News 11/6/24

Top News

Online mental healthcare company Cerebral will pay $3.6 million as part of a 30-month non-prosecution agreement for encouraging the unauthorized distribution of controlled substances between 2019 and 2022.

The company agreed earlier this year to pay $5 million in consumer refunds and $2 million in civil penalties as part of additional settlements with the DoJ and FTC.

CEO Kyle Robertson left the company in December 2022 and immediately founded telehealth operator Zealthy, which offers virtual treatment of anxiety and depression, weight loss, hair loss, and erectile dysfunction.

Reader Comments

From Eyeball: “Re: Oracle Health’s new EHR. It has no menus or drop-downs that would allow clinicians to find information other than by speaking. How is privacy and interference with ambient noise handled?“

Webinars

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

Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock

A Healthcare Growth Partners survey of private equity investment professionals finds that:

• Valuations have declined for new investment and exits even as activity has increased.
• Buyout and growth equity investors see the focus on profitability as being a return to discipline, while  venture capital investors think the market has overreacted in increasing the emphasis on profitability over growth.
• Most investors are confident despite IPO slowdowns and rising interest rates.
• AI is a focus, but more as a tool to improve operations rather than a driver of new investments.

Sales

• Alameda County Health (CA) will use analytics software from Innovaccer to enhance its Social Health Information Exchange.
• The US Defense Health Agency will deploy Volpara Health’s Patient Hub mammography technology across the military health system.

People

Agfa HealthCare names Eric Sumner (Samsung Healthcare) SVP of sales for North America.

Harris Data Integrity Solutions promotes Rachel Podczervinski, MS to SVP.

Clarify Health names Dan Olson (Pearl Health) chief commercial officer and Alejandro Reti, MD, MBA (UnitedHealth Group) chief product officer.

Integris hires Dan Magoc, MBA (Mercy) as CIO.

Jonathan D’Souza (MedArrive) joins HarmonyCares as chief product and technology officer.

Announcements and Implementations

Brook Health combines Linus Health’s digital cognitive assessment software with its remote care technology, offering providers and patients same-day assessment and treatment planning capabilities.

In Washington, primary care provider Palouse Medical will implement Epic through an arrangement with Pullman Regional Hospital.

Epic releases an expanded set of APIs that support USCDI v3, supporting tribal affiliation, disability status, caregiver relationships, preferred language, and Social Drivers of Health. The federal government requires developers to implement USCDI v3 by December 2025. Epic has already committed to supporting USCDI v4 and v5.

Government and Politics

CMS publishes the 2025 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Final Rule, which includes codes that will enable providers to bill Medicare for certain FDA-approved mental health apps and related services.

Canadian Forces Health Services announces plans to replace its proprietary health information system with an off-the-shelf EHR. CFHS hopes to have core systems replaced by 2028 and full system functionality by 2031.

Privacy and Security

Memorial Hospital & Manor, a hospital and nursing home in rural Georgia, deals with a ransomware attack that it discovered early Saturday morning.

Other

Memorial Healthcare System launches a Care Coordination Center for its six acute care facilities that incorporates Epic and virtual nursing software from Artsight.

Epic’s latest “Hey Judy” describes how the company asked one of its developers – who had created a gaming tips website on his own time – to develop a way for doctors to review patient charts at home. The result was Epic Web, which was rolled out to health systems in 1997 and celebrated in a series of three comic books. Those systems asked if they could share Epic Web with their affiliate providers, which spurred development of EpicCare Link that allowed school nurses, skilled nursing facility staff, and small clinics to exchange information with health systems. 

Only in America. An Oregon ambulance driver who was making a right turn hits a bicyclist who is riding in the same direction, then transports him to the hospital for treatment of a fractured nose, after which the ambulance company billed him $1,900 for the ride. He’s suing the the ambulance provider for $997,000.

Sponsor Updates

• EClinicalWorks introduces a series of AI-powered enhancements and solutions designed to optimize practice and provider efficiency.
• Healthcare IT Leaders releases a new Leader to Leader Podcast, “Innovations in Home Care Technology.”
• The Outcomes Rocket Podcast features Arrive Health CEO Kyle Kiser, “Reintroducing Consumer Choice in Prescription Decisions.”
• AvaSure will sponsor the ATA Virtual Nursing Insights Summit November 17-19 in Arlington, TX.
• Capital Rx earns full URAC reaccreditation in pharmacy benefit management.
• CereCore Principal CISO Ryan Finlay becomes a Fellow of the American College of Health Information Management.
• Clinical Architecture publishes a new whitepaper, “The 6 Cs Framework for Assessing Value Set Quality.”
• Cordea Consulting owner and CEO Jen Jones joins the advisory board of A-S Medical Solutions.
• Direct Recruiters expands into post-acute executive search services through the strategic integration of sister company Full Spectrum Search Group.

Blog Posts

• A clear data strategy is crucial for equitable care (Wolters Kluwer Health)
• Why You Need a Workday Staffing Partner (Healthcare IT Leaders)
• The Microsoft Healthcare Threat Intelligence Briefing (AdvancedMD)
• Best Practices for Seamless Clinical Operations (AGS Health)
• A day to remember: Altera Digital Health Gives Back on 9/11 (Altera Digital Health)
• Takeaways from HLTH 2024: A Bold Move Toward Action-Oriented Healthcare (Amenities Health)
• Navigating Post-Discharge Communication and Achieving Clinical Excellence (Artera)
• AI Can Help Solve Prior Auth’s Connectivity Problem (Consensus Cloud Solutions)
• The Changing Landscape of Cybersecurity Accountability in Healthcare (CloudWave)
• Data Quality is Paramount in Healthcare (Dimensional Insight)
• Partnering with a Recruiter: Your Guide to Career Success (Direct Recruiters)
• Med History Gaps? How Carle Health Connects the Dots With AI for Confident, Safe Prescribing Decisions (DrFirst)

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