Morning Headlines 5/18/22

ThoroughCare Announces $3 Million Capital Raise to Advance Care Coordination for Value-Based Care

Care coordination software company ThoroughCare secures a $3 million investment from Cypress Growth Capital.

Chillicothe VA reviewed after allegations of failing to follow a consultation process

A VA Office of Inspector General report determines that lack of prompt EHR documentation and care coordination between a VA provider and private chiropractic clinic contributed to the spinal and rib fractures of an 87 year-old patient.

National Medical Billing Services Announces Acquisition of Medi-Corp, Inc.

National Medical Billing Services, an RCM vendor focused on the surgical market, acquires Medi-Corp, which offers RCM services for anesthesia, ASCs, and pain management providers.

Morning Headlines 5/17/22

Skylight Health Group Reports First Quarter 2022 Financial Results

Skylight Health Group, a multi-state practice management company, attributes its 18% dip in revenue from the previous quarter to implementation of Athenahealth’s EHR across its practices, and a reduction in COVID-19-related urgent care visits.

Hacker and Ransomware Designer Charged for Use and Sale of Ransomware, and Profit Sharing Arrangements with Cybercriminals

A practicing Venezuelan cardiologist has been charged with the use and sale of ransomware, and profit-sharing arrangements with his customers.

Change Healthcare brings lawsuit against former employee

Change Healthcare sues a former employee, now working at Olive, for violating his contract’s non-compete clause by going to work for a direct competitor.

Morning Headlines 5/16/22

PatientIQ Raises $20M to Transform Patient Outcomes Data into Actionable Intelligence that Advances Clinical Care

PatientIQ, a patient outcomes data and insights vendor, raises $20 million in a Series B funding round.

Amwell Announces Results for First Quarter 2022

Amwell announces Q1 results: revenue up 11%, EPS –$0.26 versus –$0.16, missing analyst expectations for both.

Remote Monitoring and Behavioral Economics in Managing Heart Failure in Patients Discharged From the Hospital: A Randomized Clinical Trial

A randomized clinical trial finds that remote monitoring and financial incentives had no impact on readmissions or deaths among discharged heart failure patients.

Morning Headlines 5/13/22

Cerner falls short of contract target for ‘uptime,’ prompting McMorris Rodgers to accuse VA of ‘blatant negligence’ over computer outages

Cerner will issue the VA an unspecified credit for failing to meet the minimum system uptime requirements specified in the $10 billion contract.

Managers of Arizona Telemedicine Company Admit Roles in $64 Million Nationwide Kickback, Health Care Fraud Schemes

Two owners of a “purported” telemedicine company plead guilty to participating in an elaborate scheme of bribes, kickbacks, and fraudulent prescriptions for drugs and medical equipment that netted them $32 million and cost insurers $64 million.

OncoHealth Secures Strategic Investments from Arsenal Capital Partners & McKesson Corporation

Oncology-focused digital health company OncoHealth secures unspecified investments from Arsenal Capital Partners and McKesson.

Morning Headlines 5/12/22

Health Catalyst Acquires ARMUS; Bolsters Clinical Quality Offering and Outsourced Services

Data and analytics software vendor Health Catalyst acquires Armus, which offers clinical registry development and data management services.

HHS Announces $16.3 Million to Expand Telehealth Care in the Title X Family Planning Program

HHS allocates $16.3 million to Title IX family planning clinics for expansion of telehealth infrastructure.

Bon Secours Mercy Health Introduces Accrete Health Partners

Bon Secours Mercy Health (OH) launches Accrete Health Partners, a holding company that will focus on streamlining the health system’s digital health services, partnerships, and investments.

Handspring Launches with $6.2 Million in Seed Financing To Make Quality Mental Healthcare More Accessible to all Children and Families

Hybrid pediatric mental healthcare startup Handspring Health raises $6.2 million in funding.

Morning Headlines 5/11/22

Harris Completes Purchase of Allscripts Hospitals and Large Physician Practices Business Segment

Harris rebrands the hospital and large physician practice software business it acquired from Allscripts to Altera Digital Health.

Med-Metrix Announces the Acquisition of PatientPal, Bolstering the Company’s Front-End RCM Software and Service Solutions

RCM solutions vendor Med-Metrix acquires PatientPal, which offers patient engagement and front-end RCM software.

Omnicell Discloses Some Systems Affected by Ransomware

Omnicell reports that a ransomware attack last week impacted some of its systems, adding that customer operation of its medication management devices was unaffected.

Osmind Raises $40M Series B Round Led by DFJ Growth to Expand Platform for Breakthrough Mental Health Research and Treatment

Mental health EHR and research startup Osmind raises $40 million in a Series B round that brings its total funding to $57 million.

Morning Headlines 5/10/22

CareCloud Reports First Quarter 2022 Results

CareCloud reports Q1 results: revenue up 19%; adjusted EPS of $0.23 vs. $0.19, beating Wall Street expectations for both revenue and earnings.

AMIA and HL7 Announce Partnership to Advance Interoperability in the Healthcare Community

The American Medical Informatics Association and Health Level Seven International will work together over the next two years to further interoperability standards.

Upswing Health, Whose Condition-Based Musculoskeletal Healthcare Eliminates Systemic Waste, Closes $5 Million Seed Round

Founded by orthopedic surgeons in 2017, virtual MSK care startup Upswing Health secures $5 million in seed funding.

Morning Headlines 5/9/22

Vital computer system has gone down more than 50 times since launching in Spokane, VA confirms

The VA confirms that Cerner was unavailable 50 times for at least some users singe going live in its Pacific Northwest sites, though the outages were not widespread.

Cerebral Receives Subpoena From Federal Prosecutors

Federal prosecutors subpoena online mental healthcare startup Cerebral as part of an investigation into potential violations of the Controlled Substances Act.

Joint Audit of the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs Efforts to Achieve Electronic Health Record System Interoperability

An OIG joint audit of efforts by the DoD and the VA to make their Cerner systems interoperable notes that migration of legacy data into Cerner could have been more consistent, medical device integration could be improved, and user access should be limited to information needed to perform job duties.

Morning Headlines 5/6/22

Allscripts Announces First Quarter of 2022 Results

Allscripts reports an uptick in Q1 revenue and that CEO Paul Black will step down.

Office overseeing EHR interoperability between DoD, VA not having ‘active role’ in rollout

Lack of oversight and planning by the Federal EHR Modernization Program Office has hampered interoperability between the DoD and VA’s new Cerner systems, according to a new joint report from the DoD and VA inspectors general.

OptimizeRx Reports First Quarter 2022 Financial Results, Revenue Up 22%, Successfully Completes EvinceMed Acquisition

OptimizeRx reports Q1 results: revenue up 22%, adjusted EPS $0.01 vs. $0.04, beating revenue expectations and meeting those for earnings.

Morning Headlines 5/5/22

Offor Health Completes Series A Round With Additional $9 Million Led by AXA Venture Partners

Offor Health, which specializes in providing mobile surgical services to in-office settings, raises $9 million in a Series A funding round.

Workflow automation solution for post-acute care Element5 closes $30M in Series B round of funding

Post-acute care workflow automation vendor Element5 raises $30 million in a Series B funding round, bringing its total raised to $45 million.

Cruces-based telehealth company Electronic Caregiver to add 770 jobs

Remote patient monitoring company Electronic Caregiver will hire 770 employees as it expands its headquarters in New Mexico with the addition of a clinical triage center.

Morning Headlines 5/4/22

Cerner Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2021 Results

Cerner reports Q1 results: revenue up 4%, adjusted EPS $0.93 versus $0.78, meeting earnings expectations but falling short on revenue.

VA secretary urges EHR rollout to continue, but ‘very concerned’ about system outages

VA Secretary Denis McDonough says the agency will continue rolling out its new Cerner software despite five recent outages that have caused some lawmakers to call for a halt to implementations.

American College of Physicians and the American Telemedicine Association Collaborate on New Digital Health Assessment Framework

The American College of Physicians and the American Telemedicine Association will develop a framework for assessing digital health technologies that are used by providers and consumers.

Morning Headlines 5/3/22

Virtual care enabler Capable raises $6 million

Capable Health, developer of plug-and-play virtual care software, raises $6 million in seed funding.

Guidewell and Highmark Ventures Lead $35 Million Funding Round in Kidney Health Leader Healthmap Solutions

Kidney care-focused analytics and population health management vendor Healthmap Solutions raises $35 million, bringing its total funding to $135.6 million.

Allscripts Closes Sale of Hospital and Large Physician Practices Business to Constellation Software

Allscripts finalizes the sale of its hospital and large physician practices business to Harris parent company Constellation Software for up to $700 million in cash.

Health startup MyNurse to shut down after data breach exposed health records

Virtual chronic care management and remote patient monitoring startup MyNurse announces it will shut down alongside its notice to users of a March data breach.

Morning Headlines 5/2/22

Walmart Health Introduces Telehealth Diabetes Program To Help Businesses Support Employees Through Education and Behavioral Care

Walmart rolls out a diabetes telehealth program for employers that includes diabetes education, behavioral health analysis and counseling, and discounts on insulin, diabetes medications, and test kits.

HST Pathways Announces Acquisition of Simplify ASC

Ambulatory surgery software vendor HST Pathways acquires competitor Simplify ASC.

Configo Health to relocate to Asheville, raises $2M for growth in Western NC

Configo Health, a North Carolina-based startup that has developed benchmarking analytics for pediatric hospitals, raises $2 million.

Morning Headlines 4/29/22

Teladoc Health Reports First Quarter 2022 Results

Teladoc Health reports Q1 results: revenue up 25%, EPS -$41.58 versus -$1.31, with the loss driven by a somewhat expected $6.6 billion impairment charge from its $18.5 billion acquisition of Livongo in 2020.

Syllable Raises $40 Million Series C Led by TCV to Improve the Patient Experience with Intelligent Voice Solutions for Health System Call Centers and Medical Practices

Syllable, which sells intelligent voice systems for health system call centers and practices, raises $40 million in a Series C funding round.

Cerner ticks higher on report Oracle likely to see smooth European review

A European antitrust review of Oracle’s planned acquisition of Cerner is likely to surface no concerns, according to a recent report.

Morning Headlines 4/28/22

HHS puts $90M toward improving health center data collection

HHS allocates $90 million to help health centers modernize their data and reporting capabilities, enabling them to gain a better picture of social determinants of health.

Tenet Reports Cybersecurity Incident

Tenet Healthcare confirms that a cybersecurity incident disrupted patient care last week at several acute care facilities, though normal operations are now being resumed.

Implicity Raises $23M to Broaden Use of Its Cardiac Remote Monitoring Platform

Cardiac remote monitoring and data management technology vendor Implicity raises $23 million in a Series A funding round.

Introducing Source: The Infrastructure Layer for Virtual Care

Virtual care tech startup Source Health launches with $3 million in funding.

Morning Headlines 4/27/22

3M is said to consider sale of its healthcare IT division

3M is reportedly seeking a buyer for its Health Information Systems revenue cycle and software business.

Biden Administration Increases Access to COVID-⁠19 Treatments and Boosts Patient and Provider Awareness

The White House’s plan for expanding access to COVID-19 treatments such as oral antivirals includes working with EHR vendors, with Cerner and Epic specifically mentioned, to incorporate antiviral treatment content and availability information.

OneMedNet, An Expert and Leader in Clinical Imaging Innovation and Data Solutions, to Become Publicly Traded Via Combination with Data Knights Acquisition Corp.

Imaging real-world data vendor OneMedNet will go public via a SPAC merger at a valuation of $317 million.

VA electronic health record system hit with further outages at Walla Walla site

VA and Cerner officials are looking into the cause of two EHR system outages at the Jonathan M. Wainwright Memorial VA Medical Center in Walla Walla, WA earlier this week.

Morning Headlines 4/26/22

UnitedHealth agrees to sell Change Healthcare’s ClaimsXten business for $2.2bn

UnitedHealth has agreed to sell Change Healthcare’s ClaimsXten claims payment and editing software business to TPG Capital for $2.2 billion, provided its acquisition of Change is finalized.

Ann Arbor’s Fifth Eye Partners with Texas Health Care Analytics Firm

AirStrip invests in clinical analytics company Fifth Eye as part of a collaboration that will include integration of Fifth Eye’s AHI System with AirStrip’s One platform for inpatient surveillance.

LifePoint Health to Lead Investment in Specialist TeleMed

Specialist TeleMed secures an undisclosed amount of funding from LifePoint Health (TN).

Fathom Secures Investment From Vituity’s Inflect Health

Medical coding automation vendor Fathom secures funding from Inflect Health, the innovation arm of Vituity, a provider group based in Emeryville, CA.