Morning Headlines 6/12/18

IBM’s problems with Watson Health run deeper than recent layoffs, former employees say

Former IBM employees say Watson Health’s troubles stem from the company’s inability to successfully merge the health data assets of Phytel, Explorys, and Truven Health – companies it acquired between 2015 and 2016.

VA Awards Contract to 1Vision and AMC Health for Telehealth Solutions

AMC Health and 1Vision will provide enrolled veterans access to telehealth services as part of the VHA Home Telehealth Program.

Apple, Cerner, Microsoft, and Salesforce

Former deputy national coordinator for health IT and Alliance for Better Health CEO Jacob Reider, MD downplays the likelihood of top Athenahealth suitors successfully picking up where Jonathan Bush left off.

Morning Headlines 6/11/18

UMass Inventor Insists On Due Credit For Nurses Who Innovate

UMass Amherst nursing professor Rachel Walker, PhD, RN is named to the American Association for the Advancement of Scientists.

“SHE ABSOLUTELY HAS SOCIOPATHIC TENDENCIES”: ELIZABETH HOLMES, SOMEHOW, IS TRYING TO START A NEW COMPANY!

WJS reporter and “Bad Blood” author John Carreyrou provides a couple of new tidbits about Elizabeth Holmes.

NYU Langone Health tests out Amazon Business programs

NYU Langone Health is testing Amazon Business for allowing employees to order supplies directly as it works to evolve into a more digitally-savvy organization.

VA Moves to Launch Implant Registry with FDA, CMS, DoD Input

The VA will create a medical implant registry to allow it to notify patients about recalls, identify devices in emergencies, and track outcomes.

Morning Headlines 6/8/18

CEO to be named soon for Berkshire, Amazon, JPMorgan healthcare venture

Berkshire Hathaway Chairman Warren Buffett tells CNBC that he and JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon have selected a CEO for their healthcare venture with Amazon and will name the individual within the next two weeks.

Clinical Trial Participants’ Views of the Risks and Benefits of Data Sharing

A survey of clinical trials participants finds that 93 percent are willing to share their clinical data with university scientists and 82 percent are OK with researchers from for-profit companies looking at their information.

MTBC Selected as Acquisition ‘Stalking Horse’, Sale Hearing Scheduled for June

A New York bankruptcy court selects MTBC as the “stalking horse” primary bidder for the assets of Houston-based Orion HealthCorp, which offers revenue cycle services, practice management, and group purchasing.

Unionize Epic

A Madison, WI weekly says its time for Epic employees to unionize following the Supreme Court’s ruling that forcing employees into arbitration over labor issues and prohibiting them from filing class action lawsuits is legal.

Morning Headlines 6/7/18

Trump seeks to reorganize the federal government

White House officials plan to propose a reorganization of the federal government that would consolidate welfare programs under HHS – a move that would necessitate renaming the department.

HP sees up to 5,000 job cuts as part of restructuring plan

HP expects to lay off between 4,500 and 5,000 employees by 2019 as part of restructuring plans originally announced in 2016.

MyHeritage Statement About a Cybersecurity Incident

Consumer DNA testing company MyHeritage alerts customers to a data breach that compromised the email addresses and passwords of 92,283,889 users.

A meditation app loved by Wall Street and Silicon Valley wants to unveil a prescription-strength version with FDA approval

Headspace launches new subsidiary Headspace Health with an eye towards developing FDA-approved, prescription-strength meditation apps targeted at specific medical conditions.

Morning Headlines 6/6/18

Microsoft has acquired GitHub for $7.5B in stock

Developers flee the GitHub platform as rumors solidify that Microsoft has acquired the open source repository for $7.5 billion in stock.

Florida Hospital and GE Healthcare Partners to Build ‘Command Center’ to Guide Clinical Operations

Florida Hospital will develop a clinical operations command center for its nine campuses using GE Healthcare’s AI-powered Wall of Analytics.

Pentagon investigates White House doctor Ronny Jackson

The DoD’s OIG is investigating allegations about White House physician and one-time VA secretary nominee Ronny Jackson, MD, who has been accused of improperly providing sleeping pills, drinking on the job, and sharing the medical information of VP Mike Pence’s wife without her consent.

Morning Headlines 6/5/18

Apple opens Health Records API to developers

Apple announces that it will give users the ability to share health data stored on their devices with third-party developers and researchers.

Judge rules Theranos investors cannot pursue class action

A California judge rules that over 200 Theranos investors can’t pursue a class-action lawsuit against the company, which they claim defrauded them out of millions of dollars.

Teladoc Acquires Global Virtual Care Provider, Advance Medical

Teladoc acquires Advance Medical, a telemedicine company serving Latin American and Asian markets, for $352 million.

Morning Headlines 6/4/18

IBM says it’s reaching for the ‘moon’ with Watson Health. That hasn’t stopped layoffs.

IBM acknowledges that last week’s layoffs affected a small percentage of Watson Health’s workforce, the rest of which will forge ahead with a new implementation project slated for Apollo Hospitals in India.

Intelligent Medical Objects (IMO) Announces Leadership Transition to Support Next Chapter of Growth and Innovation

Ann Barnes (MedData) joins IMO as CEO, replacing co-founder Frank Naeymi-Rad, who will become chief innovator and remain chairman of the board.

Illinois upholds Epic’s $62 million university contract

The Illinois Procurement Policy Board rejects Cerner’s challenge of the seven-year, $62 million Epic contract signed by University of Illinois Hospital and Health Sciences System.

Morning Headlines 6/1/18

ClearBridge Investments Sends Letter to Board of Directors of athenahealth Inc.

Athenahealth investor ClearBridge Investments urges the health IT company to launch sale proceedings in light of a “litany of executive turnover, misexecution on several initiatives and persistent downward trajectory of a variety of financial measures.”

Withings will return after buying out Nokia’s health business

Withings will sell the Nokia Health products it re-acquired earlier this year, and relaunch the Withings brand by the end of 2018.

Propeller Health Raises $20 Million, Accelerating Development of Digital Medicines for Respiratory Health and Other Diseases

Propeller Health secures $20 million with help from Aptar Pharma, which will help the company scale its digital therapeutics beyond its core chronic respiratory disease market.

Morning Headlines 5/30/18

Providence St. Joseph Health Helps Ease, Enhance End-Of-Life Care

Providence St. Joseph Health publishes a state-specific online advance directive toolkit and customizes its EHR to store the advance directives of its patients.

IBM’s Watson Health wing left looking poorly after ‘massive’ layoffs

IBM Watson Health reportedly had big layoffs last week, with the “resource action” mostly focused on employees from its big-bet acquisitions Truven, Merge, and Phytel.

Orion Health cuts 177 jobs as more red ink spills

As layoffs mount, reports suggest that New Zealand-based Orion Health is considering selling all or part of the company to unnamed parties.

ResMed to Acquire HEALTHCAREfirst, a Cloud-based Software and Services Provider for Home Health and Hospice Agencies

Home monitoring technology vendor ResMed will acquire HealthcareFirst.

Morning Headlines 5/29/18

How I remember my lost military comrades

Former senator, governor, and US Navy Seal Bob Kerrey suggests spending a short time alone to remember those who have been lost and those who lost them.

Me and My Numb Thumb: A Tale of Tech, Texts and Tendons

Doctors are seeing many people with problems caused by thumb overuse in texting.

Next time you buy a TV at Best Buy, you may be also offered health care

Best Buy plans to offer home monitoring technology and services to seniors.

Morning Headlines 5/28/18

Steward Health Care pressured doctors to restrict referrals outside chain, suit says

A doctor files a class action lawsuit against venture capital-owned hospital chain Steward Health Care, claiming he was pressured to refer patients only to other Steward facilities

Emory Healthcare and Sharecare to launch Emory Healthcare Innovation Hub

The health system and digital health vendor, both based in Atlanta, will develop, test, and implement digital health products.

Digital Ambulance Chasers? Law Firms Send Ads To Patients’ Phones Inside ERs

Personal injury lawyers in Philadelphia are using geofencing technology to identify smartphone users who are in hospital EDs, then sending their devices a weeks-long string of “call if you’ve been injured” ads.

Morning Headlines 5/25/18

US Hospital EMR Market Share 2018: Small Hospitals Hungry for New Technology

A new KLAS report on hospital EHR market share finds that Cerner gained the most customers overall, but also lost enough to place it behind Epic in net market share change with +29 vs. +46.

Athenahealth issues statement

Elliott Management sends yet another letter pressuring Athenahealth to take its buyout offer seriously. Athenahealth reps have fired back with a letter of their own, stressing that they will take their time in reviewing Elliott’s offer.

ConnectiveRx Acquires The Macaluso Group to Enhance Specialty Product Reimbursement and Customer Support

Prescription affordability and adherence solutions vendor ConnectiveRx acquires The Macaluso Group, a tech-enabled prescription benefits company, for an undisclosed amount.

Morning Headlines 5/24/18

Senate Passes $55 Billion Veterans Affairs Reform Bill

As the VA preps to overhaul its medical records system, the Senate passes the VA Mission Act, a $55 billion bill that will give vets more leeway to see private-sector providers, expands family caregiver stipends, and mandates a review of aging facilities. President Trump is expected to sign the bill soon.

A New Challenge Competition – Can you Help Make EHR Safety Reporting Easy

ONC announces an $80,000 contest to entice developers to create apps that will help users identify, record, and report potential health IT safety issues in real time.

DAS Health Secures $6 Million to Accelerate Company Acquisition Strategy

After purchasing a string of companies over the last three years, health IT reseller and consulting company DAS Health raises $6 million to continue its buying spree.

Morning Headlines 5/23/18

New Cancer Treatments Lie Hidden Under Mountains of Paperwork

A New York Times article says that hospital EHRs are a “medical records mess” that impede research efforts because of incompatible data formats and the reluctance of health systems to share their patient data.

Bruce Greenstein departs HHS CTO role

HHS CTO Bruce Greenstein joins home health provider LHC Group as chief innovation and technology officer.

House Passes Bill to Keep Tabs on VA’s Health Records Modernization

The House passes a bill that would require the VA to provide Congress with regular updates on its Cerner project and to notify lawmakers promptly if it experiences contract or schedule changes, milestone delays, bid protests, or data breaches.

Routine DNA Screening Moves Into Primary Care

Geisinger Health System (PA) will begin offering DNA sequencing to patients, after which results will be sent to their primary care physician for one-on-one counseling and incorporated into their EHR.

Morning Headlines 5/22/18

Epic Systems gets a win in U.S. Supreme Court decision limiting workers’ ability to sue employers

After reviewing the employee arbitration cases of Epic and two other companies, the US Supreme Court declares that companies do have a right to mandate that employees sign agreements preventing them from taking workplace grievances to courts of law.

Iora Health Raises $100 Million in Series E Financing

Primary care company Iora Health raises $100 million, which it plans to use to further develop its proprietary care coordination technology.

Janus Henderson Reports 11.9 Percent Stake In athenahealth

Janus Henderson Group, Athenahealth’s largest shareholder, urges the company to initiate a formal sale process.

Theresa May: Artificial intelligence will prevent 22,000 cancer deaths a year by 2033

British Prime Minister Theresa May outlines the government’s industrial strategy, which includes significant investments in healthcare-focused AI and analytics to help catch cancer diagnoses earlier.

Morning Headlines 5/21/18

Cerner chief: VA contract taught him about ‘fake news’ that may involve a competitor

Cerner President Zane Burke blames an unnamed competitor (presumably Epic) for publicizing negative reports about the DoD’s MHS Genesis project, labeling the resulting coverage as “fake news” in Friday’s annual shareholder meeting.

TransUnion Expands Healthcare Solutions with Agreement to Acquire Healthcare Payment Specialists

TransUnion will acquire Fort Worth-based Healthcare Payment Specialists, which offers solutions for hospital Medicare reimbursement.

President Trump announces he will nominate Robert Wilkie as next VA secretary

President Trump will nominate acting VA Secretary Robert Wilkie to the permanent position.

Sponsors vie for Cardinal Health’s naviHealth

Cardinal Health hires Allen & Co. to provide financial advice on the potential sale of NaviHealth, a post-acute care services and analytics vendor it acquired in 2015 for $290 million.

Morning Headlines 5/18/18

Statement by Acting Secretary Robert Wilkie – VA signs contract with Cerner for an electronic health record system

Acting VA Secretary Robert Wilkie signs a 10-year, $10 billion contract with Cerner, saying its system will allow patient data to be “seamlessly shared between VA, DoD, and community providers.”

Report: Long waits for health care, outdated technology at Vaughn prison

An assessment of the healthcare services at Delaware-based Vaughn Correctional Center (where inmates last year led a deadly uprising) produces a long list of EHR-related problems, including poor connectivity, inefficient workflows, and numerous workarounds.

FDA reports quality problems for data provided by the firm IQVIA that were used to inform estimates for some controlled substances

FDA says data vendor IQvia has for years provided it with incorrect national opioid dispensing data, as calculation errors “raise serious concerns about systemic issues with IQvia’s data and quality control procedures.”