Morning Headlines 5/3/21

Miami-Based CareCloud Health, Inc. Agrees to Pay $3.8 Million to Resolve Allegations that it Paid Illegal Kickbacks

CareCloud will pay $3.8 million to settle a lawsuit that was brought by an employee whistleblower who said the company paid kickbacks to its users to gain referrals to boost its EHR sales.

Scripps Health targeted by cyberattack

A cyberattack over the weekend forces Scripps Health (CA) to divert some critical care patients, postpone appointments, and take its patient portal offline.

VA Explores Potential Future Emerging Technology-Centered Acquisitions

The VA posts a request for information for partnerships in a variety of innovative technologies that could be applied to areas that include emerging technology to transform clinical care delivery and advanced clinical decision support.

Ascension Technologies to lay off 651 out-of-state workers

Ascension Technologies will lay off 651 out-of-state IT employees between August 8, 2021 and December 10, 2021 as it outsources their jobs.

Morning Headlines 4/30/21

Vocera to Acquire PatientSafe Solutions

Clinical communications and workflow platform vendor Vocera will acquire PatientSafe Solutions, which offers a unified inbox of messages, alerts, and notifications that is integrated with EHR data.

Perinatal Safety Company PeriGen, Inc., Acquired by Halma plc, a Global Group of Life Saving Technology Companies

UK-based Halma acquires perinatal safety technology vendor PeriGen.

CVS Health launches $100 million venture fund

CVS Health launches a $100 million venture fund that will invest in early-stage companies that are “focused on making healthcare more accessible, affordable, and simpler.”

Privia Health Shares Pop On First Day Of Trading

Shares of national medical group and practice support technology vendor Privia Health closed Thursday with an IPO-day share price jump of 51%, valuing the ownership stake of parent Brighton Health Group at $2.75 billion.

Morning Headlines 4/29/21

Caresyntax Raises $100 Million to Make Surgery Smarter and Safer

Surgical data analytics vendor Caresyntax announces a $100 million Series C funding round led by PFM Health Sciences.

Kaia Health grabs $75M on surging interest in its virtual therapies for chronic pain and COPD

Digital therapeutics company Kaia Health raises $75 million in a Series C funding round, bringing its total raised to $123 million.

Outcomes4Me Raises $12 Million in Oversubscribed Series A to Fuel Expansion of AI-Powered Cancer Patient Empowerment Platform

Breast cancer patient navigation app developer Outcomes4Me raises $12 million in a Series A funding round.

UCM Digital Health Raises $5.5 Million Series A Led by Armory Square Ventures

UCM Digital Health, which offers emergency telemedicine, care coordination, and remote care services, secures $5.5 million in a Series A funding round led by Armory Square Ventures.

Morning Headlines 4/28/21

Glytec Raises $21 Million To Set the Standard for Hospital Insulin Dosing and Glycemic Management

Insulin management software vendor Glytec raises $21 million through debt financing and investment.

Lyniate Acquires Datica Integration Business, Launches Lyniate Envoy to Make Effortless Interoperability a Reality

Healthcare interoperability company Lyniate acquires Datica’s health data integration assets and integrates them into its new Envoy offering.

Patient ID Now Coalition Releases Framework for a National Strategy on Patient Identity

Patient ID Now, whose coalition includes AHIMA, CHIME, and HIMSS, publishes a framework for a national strategy on patient identity.

Leidos Partnership Delivers MHS GENESIS Health Record to 12 New States

Leidos Partnership for Defense Health brings 10,000 clinicians live on MHS Genesis / Cerner in a wave deployment that covered locations in 12 states.

Morning Headlines 4/27/21

Healthcare platform Privia Health Group sets terms for $351 million IPO

Medical group management and health IT development company Privia Health hopes to raise $351 million in its forthcoming IPO.

Queensland hospitals and aged care facilities crippled by cyber attack

In Australia, facilities within the UnitingCare Queensland system have reverted to paper-based procedures after a weekend ransomware attack forced its IT systems offline.

Vector Raises $12.5 Million in Series A Funding to Accelerate the Adoption of Digital Health and Remote Care in Cardiology

Remote cardiac monitoring company Vector raises $12.5 million in a Series A funding round led by Updata Partners.

Morning Headlines 4/26/21

J2 Global Announces Plan to Separate Into Two Leading Publicly Traded Companies

J2 Global will separate into two publicly traded companies, one of them being Consensus, which will offer the healthcare-focused EFax cloud fax and messaging business.

OSF HealthCare patient information computers back online after two-day outage

OSF HealthCare (IL) brings its computers back online, including its Epic system, after an unexplained two-day outage that started early Friday morning.

Accolade to Acquire PlushCare

Health and benefits solutions vendor Accolade will acquire PlushCare, which offers virtual primary care and mental health treatment.

Symplr Launches Symplr Directory as Part of End-to-End Provider Data Management Portfolio

Symplr renames the provider data management platform of Phynd, which it recently acquired, to Symplr Directory.

Yale New Haven Health says at least 200 patients were impacted by data breach

A cybersecurity breach at software vendor Elekta has impacted operations at 40 health systems.

Morning Headlines 4/23/21

Current Health Closes Oversubscribed $43M Series B Financing Round to Scale Remote Care Management Platform

Home monitoring platform vendor Current Health raises $43 million in Series B financing.

Medchart Raises $17M to Meet Demand for Frictionless Digital Business Practices Across North America

Medchart, which provides patient-authorized information to attorneys, to patients themselves, and eventually to researchers, raises $17 million.

Seqster Raises $12M Series A to Accelerate the Adoption of its Healthcare Data Interoperability Technology

Seqster, which aggregates data from EHRs, wearables, and consumer genomics companies for payers, providers, and researchers, raises a $12 million Series A funding round.

Morning Headlines 4/22/21

FCC Announces Round 2 COVID-19 Telehealth Program Application Portal Will Open April 29

The FCC will begin accepting applications for the second half of its $250 million COVID-19 Telehealth Program April 29.

MIB to Provide Life Insurance Industry with Access to More than 54 Million Patient Records from Cerner

Cerner inks its second deal with a life insurance company, giving MIB access to its trove of patient records.

Health2047 Spins Out SiteBridge Research to Improve Clinical Trial Access for Small and Community Physician Practices

AMA commercialization subsidiary Health2047 launches SiteBridge Research, a portfolio company geared towards making clinical trials more accessible through its Trial-in-a-Box software and services.

Morning Headlines 4/21/21

Why a U.S. hospital and oil company turned to facial recognition

Cedars-Sinai uses facial recognition software from Israel-based AnyVision to detect ED patients who visit repeatedly under different names or to call out those who have a history of violence or drug fraud.

VieCure Announces $25 Million Series A Investment Led by Northpond Ventures to Improve Oncology Care, Scale A.I. and Patient-focused Technologies

VieCure, which specializes in health IT for oncologists, raises $25 million in a Series A funding round.

Cerner, Athenahealth Lose Bid to Nix Hospital Management Patent

The Patent Trial and Appeal Board upholds most of CliniComp’s data-sharing patent, as challenged by Cerner and Athenahealth.

Morning Headlines 4/20/21

Healthcare Startup pulseData Raises $16.5M To Help Lower Costs To Treat Kidney Disease

Kidney disease-focused health data aggregator and predictive analytics startup PulseData raises $16.5 million in a Series A funding round.

Diabetes Reversal Leader Virta Health Raises $133M Series E to Take Type 2 Diabetes Reversal Mainstream

Virta Health, which has developed a virtual care program aimed at helping patients reverse Type 2 diabetes, secures $133 million in Series E financing, bringing its total amount raised to $263 million.

Moving Analytics Raises $6M to Increase Virtual Cardiac Rehab Solutions and Expand Team Amidst Telehealth Industry Growth

Moving Analytics will use a $6 million investment to expand its virtual cardiac rehab program for new and existing patients.

Morning Headlines 4/19/21

Medical Devices; Medical Device Classification Regulations to Conform to Medical Software Provisions in the 21st Century Cures Act

Mandated by the Cures Act, FDA excludes eight software functions that previously invoked its regulation as a medical device.

Medical Communications Company, Allm, Raises $50m in Series A Funding

Health data exchange and care collaboration company Allm raises $50 million in a Series A funding round.

Modernizing Medicine Acquires TRAKnet to Accelerate Innovation in Podiatry

Specialty practice-focused health IT vendor Modernizing Medicine acquires Nemo Health’s TrakNet EHR and billing software for podiatrists.

DignifiHealth raises a $7M seed round, scaling West Virginia healthcare startup nationally for improved community health outcomes

Population health management startup DignifiHealth raises $7 million in a seed financing round.

Morning Headlines 4/16/21

K Health, Blackstone Growth, Anthem to Partner on Technology Joint Venture to Advance More Affordable, High-Quality Healthcare

Digital health vendor K Health, insurer Anthem, and investment firm Blackstone form Hydrogen Health, which will use K Health’s AI technology to develop solutions for consumers, employers, and insurers.

Coding to Hide Health Prices from Web Searches Is Barred by Regulators

HHS tells hospitals to stop hiding their federally required pricing transparency information by adding website code to make it invisible to web searches.

CHIME And HLTH Announce Launch Of ViVE, The New Digital Health Industry Event

CHIME will integrate its Spring Forum into Vive, an annual health IT event it will co-host with the HLTH conference beginning next March in Miami Beach.

Morning Headlines 4/15/21

NantHealth Secures $137 Million Financing Package

Analytics and technology vendor NantHealth, part of Patrick Soon-Shiong’s NantWorks group of companies, raises $137 million from existing investors.

VA vows to pause EHR rollout at future sites until strategic review is complete

VA officials promise members of the House Veterans Affairs Technology Modernization Subcommittee that the agency will not move forward with further EHR go-lives until a strategic review of its Cerner-based project is completed.

This Startup Raised $25 Million To Liberate Your Healthcare Data In The Cloud

Health data interoperability startup 1UpHealth raises $25 million in a Series B funding round.

Mayo Clinic Launches New Technology Platform Ventures to Revolutionize Diagnostic Medicine

Mayo Clinic launches two new AI-focused companies to support its newly developed Remote Diagnostics and Management Platform.

Morning Headlines 4/14/21

Olive Enters the Operating Room with Empiric Health Acquisition

AI solutions vendor Olive acquires Empiric Health, which offers AI-powered surgical analytics software.

Cohere Health Lands Additional $36 Million in Series B Funding

Care coordination and preauthorization software vendor Cohere Health raises $36 million in a Series B round, bringing its total funding to $46 million.

Elliot Lake hospital joining patient record-keeping alliance

Twenty-three hospitals in Northeastern Ontario will implement Meditech Expanse as part of a new record-keeping alliance.

Morning Headlines 4/13/21

Microsoft Acquires Nuance for $16 Billion

Microsoft will acquire Nuance for $16 billion in a deal valued at closer to $20 billion, including debt.

Health2047 Spins Out Emergence Healthcare Group to Empower Independent Physician Practices

AMA commercialization subsidiary Health2047 spins out Emergence Healthcare Group, a turnkey practice management and health IT company focused on independent practices.

CloudMD to Acquire Oncidium, One of the Largest Healthcare Providers to the Employer Market in Canada

In Canada, ambulatory health IT company CloudMD acquires workplace healthcare provider Oncidium for $80 million.

Morning Headlines 4/12/21

Orange County Hospital Seeks Divorce From Large Catholic Health System

Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian is attempting to leave the 51-hospital Providence system, saying the chain’s use of Epic to standardize treatments for cost effectiveness often conflicts with the judgment of its clinicians.

Microsoft in advanced talks to buy Nuance for about $16 billion, announcement could come Monday

Insiders say Microsoft will acquire Nuance for $16 billion, making it the company’s second-largest acquisition after its $27 billion purchase of LinkedIn five years ago.

Health and Human Services Awards TeleTracking with Six-Month Task Order for Continued COVID-19 Capacity Reporting

HHS extends TeleTracking’s COVID-19 hospital operating data collection and reporting for a third six-month term, presumably for another $10 million.

Google is exploring a health record tool for patients

Google is conducting a user feedback study as it prepares to develop a consumer-facing health record tool similar in functionality to Apple’s Health Record app.

Morning Headlines 4/9/21

Emids Acquires Quovantis Technologies in Latest Expansion of Human-Centered, Design-Led Product Development and Software Engineering Capabilities

Emids acquires software design and development vendor Quovantis Technologies.

Vesta Healthcare Announces $65M in Growth Capital to Transform Care for High Needs Members and their Caregivers

Vesta Healthcare, which offers clinical services and a digital health platform to support high-needs members and their home caregivers, raises $65 million in growth capital.

MediSolution acquires Quebec-based Intégration Santé

Harris subsidiary MediSolution acquires Quebec-based, MIRTH-focused healthcare integration services vendor Intégration Santé.

Canvas Medical Raises $17 Million to Accelerate Value-Based Care Platform Growth

San Francisco-based EHR vendor Canvas Medical raises $17 million and announces a partnership with Anthem and its providers.