The article about Pediatric Associates in CA has a nugget with a potentially outsized impact: the implication that VFC vaccines…
News 5/2/16
Top News
Mednax subsidiary MedData acquires patient engagement software company Duet Health for an undisclosed sum. The national medical group company seems to be making acquisitions an annual trend. It acquired MedData in 2014 and receivables management firm Alegis Revenue Group in 2015.
Webinars
May 5 (Thursday) 2:00 ET. “Reducing CAUTI and Improving Early Sepsis Detection Through Clinical Process Measurement.” Sponsored by LogicStream. Presenters: Jen Biltoft, director of quality improvement, SCL Health; Marla Bare, EHR architect, SCL Health. This webinar will describe how SCL Health reduced catheter-associated urinary tract infections by 30 percent in just three months through clinical process measurement. The SCL Health presenters will also share their plans for applying a similar process to the early detection of sepsis.
Contact Lorre for webinar services. Past webinars are on our HIStalk webinars YouTube channel.
Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock
Athenahealth CEO Jonathan Bush talks with Bloomberg about Obamacare’s effect on the company’s bottom line, consolidation across healthcare markets, and its push into the enterprise market. Bush points out that Athenahealth now handles 10 percent of all ambulatory visits in the US via AthenaNet, and has averaged 25-percent organic growth annually over the last 10 years. You can read Mr. H’s highlights from the company’s earnings call here.
People
Rick Von Pusch (Dealertrack) joins Modernizing Medicine as chief revenue officer.
AHRQ reiterates its call for US Preventive Services Task Force nominations, particularly for new members in the areas of pediatrics and preventive medicine. USPSTF members are charged with making evidence-based recommendations on the effectiveness of preventive services and health promotion. Nominations are due May 15.
Announcements and Implementations
Medical practice and dialysis facility management company Boson Health (TX) selects mobile charge capture software from MDTech. The vendor, which is also headquartered in Houston, has joined the Allscripts Developer Program.
The University of Vermont’s Child Health Improvement Program selects care coordination and secure messaging software from Act.md to improve care planning between its pediatrics and family medicine teams.
Telemedicine
Behavioral health telemedicine company WeCounsel Solutions secures $3.5 million in Series A equity funding from Longmeadow Capital Partners, Point Judith Capital, and CVH Holdings. The five-year-old startup calls Chattanooga, TN (one of my favorite cities) home. It plans to use the financing to scale business development and enhance its software for providers and employers.
Government and Politics
Haven’t yet had a chance to wade through the 900-plus page proposed MACRA rule? CMS will hold MACRA and MIPS overview webinars this week and a provider call next week to help providers digest the proposed changes. Don’t forget – comments on the rule are due June 27.
Other
Chiropractic office Vibrant Body Wellness (CA) notifies 600 patients of a potential data breach due to an early March burglary that included the theft of an encrypted laptop and backup hard drive. No fraudulent activity has been detected thus far.
AMA adds value-based care transition resources to its STEPS Forward library of practice-improvement strategies. It has also created a set of MACRA-specific resources to help physicians better understand the new program, including a guide to physician-focused payment models, and MIPS highlights and preparation tips.
Google Project Zero researcher Tavis Ormandy discovers a security vulnerability in Fitbit’s Aria smart scale, which the company quickly patched. Media outlets, however, have been slow to let the pun-friendly story go. An example: “While a scale hack is a relatively lightweight issue, it opens up the long-standing fears over security flaws in the bloating ranks of Internet of Things hardware. With more companies hooking their appliances up to the internet, security researchers are finding tons of new holes in connected devices that allow for everything from the remote control of appliances to the ability to siphon off personal information. The issue has become so heavy that the US government has had to weigh in on the matter and offer its own recommendations.”
Contacts
Jennifer, Mr. H, Lorre, Dr. Jayne, Dr. Gregg
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