Morning Headlines 5/24/24

Atropos Health Raises $33M to Scale the Automation of High-Quality, Personalized Real-World Evidence Leveraging Generative AI

Real-world data and evidence platform vendor Atropos Health raises $33 million in a Series B funding round.

Interoperable Exchange of Patient Health Information Among U.S. Hospitals: 2023

ONC reports that 70% of hospitals engaged in all four domains of interoperability (send, receive, find, and integrate) in 2023, up from 46% in 2018.

CVS seeks private equity funding for Oak Street Health, Bloomberg News reports

CVS Health is looking for investors to fund growth at Oak Street Health, a chain of Medicare primary care clinics it acquired last year for $10.6 billion.

Morning Headlines 5/23/24

Boulder Secures $35 Million in Series C Funding to Provide High-Quality Addiction Medicine to Medicaid Beneficiaries

Digital addiction treatment provider Boulder Care raises $35 million in Series C funding.

Trego County hospital targeted by ransomware attack

Trego County Lemke Memorial Hospital, a 25-bed hospital in Kansas, works to recover from a May 6 cyberattack

Cue Health lays off remaining employees after FDA warning on COVID-19 tests

COVID-19 testing company Cue Health, which went public in 2021 at a $3 billion valuation, lays off all of its employees in the wake of FDA’s warning that its tests may yield false results.

Videra Health Secures 5.6M in Funding to Advance Mental Health AI Solutions Led by Peterson Ventures

Videra Health, developer of AI-powered, video-based mental health assessments, raises $5.6 million in seed funding.

Patient portal, phones still offline weeks after Palomar Health reports ‘suspicious activity’

Palomar Health Medical Group (CA) works to get its patient portal and phone lines back up and running after a May 5 cyberattack.

Morning Headlines 5/22/24

Health-tech startup Tempus AI files for a $100 million IPO

AI-enabled precision medicine software startup Tempus AI hopes to raise up to $600 million in a forthcoming IPO.

Cloud21 acquires identity management and IT services company BDS Solutions

Tegria-owned digital healthcare consulting firm Cloud21 acquires BDS Solutions, which specializes in automated identity management software for NHS organizations in the UK.

Tuesday Health Launches Revolutionary Supportive Care Solution with $60 Million of Strategic Investment from Healthcare Leaders

Tech-enabled supportive care management company Tuesday Health raises $60 million.

SamaCare Secures $17M Series B Investment to Scale Specialty Drug Prior Authorization Platform

Specialty medication prior authorization software vendor SamaCare announces $17 million in Series B funding, bringing its total raised to $33 million.

Morning Headlines 5/21/24

Centivo Acquires Eden Health to Serve Escalating Demand for Affordable, High-Quality Primary Care

Centivo, which offers primary care-focused health plans to employers, acquires virtual-first, direct-to-employer provider Eden Health.

ARPA-H announces program to automate cybersecurity for health care facilities

The Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health announces its UPGRADE program, which will invest $50 million in the development of proposed automated cybersecurity solutions for hospitals.

Better medical record-keeping needed to fight antibiotic overuse, studies suggest

A pair of studies conducted by University of Michigan physicians finds that a lack of detailed record-keeping – specifically, information about why an antibiotic is prescribed – could drive up unnecessary and potentially harmful prescriptions.

Morning Headlines 5/20/24

US Acute Care EHR Market Share 2024

The KLAS report on the US acute care EHR market finds that Epic now holds a 39% market share of US hospitals, representing 52% of beds.

Payments-Company Waystar Plans to Restart IPO Pitch

Waystar is reportedly considering a June IPO after tabling those plans last year due to market conditions.

CloudMD to be Taken Private by CPS Capital

Canadian private equity firm CPS Capital will take Vancouver-based, tech-enabled workplace healthcare provider CloudMD private in a deal valued at $36 million.

Houston startup secures $10M to expand into rural communities

Hamilton Health Box, which offers hybrid primary care delivery services to rural communities, raises $10 million in a Series A funding round.

Morning Headlines 5/17/24

Lawmakers propose more scrutiny of VA’s new EHR, reauthorize VET-TEC program

The House and Senate Veterans’ Affairs committees introduce legislation related to the VA’s implementation of Oracle Health that calls for, among other things, the contract between the two organizations to be cancelled if the VA can’t provide metrics that show overall improvement.

Beth Israel Lahey scores $400M MassDevelopment bonds for real estate

MassDevelopment issues $400 million in tax-exempt bonds to fund Beth Israel Lahey Health’s real estate and upgrades to Epic.

Former executive for medical records firm gets probation for trying to obstruct opioid kickback probe

Three years after pleading guilty, former Practice Fusion Director of National Accounts Steven Mack is sentenced to one year of probation and 40 hours of community service, and ordered to pay a $20,000 fine for attempting to obstruct the federal investigation into the relationship between Practice Fusion and Purdue Pharma.

Morning Headlines 5/16/24

New Orleans Startup Secures $13.6M for Patient Care Coordination

Care coordination software vendor Watershed Health announces $13.6 million in new funding.

Missouri Launches Pioneering Statewide Digital Health Initiative to Transform Crisis Response and Behavioral Health Care

The Missouri Department of Mental Health and Missouri Behavioral Health Council will use technology from Chorus Innovations to develop MOConnect, a digital tool that will help coordinate care between crisis lines, crisis centers, mobile teams, and referral networks.

SmarterDx Raises $50M to Bolster Hospital Revenue Integrity and Quality with Its Clinical AI Solution

SmarterDx, which uses AI to audit and review medical claims, raises $50 million in a Series B funding round.

Morning Headlines 5/15/24

Crosby Health Raises $2.2M in Pre-Seed Funding

Crosby Health will use $2.2 million in pre-seed funding to further develop its automated clinical appeals software.

CareCloud, Inc. (CCLD) Reports Q1 Loss, Misses Revenue Estimates

Ambulatory health IT vendor CareCloud reports Q1 results: revenue down 13%, EPS –$0.02 versus –$0.28, beating earnings expectations but falling short on revenue.

Augmedix Delivers 40% Revenue Growth for First Quarter of 2024

Augmedix, which specializes in AI medical documentation, reports Q1 results: revenue up 40%, EPS –$0.12 versus –$0.14, beating expectations for both.

Morning Headlines 5/14/24

Switchboard Health Announces $6.5M Series Seed Funding

Specialty care coordination company Switchboard Health raises $6.5 million in seed funding.

HHS Announces LEAP in Health IT Special Emphasis Notice for AI and Behavioral Health Focused Projects in Fiscal Year 2024

HHS offers new funding opportunities for projects related to accelerating the adoption of health IT in behavioral healthcare settings, and to developing novel ways to evaluate and improve the quality of health care data used by AI solutions.

Avel eCare opens renovated headquarters with room to grow

Avel ECare, a telemedicine provider serving patients in 42 states, expands and renovates its headquarters in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

Morning Headlines 5/13/24

Cybersecurity Event Update

Ascension’s 140 hospitals in 19 states remain offline following a ransomware attack on Thursday.

#StopRansomware: Black Basta

The federal government issues a warning about the Ascension-linked Black Basta ransomware variant.

Senators call for VA to tighten performance standards in new health records contract

Three members of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee call for the VA to take advantage of its recently renegotiated contract with Oracle Health to strengthen accountability and oversight terms.

Sift Healthcare Raises $20M Series B Funding Round to Enhance AI-Powered Payment Solutions

AI-enhanced RCM company Sift Healthcare raises $20 million in a Series B funding round led by B Capital.

Morning Headlines 5/10/24

CareCloud Retains Citizens JMP as its Exclusive Capital Structure Advisor

CareCloud hires an investment bank to review its capital structure after it turns down an unsolicited acquisition offer.

DoorSpace secures $2M in seed round

Healthcare workforce management software startup DoorSpace raises $2 million in seed funding.

Guthrie Lourdes Hospital Experiences Communication System Issues

Guthrie Lourdes Hospital (NY) works to recover from a communications system outage that impacted phone lines.

Oracle’s $28 Billion Cerner Health Tech Bet Sputters With Lost Customers and Slipping Sales

Bloomberg reports that the former Cerner business lost at least 12 large clients in 2023.

Morning Headlines 5/9/24

Network Interruption Update

Ascension diverts ambulances, reverts to downtime procedures, and urges business partners to disconnect from its systems after detecting suspicious activity on its network.

In-House Health Raises $4 Million Seed Round, Unveils AI-Powered Scheduling Platform to Combat Nurse Shortage Crisis

In-House Health announces GA of its scheduling and management software for nursing staff and $4 million in seed funding.

Ciba Health Raises $10M in Series A Funding

Ciba Health, which offers digital therapeutics and virtual care, raises $10 million in Series A funding.

Morning Headlines 5/8/24

Rad AI Closes $50 Million to Empower Physicians with AI

Rad AI, which offers AI-powered radiology reporting workflow software, raises $50 million in Series B financing.

Blackwell Security raises $13M co-led by General Catalyst and Rally Ventures to empower healthcare cybersecurity operations

Healthcare cybersecurity solutions vendor Blackwell Security raises $13 million in additional funding and hires Geyer Jones (Cylera) as its first CEO.

OptMyCare Secures $3 Million in Series A Funding from Investor Group Led by LiveOak Ventures

AI-powered risk stratification software startup OptMyCare announces $3 million in Series A funding.

Palomar Health Medical Group phones, patient portal offline after ‘suspicious activity’ detected

Palomar Health Medical Group (CA) reverts to downtime procedures after detecting suspicious activity on its computer network.

Morning Headlines 5/7/24

Livara Health Raises $15 Million to Expand Value-Based Musculoskeletal Care Delivery Model

Tech-enabled musculoskeletal care management company Livara Health raises $15 million in Series B funding, bringing its total raised to $27 million.

Opmed.ai Secures $15M in Series A Funding

Operating room management software startup Opmed.ai raises $15 million in a Series A funding round.

US hospital network Steward files for bankruptcy, aims for new loan

Multi-state hospital operator Steward Health Care files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and seeks up to $300 million in financing to keep the doors of its 31 remaining hospitals open.

Morning Headlines 5/6/24

Collusion in Health Care Pricing? Regulators Are Asked to Investigate

Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) asks the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division to investigate the pricing algorithms that are used by MultiPlan to reduce insurer payments to providers for out-of-network claims.

UH operating losses again top $200M; but system says big investment in My Chart is starting to pay off

University Hospitals in Ohio attributes its nearly half billion dollars in operating losses over the last two years to inflation, rising employee costs, and expenses associated with its Epic implementation last fall.

FDA Qualifies Apple Atrial Fibrillation History Feature as an MDDT

FDA qualifies the Apple Watch as the first digital health tool to monitor atrial fibrillation during clinical studies.

Morning Headlines 5/3/24

Transcarent Raises $126 Million Series D

Transcarent raises $126 million in a Series D funding round that values the company at $2.2 billion.

Avel eCare Acquires Hospitalist Telemedicine Provider ‘Horizon Virtual’

Telemedicine provider Avel ECare acquires Horizon Virtual, which offers virtual hospitalists.

Pfizer plans direct-to-consumer platform for Covid and migraine treatments

Pfizer will follow the lead of competitor Lilly in rolling out an online platform where patients can order the company’s drugs directly, connecting US customers with independent telehealth consultants who will send prescriptions to a drug dispensing partner.

Contexture and Quality Health Network Announce Affiliation

Contexture, which manages HIEs in Arizona and Colorado, acquires Colorado-based HIE Quality Health Network.

Morning Headlines 5/2/24

CVS Health Corporation Reports First Quarter 2024 Results and Revises Full-Year 2024 Guidance

CVS Health shares plunge on the news of disappointing Q1 results and revised full-year 2024 guidance.

Aledade and Medical Advantage Team Up To Expand Value-Based Care in Michigan

Value-based care and physician practice optimization company Aledade acquires Medical Advantage, a subsidiary of The Doctor’s Company that provides value-based healthcare consulting to practices in Michigan.

Tiger Global-backed Innovaccer in talks to raise $250M in new funding, sources say

Health data and analytics company Innovaccer is reportedly in talks to raise $250 million at a valuation of between $2.5 billion and $3 billion.