Morning Headlines 10/8/21

Virgin Pulse to Acquire Welltok to Advance Health Activation Capabilities; Accelerate Expansion Across Health Systems, Health Plan and PBM Markets

Member engagement and wellness app vendor Virgin Pulse will acquire Welltok, which offers analytics-powered multi-channel healthcare communications.

Aspirion Health Resources Announces Combination with Advicare

Revenue cycle management vendor Aspirion Health Resources acquires Advicare, which resolves clinical denials.

Healthcare IT platform Healthcare Triangle slashes deal size by 55% ahead of $21 million IPO

California-based health IT vendor Healthcare Triangle revises its $40 million IPO plans down to $21 million.

Morning Headlines 10/7/21

Carbon Health Acquires Remote Patient Monitoring Company Alertive Healthcare to Expand Omnichannel Care Delivery

Nearly three months after raising $350 million in a Series D funding round, Carbon Health acquires remote patient monitoring company Alertive Healthcare.

Appriss, Inc. Closes Sale of Appriss Insights, LLC to Equifax in $1.825 Billion Deal

Appriss has sold its Insights business to Equifax for nearly $2 billion, leaving its Bamboo Health and Retail subsidiaries intact.

WindRose Health Investors Completes the Sale of Vital Decisions to Evolent Health

WindRose Health Investors sells tech-enabled advance care planning company Vital Decisions to Evolent Health, which will integrate the newly acquired business with its Clinical Solutions segment.

JMH receives ransom request; cyber attack investigation continues

Johnson Memorial Health (IN) reveals that the cyberattack that forced it to downtime procedures over the weekend was indeed a ransomware attack.

Morning Headlines 10/6/21

Central Logic Integrates Offering and Rebrands to About, Signaling Move to Maximize a Connected Network of Care

Central Logic renames itself to About as it integrates recent acquisitions Ensocare (inpatient referral to post-acute care) and Acuity Link (transportation communications and logistics management).

Leading Health Systems Launch Graphite Health, a New Member-Led Non-Profit Company to Accelerate Digital Transformation of Health Care

Intermountain Healthcare, Presbyterian Healthcare Services, and SSM Health form Graphite Health, a nonprofit that will help member organizations vet, access, and implement digital health solutions.

Augmedix Aims For $40 Million IPO

San Francisco-based Augmedix, which offers virtual medical documentation and live clinical support, files paperwork for a $40 million IPO.

Morning Headlines 10/5/21

Ettain group, a Leading Provider of Talent Solutions, is Now Experis, a ManpowerGroup Company

ManpowerGroup finalizes its acquisition of IT staffing and services provider Ettain Group, which will merge with the company’s Experis business.

DoctorsManagement, LLC Announces Strategic Integration With Hawaii-Based Healthcare Coding Consultants of Hawaii

DoctorsManagement, a consulting firm based in Knoxville, TN, merges with Healthcare Coding Consultants of Hawaii.

Carbon Health Unveils Carbon for Research, a Clinical Trial Research Program to Drive Healthcare Advancements

Primary and urgent care company Carbon Health launches a clinical trial research program that will focus on medical devices, diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines, including Merck’s new COVID-19 antiviral treatment pill.

Morning Headlines 10/4/21

On CEO’s first day, Kansas City’s Cerner rolls out vaccine mandate for all U.S. workers

Cerner announces that it will require all US employees to be vaccinated by December 8, and has extended its return-to-office date to January 10, 2022.

Ensemble Health Partners Files Registration Statement for Proposed Initial Public Offering

Cincinnati-based hospital RCM vendor Ensemble Health Partners files IPO paperwork with the SEC.

NextGen Healthcare President and CEO David Sides Issues Open Letter to Shareholders

New NextGen Healthcare President and CEO David Sides urges shareholders to disregard founder Sheldon Razin’s disruptive efforts to take over the board by voting for company-approved candidates ahead of its October 13 meeting.

Morning Headlines 10/1/21

Microsoft and Truveta announce strategic partnership to accelerate Truveta’s vision of saving lives with data

Microsoft makes an unspecified investment in Truveta, the data-selling company that is owned by 17 large health systems.

Evolent Health stock jumps after report of possible Walgreens takeover

Walgreens is considering the acquisition of care management technology vendor Evolent Health.

Vital Raises $15M Series A Funding Led by Transformation Capital to Advance Digital Transformation for Emergency Departments Across the Country

ED patient flow and status communications platform vendor Vital raises $15 million in a Series A funding round.

Morning Headlines 9/30/21

Kipu Acquires Avea, Combining the Best Clinical and Revenue Cycle Solutions for Behavioral Health

Addiction treatment-focused EHR vendor Kipu acquires Avea, which offers RCM software for treatment centers.

Biden-Harris Administration Provides Nearly $1 Billion in American Rescue Plan Funds to Modernize Health Centers and Support Underserved Communities

HRSA awards $1 billion to 1,292 health centers across the country for capital improvements and equipment purchases including telemedicine technology.

Telacare Health Solutions, LLC Acquires ViewMyID Health Assets

TelaCare Health Solutions acquires the assets of ViewMyID Health, a membership-based health data management company.

Morning Headlines 9/29/21

Healthcare Triangle slated to go public this week

Cloud, security, advisory, and implementation services company Healthcare Triangle will likely go public later this week in an anticipated $40 million IPO.

Stellar Health Raises Over $60 Million in Series B Funding Round Led by General Atlantic

Value-based care company Stellar Health raises $60 million in a Series B funding round, bringing its total raised to $75 million.

EqualizeRCM Strengthens Physician Billing Expertise With Acquisition of Practice Resource Network, Inc. – Expanding in Tennessee

EqualizeRCM in Texas acquires competitor Practice Resource Network for an undisclosed sum.

Morning Headlines 9/28/21

Walmart Selects Epic To Help Customers Simplify Their Health Care

Walmart will implement Epic across all of its health and wellness business lines, beginning early next year with four new Health centers in Florida.

Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Buddies Tried to Get the VA to Sell Access to Veterans’ Medical Records

Congressional investigators determine that President Trump’s trio of Mar-a-Lago business associates attempted to monetize VA patient data.

Former Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Launches a New Healthcare Consulting Firm

Former HHS Deputy Secretary Eric Hargan launches a firm offering healthcare stakeholders advisory services, policy and legislative consulting, and investor guidance.

Med-Metrix Secures Capital Investments From A&M Capital Partners, Hackensack Meridian Health and Existing Management in Support of Growth Initiatives Including a Merger with Miller & Milone

RCM and business intelligence company Med-Metrix secures an undisclosed amount of funding and merges with RCM-focused law firm Miller & Milone.

Morning Headlines 9/27/21

Morgan Stanley Expansion Capital and Ally Bridge Group Lead $135 Million Investment in Elligo

Clinical research network vendor Elligo Health Research raises $135 million in a Series E funding round.

New health record data standard adoption remains stagnant, ONC finds

ONC has found that third-party apps have been slow to adopt the HL7 FHIR standard as mandated by the Cures Act, with adoption remaining close to 20% between 2019 and 2020.

Epic Systems develops tech to verify COVID-19 vaccine status, test results

Through its work with the Vaccination Credential Initiative, Epic has developed technology that enables organizations to verify COVID-19 test results and vaccination status.

Morning Headlines 9/24/21

Veritas, Elliott Consider $20 Billion-Plus Athenahealth Sale

Bloomberg reports that Veritas Capital and Elliott Management are considering a sale or IPO of Athenahealth at a $20 billion valuation.

Astarte Medical raises $7.6M to advance technology platform that aids premature infants

NICU clinical decision support software vendor Astarte Medical raises $7.6 million in a Series A funding round.

Toward a smarter electronic health record

Researchers at MIT and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center develop MedKnowts, a problem-oriented EHR side panel that displays a patient information card and offers a note-taking editor with auto-complete for clinical terms.

Alphabet life-sciences unit Verily is pursuing a secret plan to untangle itself from Google as it readies for a potential IPO

Verily, the life sciences unit of Alphabet, is reportedly planning to separate from Google’s technology in preparation for an eventual IPO.

Morning Headlines 9/23/21

Clearsense Acquires Plug-and-Play AI Analytics Firm

Health data management and analytics vendor Clearsense acquires AI-powered predictive modeling company Compellon.

Unite Us acquires NowPow to address health and social needs nationwide

Care coordination and social services referral company Unite Us acquires NowPow, which offers similar community care and services referral technology.

Defense Logistics Agency Is Building an EHR to Track Occupational Health

The Defense Logistics Agency prepares an RFP to fulfill its need for enterprise occupational health services and corresponding EHR software.

A new cybersecurity center wants to protect medical devices against hacks

The University of Minnesota launches the Center for Medical Device Cybersecurity to help organizations involved with medical devices understand and manage their cybersecurity risks.

Morning Headlines 9/22/21

AGS Health acquires AI-based clinical documentation and medical coding technology provider, EZDI

RCM vendor AGS Health acquires EZDI, a clinical documentation improvement, computer-assisted coding, and auditing business based in Louisville, KY.

What Our Latest Fundraise Means to the eVisit Team

Enterprise virtual care vendor EVisit raises $45 million in a Series B funding round.

Pager Secures $70M in Funding to Drive Expansion of Virtual Care in United States, Latin America and Worldwide

Virtual care navigation and collaboration software vendor Pager raises $70 million in a Series C funding round.

Morning Headlines 9/21/21

NextGen Healthcare Appoints David Sides President and Chief Executive Officer

NextGen Healthcare names David Sides (Teladoc Health) president and CEO.

Oncology Analytics Announces Rebrand to OncoHealth

Oncology analytics and benefits management vendor Oncology Analytics changes its name to OncoHealth.

iOS 15 will give doctors a window into Apple Health app data

Apple’s latest operating system gives Iphone users the ability to share health data with their providers via EHRs.

Morning Headlines 9/20/21

Feds charge 138, including doctors, with $1.4 billion in health-care fraud involving telemedicine, Covid, opioids

The Department of Justice files criminal charges against 138 defendants for their alleged participation in healthcare fraud schemes that generated $1.4 billion, the bulk of which involved telemedicine.

Cyberattackers Target Missouri Hospital At Epicenter Of COVID Outbreak, Post Patient Data

Hackers post stolen patient data online after launching a ransomware attack on Missouri Delta Medical Center.

Hinge Health Acquires the Most Advanced Computer Vision Technology for Tracking Human Motion

Digital physical therapy company Hinge Health acquires Wrnch, which has developed 3-D motion-tracking technology to capture full body movement.

Morning Headlines 9/17/21

Cured Raises $10M Series A; Launches Next Generation Healthcare Digital Marketing & CRM Solutions

Health system digital marketing and CRM vendor Cured raises $10 million in a Series A funding round.

Digital health startup Commure just hit a $3.5 billion valuation as it raises fresh cash to unlock healthcare data

Healthcare data exchange technology vendor Commure has reportedly raised $500 million in funding through a Series D round, valuing the company at $3.5 billion.

Statement of the Commission On Breaches by Health Apps and Other Connected Devices

The Federal Trade Commission issues a notification that health app vendors must notify consumers if their health information is exposed.

Morning Headlines 9/16/21

Healthcare Industry Leader Zane Burke Joins Quantum Health as CEO

Former Cerner president and Livongo CEO Zane Burke joins consumer-focused care coordination and navigation company Quantum Health as CEO.

This Startup Raised $100 Million To Turbocharge Women’s Health

Women’s healthcare provider Tia raises $100 million in a Series B funding round led by Lone Pine Capital.

Definitive Healthcare stock soars out of the gate, opening 38% above IPO price

Healthcare market intelligence company Definitive Healthcare raises $420 million in its IPO.