Morning Headlines 5/5/14

Blue Cross Blue Shield of ND reports $72.9 million loss

Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Dakota releases its 2013 year-end report. Within the report, BCBS-ND discloses that its bottom line dropped $72 million, compared to 2012. Its subsidiary Noridian Healthcare Solutions took a $51 million loss after being fired as the lead contractor on Maryland’s health insurance exchange. BCBS-ND took an additional $25 million loss when the newly implemented EHRs being rolled out by local providers caused billing delays and a claims backlog that BCBS significantly underestimated the value of, and did not budget for.

CPSI Announces First Quarter 2014 Results

CPSI announces Q1 results: revenue up five percent to $52.1 million, driving net income up 11 percent to $7.7 million. EPS $0.69 vs $0.63 last year, missing analysts forecasts by a wide margin. Stock prices ended down 4.6 percent at the end of the trading day Friday.

How scribes made Allina an extra $205,000

After Cardiologists with Allina Health started using scribes to handle EHR related data entry, the health system noticed a significant jump in patient volumes. Cardiologists using scribes were generating $205,740 in additional revenue per 65 clinic hours. Scribes also helped reduce doctor burnout.