Morning Headlines 7/16/21

VA Electronic Health Records: Modernization and the Path Ahead

The VA pauses its Cerner rollout after an internal report finds significant problems, with VA Secretary Denis McDonough telling the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee that he will make changes in project oversight, training, implementation sequencing, and budgeting.

Waystar to Acquire Patientco to Bring True Consumerism to Healthcare, Simplifying Payment Processes for Patients and Providers

Waystar says the combined companies will offer a consumer-friendly patient payment experience.

Introducing AWS for Health – Accelerating innovation from benchtop to bedside

AWS will offer a set of services and partner solutions for healthcare, genomics, and biopharma.

OSF OnCall: A New Hospital Without Walls

OSF HealthCare opens its OSF OnCall Digital Health building in Peoria, IL, from which it offers remote patient monitoring, nurse triage, and ICU patient monitoring.

Morning Headlines 7/15/21

TEFCA Will be Live in 2022

ONC hopes to have a new nationwide network open for participation in Q1 2022.

Woman’s Hospital seeks to partner with large system to boost technology access

The 165-bed Louisiana hospital is considering affiliating with another hospital to be able to implement Epic for less cost than buying it directly, which it estimates would require $200 million over seven years.

Request for Public Feedback on Draft Developer-Reported Measures

The companies contracted by ONC to develop draft EHR Reporting Program developer measures seek feedback by September 14, 2021.

Kno2 raises $15 million to accelerate its disruption of healthcare’s interoperability status quo

The network aggregrator will use the proceeds of its Series A funding round to expand its connectivity and workflows while increasing its partner base that integrate via its APIs.

Morning Headlines 7/14/21

HHS Updates Interoperability Standards to Support the Electronic Exchange of Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Social Determinants of Health

ONC releases the United States Core Data for Interoperability version 2.

Truveta Grows to Represent More Than 15% of all U.S. Patient Care with Three New Health Provider Members, closing Series A with $95 Million in Funding

Truveta raises $95 million in a Series A funding round and adds members Baylor Scott & White Health, MedStar Health, and Texas Health Resources.

Harris acquires ADL Data Systems, a long-term and post-acute care software solutions provider

Harris acquires ADL, which has been providing software to nursing homes and other long-term care providers since 1977.

Michelle O’Connor Named MEDITECH President and CEO

The company announces the promotion of Michelle O’Connor, which took place several weeks ago.

‘The party is winding down’: States and insurers resurrect barriers to telehealth, putting strain on patients

Telehealth visits are dropping sharply as relaxed provider laws and improved payment return to the more restrictive normal and state-by-state physician licensure again becomes a significant barrier.

Morning Headlines 7/13/21

Mytonomy Raises $25 Million Series B Funding to Transform Patient Engagement

Video-based patient engagement vendor Mytonomy raises $25 million in a Series B funding round.

HCTec Acquires Talon Healthy IT Services

Health IT services firm HCTec acquires managed IT solutions company Talon Healthy IT Services, which offers healthcare help desk services.

Charlesbank To Make A Strategic Investment In Clearlake And SkyKnight-Backed symplr

Charlesbank will make an unspecified “significant strategic investment” in Symplr.

Morning Headlines 7/12/21

Training Deficiencies with VA’s New Electronic Health Record System at the Mann-Grandstaff VA Medical Center in Spokane, Washington

A VA OIG review of the VA’s first go-live finds that inadequate training contributed to a decrease in user productivity, as poor training design and ineffective Cerner trainers left users unsure of how to use the system to perform their jobs.

Practicing Clinicians’ Recommendations to Reduce Burden from the Electronic Health Record Inbox: a Mixed-Methods Study

Surveyed physicians recommend improvements to EHR inbox functionality, some of them involving redesigning the system to work more like email.

Biden calls for efforts to lower drug prices as part of executive order to foster competition

A White House executive order directs the Justice Department and FTC to review hospital merger guidelines and for the federal government to move forward with mandatory hospital price disclosure.

Morning Headlines 7/9/21

FDA Clears Personal ECG Device for Measurement of QTc Interval, a Critical Marker for Patient Safety

FDA issues 510(k) clearance for the use of AliveCor’s $149 KardiaMobile 6L by healthcare professionals to calculate QTc interval from its EKGs, a value used to diagnose certain disorders of electrical conductivity that can cause irregular heartbeat.

Intelerad Acquires Raleigh-Durham Based Heart Imaging Technologies, A Clinical Workflow Automation Leader

Intelerad acquires medical image management technology vendor Heart Imaging Technologies.

More Underestimated Infrastructure Costs Could Raise VA EHR Price Tag $2.5B

A second VA OIG review of the infrastructure cost of implementing Cerner adds another several billion dollars to the project’s likely final cost, which could reach $21 billion.

Morning Headlines 7/8/21

Xifin Enters Radiology RCM Services Segment with Computerized Management Services Acquisition

Health IT and RCM vendor Xifin acquires Computerized Management Services, which offers RCM services for radiology groups and imaging centers.

Novo Holdings A/S Invests in US Healthcare IT Company Availity

Availity, which offers RCM, clearinghouse, and digital provider engagement services, secures a strategic minority investment from Novo Holdings.

Opioid addiction treatment apps found sharing sensitive data with third parties

Researchers find that 10 opioid addiction treatment apps available for Android collect and share a user’s information with third parties, prompting privacy and security concerns.

Morning Headlines 7/7/21

Healthcare Technology Firm Sophia Genetics Files for $100M IPO, Inks Cancer Data Deal With GE Healthcare

Sophia Genetics announces its IPO plans and that it will work with GE Healthcare to develop AI-powered analytics and workflow software for cancer care.

Puerto Rico Health Dept. launches online platform to manage patient data

Puerto Rico’s health department launches an HIE with an initial seven provider organizations, with another 15 scheduled to connect next week.

Exclusive: After rebrand, Tampa Bay Wave telehealth company raises $1.5M

ERemede raises $1.5 million in seed funding to further scale its patient engagement solutions and educational resources for pre- and post-op patients.

Morning Headlines 7/6/21

Vitalhub Corp. Announces Acquisition of UK Based Alamac Limited

Canadian health and human services software vendor VitalHub acquires Alamac, a consulting firm that caters to NHS organizations.

R1 Completes Acquisition of VisitPay

First announced in May, R1 RCM finalizes its $300 million acquisition of digital payment company VisitPay.

Saint Vincent nurses strike delays modernization of hospital’s record system to 2022

Saint Vincent Hospital (MA) CEO Carolyn Jackson cites an ongoing nurses strike as a contributing factor to the hospital’s decision to delay its Cerner implementation until early next year.

Morning Headlines 7/5/21

Texas Health Informatics Alliance launches, opens registration for its first conference

University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, The University of Texas at Arlington, and The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center form the Texas Health Informatics Alliance.

Thousands of patients hit by NHS data breaches

In England, an Information Commissioner’s Office analysis finds that more data breaches occurred in healthcare between 2019 and 2020 than in any other sector examined, prompting NHS Digital to delay its plans to share the health records of NHS patients with third-party organizations.

An email sent by One Medical exposed hundreds of customers’ email addresses

Primary care company One Medical inadvertently exposes 981 email addresses when an employee forgets to use the BCC option on a mass patient mailing.

Morning Headlines 7/2/21

Olive hits a $4 billion valuation with $400 million of capital led by Vista Equity Partners

Process automation vendor Olive raises $400 million in a funding round that values the company at $4 billion.

Tendo Systems Secures $50 Million to Accelerate Digital Engagement Between Patients, Clinicians, and Caregivers

Tendo Systems raises $50 million in a Series B funding round, valuing the healthcare digital engagement platform vendor at $550 million less than a year after its founding.

Osmind Closes $15 Million Series A Round to Help Clinicians and Researchers Bring Innovative Mental Health Treatments to More Patients

Neuropsychiatry-focused EHR and research company Osmind raises $15 million in a Series A round led by Future Ventures.

Morning Headlines 7/1/21

Netsmart Expands Predictive Analytics Solution Offerings with Acquisition of SimpleLTC

Netsmart acquires post-acute care data analytics vendor SimpleLTC and professional services and consulting firm Selman-Holman, which it will combine with its McBee consulting division.

MDI Health announces $6 million seed round, launches personalized AI medication platform

Medication management startup MDI Health secures $6 million in seed funding and announces GA of its AI-powered prescription decision support software.

VA’s McDonough reaffirms commitment to Cerner records management platform

VA Secretary Denis McDonough says the department’s review of Cerner implementations has concluded and that a timeline for remaining implementations will likely be available in mid-July.

Sword Health closes on $85 million Series C for virtual MSK care

Digital physical therapy company Sword Health raises $85 million in a Series C round of funding led by General Catalyst.

Morning Headlines 6/30/21

Harris acquires US-based healthcare SaaS provider Ingenious Med

Harris acquires physician practice and hospital software vendor Ingenious Med.

Costs from ransomware attack against Ireland health system reach $600M

Ireland’s health service estimates it will cost $600 million to recover from a ransomware attack six weeks ago, from which it still hasn’t recovered.

VisualMED has closed its agreement with Rennova Health

Rural hospital operator Rennova Health sells its software and genetic testing interpretation divisions to VisualMed Clinical Solutions.

Morning Headlines 6/29/21

Combination of Verisys Corporation and Aperture Health Creates Market Leader in Healthcare Credentialing and Provider Data Management

Stone Point Capital acquires and combines Verisys and Aperture Health, creating a company focused on credentialing, enrollment, and provider data management.

XSOLIS Poised for Scale with $75 Million Growth Investment from Brighton Park Capital

Utilization management software and physician services company Xsolis secures a $75 million investment from Brighton Park Capital.

Hospital IQ Raises $25 Million to Meet Market Demand for its Software which Optimizes Health System Operations

Operational management software vendor Hospital IQ raises $25 million in a Series C funding round.

Morning Headlines 6/28/21

UF Health restores records system a month after ‘cybersecurity event’

UF Health (FL) restores its EHR at its Leesburg and The Villages campuses after nearly a month of ransomware-caused downtime.

Kindbody Announces Largest Fertility Raise in History with $62M Series C Funding

Kindbody, a provider of fertility services using proprietary technology, raises $62 million in a Series C funding round that brings its total raised to $122 million.

Hims & Hers Deepens Dermatology Investment, Acquires Apostrophe

Online health and wellness company Hims & Hers Health acquires Apostrophe, which offers tele-dermatology and online prescriptions.

Morning Headlines 6/25/21

Health Catalyst Announces Agreement to Acquire Twistle

Population health and analytics firm Health Catalyst will acquire patient engagement and clinical workflow company Twistle.

Social network Doximity valued at over $7 billion as shares jump in debut

Shares in Doximity, which set an IPO share price of $26 versus the expected range of $20 to 23, close at $53.00 on their first day of trading on the New York Stock Exchange.

Tegria Acquires KenSci to Help Healthcare Organizations Derive New Insights From Data

Providence-owned Tegria acquires healthcare AI vendor KenSci.

CitiusTech Acquires SDLC Partners, Extends Payer Market Leadership

CitiusTech acquires Pittsburgh-based payment technology consulting firm SDLC Partners.

Morning Headlines 6/24/21

These Under 30 Alums Raised $31 Million To Build A Shopify For Doctors And Dentists

San Francisco-based NexHealth raises $31 million in a Series B funding round, bringing its total raised to $46 million.

Bicycle Health Raises $27 Million Series A To Expand Treatment and Access For Opioid Use Disorder Nationwide

Bicycle Health, a virtual care company focused on opioid use disorder, raises $27 million in a Series A funding round led by Questa Capital.

DrChrono Raises $12M from ORIX Corporation USA’s Growth Capital to Expand Operations

DrChrono will use a new $12 million investment from Orix to build out its telemedicine capabilities and enhance its existing EHR and practice management solutions.