Morning Headlines 5/27/21

Google cuts a deal to help develop health algorithms using patient data

Google will build custom algorithms for national hospital chain HCA Healthcare using data culled from 32 million annual patient interactions.

IG Says VA Underestimated Health Records Project Costs by Up to $2.6B

A new analysis finds that the VA will likely end up paying between $1 billion and $2.6 billion more than the original $16 billion estimated for its EHR project due to unaccounted-for physical infrastructure costs.

Press Ganey Acquires SPH Analytics

Healthcare advisory and analytics firm Press Ganey acquires healthcare measurement and analytics company SPH Analytics.

Twilio invests in adaptive communications platform Hyro

Automated healthcare communications startup Hyro raises $10.5 million in a Series A funding round.

CoverMyMeds brand grows as owner McKesson unites four health IT units

The local business paper reports that McKesson has brought its four prescription technology businesses into one operating unit under the CoverMyMeds brand.

Morning Headlines 5/26/21

Iodine Software acquires physician engagement platform Artifact Health

AI-powered revenue cycle company Iodine Software acquires Artifact Health, which offers a physician engagement and patient documentation query technology platform.

Weight-Loss App Noom Gets $540 Million in Silver Lake-Led Round

Weight loss coaching app vendor Noom raises $540 million in new funding, valuing the company at $3.7 billion as it expands into stress management, sleep, diabetes, and hypertension.

Scripps enters fourth week of ransomware attack

Scripps Health CEO Chris Van Gorder says the May 1 attack on the hospital’s computer systems was ransomware, and that its EHR and patient portal systems should be back up by the end of the week.

Bassett Healthcare Network and Optum Launch Strategic Relationship to Advance Quality Care and Improve Experiences for Patients in Central New York

Bassett Healthcare will give 500 employees the opportunity to transition to Optum as the vendor prepares to enhance the health system’s analytics, and IT and RCM systems.

Morning Headlines 5/25/21

Zocdoc says ‘programming errors’ exposed access to patients’ data

Appointment-booking website Zocdoc fixes a software glitch that improperly allowed current and former employees of doctor and dental offices to access patient data.

Recuro Health Acquires SupDoc: Expands Digital Care Platform, Enhances Virtual Primary Care and Behavioral Health Solutions

Virtual care company Recuro Health acquires chat-based telemedicine startup SupDoc.

Clinigence Holdings Announces the Signing of a Binding Letter Of Intent to Acquire Procare Health

Population health analytics company Clinigence Health acquires ProCare Health, a managed services organization serving four IPAs in California.

CHS Makes Bold Move Acquiring Healthcare Division From Selent and Associates, Inc.

Complete HealthCare Solutions, a health IT developer, reseller, and services company, acquires the healthcare division of Selent and Associates, including Computerized Business Systems and medicalbillingsoftware.com.

Morning Headlines 5/24/21

Conti Ransomware Attacks Impact Healthcare and First Responder Networks

An FBI advisory says that at least 16 US healthcare and first responder networks were attacked by Conti ransomware in the past year.

Advocate Aurora Health will make remote work permanent for 12,000 employees

Advocate Aurora Health will change 12,000 non-clinical positions to remote-first, eliminating their physical offices in departments such as finance, accounting, administration, and consumer experience in allowing employees to work from wherever they want.

HSE making progress on restoring health systems, but disruption to continue next week

Irish health officials say services will remain disrupted as their cybersecurity teams work to bring IT systems back online after last week’s systemwide Conti ransomware attack.

Morning Headlines 5/21/21

US Hospital Market Share 2021

A new KLAS report on EHR market share in US hospitals finds that Epic gained the most in 2020, while Cerner saw its second consecutive year of net market decrease.

JPMorgan Chase Launches Morgan Health

JPMorgan launches Morgan Health to improve the care of its US employees, and to develop care models for other employers.

Harris adds patient engagement solutions with the acquisition of ER Express

Harris acquires ER Express, which offers EDs and urgent care facilities software for online check-in, patient intake, and online referral.

Tegria Acquires Colburn Hill Group to Ease Revenue Cycle Management Challenges for Healthcare Providers

Providence-founded Tegria acquires RCM robotic process automation vendor Colburn Hill Group.

Scripps website back up, patient portal still down

Scripps Health (CA) announces its website is back up but its patient portal is still down nearly three weeks after a ransomware attack.

Morning Headlines 5/20/21

Wheel Raises $50 Million Series B to Build the Next Generation of Virtual Care

White-label telemedicine and staffing startup Wheel raises $50 million in a Series B round that brings its total funding to $66 million.

Glen Tullman raises $150 million health-tech fund

Former Livongo and Allscripts executives Glen Tullman and Lee Shapiro will use $150 million in venture funding to invest in early-stage healthcare startups focused on connected consumers.

DarioHealth Acquires Digital Behavioral Health Platform WayForward

Chronic condition-focused remote patient monitoring company DarioHealth acquires WayForward for $25 million.

Morning Headlines 5/19/21

Baltimore-based digital health company to expand after securing more than $6 million in venture capital

Medication compliance and remote monitoring app developer Emocha raises $6.2 million in a funding round led by Claritas Health Ventures.

Taking a stand on vaccines at HLTH 2021

Alongside HIMSS, HLTH announces that attendees will need to present proof of COVID-19 vaccination to attend their respective events in 2021.

Scripps Health ransomware shutdown hits the two-week mark

Scripps Health in California remains offline more than two weeks after it was hit by a ransomware attack.

SymphonyRM Raises $25 Million In Series B Funding to Help Health Systems Transform Their Data Into Actionable Plans For Every Healthcare Consumer

SymphonyRM raises $25 million in a Series B funding round led by TT Capital Partners, bringing its total raised to $35 million.

Morning Headlines 5/18/21

St. Pete telehealth company Synzi acquired for $42 million

Healthcare staffing, resource, and telemedicine company AMN Healthcare acquires Synzi, a virtual care management vendor for home health and outpatient providers, for $42.5 million.

Amazon may launch healthcare business line with at-home COVID test and other diagnostic services

Sources say Amazon may launch a home diagnostics business and a third-party marketplace for related services.

Clearlake Capital-Backed Symplr To Acquire HealthcareSource From Francisco Partners

Provider management and credentialing software vendor Symplr acquires HealthcareSource, which specializes in healthcare employee recruitment, retention, and development, for an undisclosed amount.

Mental Health Startup Lyra Health Valued at $4.6 Billion in Coatue-Led Round

Employer-focused mental health tech company Lyra Health raises $200 million just four months after securing $187 million.

Morning Headlines 5/17/21

Irish health system targeted in ‘serious’ ransomware attack

Ireland’s health service shuts down its IT systems due to ransomware, with several hospitals cancelling appointments and elective surgeries.

GoodRx to Buy Perelman’s RXSaver Business for $50 Million

Prescription savings and telemedicine company GoodRx acquires competitor RXSaver from Vericast for $50 million.

DeepScribe raises $5.2M to transcribe medical notes with AI

Automated medical transcription startup DeepScribe raises $5.2 million in a seed funding round.

Morning Headlines 5/14/21

Cedar Announces Agreement to Acquire OODA Health to Revolutionize the Consumer Financial Experience in Healthcare

Patient payments platform vendor Cedar will acquire competitor OODA Health for $425 million.

Boston-based tech company raises $8M to develop AI-powered CVD software

Elucid, a developer of cardiovascular diagnostic image analysis software, raises $8 million in a Series A funding round.

Biden-Harris Administration to Invest $7 Billion from American Rescue Plan to Hire and Train Public Health Workers in Response to COVID-19

ONC will spend $80 million to train public health professionals to modernize the public health data infrastructure.

Mayo Clinic, Kaiser Permanente announce strategic investment in Medically Home to expand access to serious or complex care at home

Mayo Clinic and Kaiser Permanente make an unspecified investment in Medically Home, which offers technology and services to support delivering acute care and recovery services at home.

Jasper Health Launches Comprehensive Support Platform for Individuals With Cancer and Their Caregivers

Digital cancer care organization platform vendor Jasper Health launches with $7 million in seed funding, naming as its top executives two veteran leaders of CVS Health and Walgreens.

Morning Headlines 5/13/21

$50 Million Follow-on Equity Investment from Sixth Street Growth Caps $135 Million Total in 2020-21 for DrFirst

Health IT company DrFirst announces a $50 million equity investment from Sixth Street Partners, bringing its total raised over the last 12 months to $135 million.

Ettain group, a Leading Provider of Talent Solutions, Acquires Bradford & Galt, an IT Staffing and Consulting Firm

Ettain Group acquires Bradford & Galt, a staffing and consulting firm specializing in EHR go-live support and training.

CPSI Announces the Acquisition of Medical Encoder Solutions Provider, TruCode LLC

CPSI, parent company of TruBridge, Get Real Health, Evident, and American HealthTech, acquires coding and revenue cycle optimization company TruCode.

Morning Headlines 5/12/21

Aetion Closes $110M Series C Funding Round Led by Warburg Pincus

Aetion, which offers a real-world evidence platform for drug companies and payers, raises $110 million in a Series C funding round, increasing its total to $212 million.

Nuance Announces Second Quarter 2021 Results

Nuance, in the midst of being acquired by Microsoft, announces Q2 results: revenue up 10%, adjusted EPS $0.20 versus $0.16.

Huma, which uses AI and biomarkers to monitor patients and for medical research, raises $130 million

“Hospital-at-home” company Huma (formerly known as Medopad) raises $130 million in a Series C funding round.

Memora Health Closes $10.5M Financing Led by Andreessen Horowitz to Modernize Care Delivery

Automated care workflow company Memora Health raises $10.5 million.

CPSI Announces First Quarter 2021 Results

CPSI reports Q1 results: revenue down 3%, EPS $0.28 versus $0.28, beating estimates for both.

Morning Headlines 5/10/21

Health Catalyst (HCAT) Reports Q1 Loss, Tops Revenue Estimates

Health Catalyst reports Q1 results: revenue up 24%, adjusted EPS –$0.06 versus –$0.16, beating Wall Street expectations for both.

Cincinnati health system partners with Columbus unicorn

Olive establishes an AI command center at TriHealth’s offices to help the six-hospital system automate tasks, initially starting with its revenue cycle.

OptimizeRx Reports First Quarter 2021 Financial Results, Revenue Up 48% on Rising Enterprise Adoption of Digital Health

OptimizeRx reports Q1 results: revenue up 48%, adjusted EPS $0.03 versus –$0.06, beating expectations for both.

Morning Headlines 5/7/21

Walmart Health To Acquire Telehealth Provider MeMD

Walmart Health will acquire Phoenix-based telehealth company MeMD for an undisclosed sum.

Vim Closes Investments From Walgreens, Anthem, and Frist Cressey Ventures to Build Digital Infrastructure for Higher Performing Health Care

Israel-based Vim, whose technology connects health plans to providers, raises $60 million in a Series B funding round let by Walgreens.

Cerner Corporation (CERN) CEO Brent Shafer on Q1 2021 Results

Cerner announces Q1 results: revenue down 2%, adjusted EPS $0.76 versus $0.71, beating consensus expectations for earnings but falling short on revenue.

SA hospital staff put on alert after computer glitch adds digit to medication dosages

Australia’s SA Health investigates whether patient harm has resulted from an apparent bug in Allscripts Sunrise, which it says is duplicating the last digit of medication doses in displaying a 10 mg dose as 100 mg.

Morning Headlines 5/6/21

Cerner Reports First Quarter 2021 Results, Updates Guidance, Expands Capital Return Program and Commences CEO Succession

Cerner reports a 2% dip in its quarterly revenue and announces a succession plan for CEO Brent Shafer.

HST Pathways Merges with Simple Admit to Enhance End-to-End Patient Technologies for Ambulatory Surgery Centers Nationwide

Ambulatory surgery center software vendor HST Pathways merges with Simple Admit, which offers ASC-specific patient engagement and relationship management technology.

Fitness ring maker Oura raises $100M

Smart ring company Oura will use its $100 million Series C funding round to hire staff, and continue expanding research and development beyond its initial sleep-tracking functionality.

Vida Health raises $110M in Series D round led by General Atlantic, Centene, and AXA Venture Partners

Virtual chronic care company Vida Health raises $110 million, bringing its total raised to $188 million.

Morning Headlines 5/5/21

R1 Announces Agreement to Acquire VisitPay, the Leading Provider of Patient Financial Engagement Solutions

R1 RCM will acquire digital payment solutions provider VisitPay for $300 million in cash.

Headway Raises $70 Million in Series B Funding to Unlock Access to Affordable Mental Healthcare for Every American

Headway, which matches patients with mental health therapists for virtual or in-person sessions, raises $70 million in a Series B funding round.

Provation Acquires IProcedures

Clinical documentation software vendor Provation acquires IProcedure, which specializes in cloud-based anesthesia documentation and perioperative data management.

Ciitizen Acquires Key Technology and Creates New Healthcare Data Infrastructure for Improving Patient and Doctor Information Access

Consumer health software vendor Ciitizen acquires HIE company Stella Technology for an undisclosed sum.

Morning Headlines 5/4/21

Well’s DoctorCare Expands Billing & Backoffice Services with Proposed Majority Stake Acquisition of Doctors Services Group

In Canada, Well Health Technologies will become a majority shareholder in billing and administrative services company Doctors Services Group.

After delays, CT launches its long-anticipated health information exchange

After several failed attempts over the last decade, the State of Connecticut finally launches a statewide HIE.

Payments firm Flywire makes U.S. IPO filing public

Healthcare, education, and travel payments technology company Flywire confirms its hope of a $3 billion valuation in its publicly disclosed IPO filing.