) executive director of customer experience and commercial consulting.


Government and Politics

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HHS announces the Building Bridges to Better Health: A Primary Health Care Challenge. Entrants must develop or speed up the development of low-cost, scalable solutions to help federally-supported community health centers improve patient access to primary care and enhance the coordination of healthcare and social services. A total of $1 million will be awarded over three phases.


Research and Innovation

The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute will allocate $50 million in funding this fall for research focused on comparing different approaches to incorporating telemedicine into primary care for the most effective management of multiple chronic conditions.


Other

In California, the Santa Barbara County Department of Behavioral Wellness reports a data breach stemming from an unauthorized staff member logging into its EHR to view patient information. The March 30 breach was discovered earlier this week during the implementation of new cybersecurity protocols.


Sponsor Updates

  • EClinicalWorks releases a new podcast, “Healow Payment Services: Convenient, Electronic, and Easy to Use.”

Blog Posts


Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

More news: HIStalk.

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

News 6/13/22

June 13, 2022 News No Comments

Top News

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Substance use disorder telemedicine startup Boulder Care raises $36 million in a Series B round that brings its total funding to $50 million.

The Oregon-based company, launched in 2017 by CEO Stephanie Strong, now has 100 employees. It offers its app-based program directly to consumers and by referral from providers and other healthcare organizations.

GeekWire reports that the company got a “boost” during the pandemic when the federal government waived the requirement for an in-person visit for providers to prescribe Suboxone, which is used to treat opioid addiction. It’s a situation similar to the one in which now-embattled telemedicine company Cerebral found itself in with regard to its easier ability to prescribe medications without an in-person visit. That company, founded just two years ago, now faces federal scrutiny for its prescribing practices.


Webinars

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


Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock

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MedVanta launches as a managed services organization designed to help independent orthopedic and musculoskeletal practices thrive. The founders have based the new company’s business model on The Centers for Advanced Orthopaedics, an independent medical group that they launched in 2013.


Government and Politics

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HHS issues guidance on how covered healthcare entities can conduct audio-only telehealth appointments in a HIPAA-compliant manner.


Research and Innovation

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An Athenahealth survey of 743 physicians finds that satisfaction with interoperability-enhancing technology is lacking when it comes to sharing information with providers outside of their EHR network. Not surprisingly, 80% of respondents find this lack of data-sharing capabilities stress-inducing. Surveyed physicians believe a lack of coordination among different facilities and a lack of desire among EHR vendors are the biggest contributors to the interoperability issue.


Other

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Geoffrey Fowler, The Washington Post’s technology columnist, attempts to provide some clarity around the health data-mining practices of companies like patient intake software vendor Phreesia, which uses the data of consenting patients to serve up pharmaceutical ads related to their specific health histories and current issues. Patients who opt out of the data-mining practice (Phreesia doesn’t release that figure) aren’t supposed to see any difference in their ability to use the company’s technology. But as one doctor jadedly told a patient, one of Fowler’s sources, “Your information is all over the web anyhow!”


Sponsor Updates

  • Nordic posts a video titled “The Impact of Cloud on Patient Care.”
  • Healthwise wins a merit Digital Health Award in the digital health media/publications: video category.
  • The Empowered Patient Podcast features Medicomp Systems CEO Dave Lareau.
  • Nordic publishes a video titled “Considerations for successful EHR extensions.”

Blog Posts


Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

More news: HIStalk.

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

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