News 2/3/25

Top News

Affineon Health announces $5 million in new funding. The company offers physicians AI-powered productivity solutions for managing inbox messaging.

Sponsored Events and Resources

Instant Access Webinar: “Successfully Navigating Post-Acute Rev Cycle Challenges.” Sponsors: Inovalon and KanTime. Presenters: David Swenson, senior manager of sales engineering, Inovalon; Lucy Lopez, VP of product management, KanTime. Learn how to speed up your revenue cycle processes and avoid the common RCM and eligibility errors that cause delays and denials. Discover strategies to boost your bottom line: streamline eligibility verification, simplify complex processes, and optimize denial management for improved cash flow.

Contact Lorre to have your resource listed.

Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock

Employer-focused digital healthcare services and benefits integration company HealthBus acquires BetterHealthcare, which offers providers patient engagement software.

People

Vytalize Health names Scott Mancuso, MD (Rubicon Founders) chief physician executive officer.

Sanjeev Kumar, PhD (Gainwell Technologies) joins NextGen Healthcare as chief data and analytics officer.

Andrea Osborne (VillageMD) joins On Belay Health Solutions as its first COO.

CareAbout Health names Danielle Webb (Medical Specialists of the Palm Beaches) COO.

Announcements and Implementations

Digital healthcare company NowPatient adds Infermedica’s symptom checker to its services.

Lone Star Family Health Center (TX) implements Athenahealth across its five locations.

Research and Innovation

End users rank Veradigm’s EHR first in family practice and and primary care general practice, according to a recent Black Book Research survey recognizing ambulatory EHR innovation, performance, and user satisfaction.

Other

Community Health Center (CT) notifies 1 million patients of a data breach first detected in early January. The cyberattack, according to cybersecurity investigators, actually took place in October.

Allegheny College searches for a new provider of virtual counseling and therapy for its students after vendor 98point6 terminated its app agreement with the college at the beginning of this year. A bit of backstory: 98point6 originally launched as a virtual care provider, then began to dabble in the development and sale of virtual care technology. It sold its care delivery division to Transcarent in 2023 after having raised $270 million and pivoted solely to selling virtual care technology to health systems. The newly rebranded 98point6 Technologies has conducted several rounds of layoffs between then and now, with employees back in April noting the company had been whittled down to a skeleton crew. It’s unclear from the college’s news if Transcarent is actually behind pulling the plug.

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Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

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News 1/29/25

Top News

Systole Health raises $2 million in pre-seed funding from a group of investors that includes One Medical founder Tom Lee, MD. The startup offers heart healthcare for women via virtual group visits. Systole offers its services directly to consumers in Florida and Massachusetts.

Co-founder Simin Lee, MD, MBA is a practicing cardiologist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, while co-founder and CEO Lauren McConnell has most recently worked at telehealth companies Zaya Care and Hey Jane.

Sponsored Events and Resources

Instant Access Webinar: “Healthcare Data Security: Aligning Processes with Evolving Threats & Regulations.” Sponsor: Inovalon. Presenters: Anthony Houston, MBA, senior director of security, risk, and compliance, Inovalon; Paul Wilder, MBA, executive director, CommonWell Health Alliance; Luke McNamara, MPA, deputy chief analyst, Google Cloud; Michael Quinn, VP of strategic partner development, Inovalon. Hear leaders in healthcare data security discuss some of the top recent threat evolutions and how organizations can proactively respond by making ongoing improvements to security protocols.

Instant Access Webinar: “Successfully Navigating Post-Acute Rev Cycle Challenges.” Sponsors: Inovalon and KanTime. Presenters: David Swenson, senior manager of sales engineering, Inovalon; Lucy Lopez, VP of product management, KanTime. Learn how to speed up your revenue cycle processes and avoid the common RCM and eligibility errors that cause delays and denials. Discover strategies to boost your bottom line: streamline eligibility verification, simplify complex processes, and optimize denial management for improved cash flow.

Contact Lorre to have your resource listed.

People

BlueStar Telehealth names Dennis Mihale, MD (Chelsea Management Group) chief medical officer.

Rick Idemoto joins Amae Health (Stanford Children’s Health) as chief strategy officer.

Announcements and Implementations

The Oklahoma Arthritis Center selects Calvient’s automated healthcare administrative workflow improvement software.

Cardiovascular Associates of America implements virtual care management capabilities from Clinii.

Unio Specialty Care rolls out Iterative Health’s Skout real-time AI technology for polyp detection during colorectal cancer screenings across its 25 locations in California.

Other

Christian Healthcare Ministries will offer members virtual primary and urgent care using HealthTap software and services.

The Gainesville Municipal Complex in Sumter County, AL installs an OnMed health station. The installation is the result of a collaboration between Auburn University’s Rural Health Initiative and the University of West Alabama’s Connecting Minority Communities program.

Sponsor Updates

• AdvancedMD releases “CPT/HCPCS Codes Guide 2025,” a comprehensive resource for ambulatory care providers listing the latest medical billing code updates.

Blog Posts

• Proposed Changes to the HIPAA Security Rule (AdvancedMD)

Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

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News 1/27/25

Top News

Virtual women’s hormonal healthcare company Allara raises $26 million in a Series B funding round, bringing its total raised to over $36 million.

Founder Rachel Blank, a former director at online health and wellness company Ro, launched Allara as a membership-based telehealth company in 2020. Allara now has relationships with several payers in 10 states.

Sponsored Events and Resources

Instant Access Webinar: “Healthcare Data Security: Aligning Processes with Evolving Threats & Regulations.” Sponsor: Inovalon. Presenters: Anthony Houston, MBA, senior director of security, risk, and compliance, Inovalon; Paul Wilder, MBA, executive director, CommonWell Health Alliance; Luke McNamara, MPA, deputy chief analyst, Google Cloud; Michael Quinn, VP of strategic partner development, Inovalon. Hear leaders in healthcare data security discuss some of the top recent threat evolutions and how organizations can proactively respond by making ongoing improvements to security protocols.

Contact Lorre to have your resource listed.

Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock

Cority, an environmental, health, and safety and sustainability software vendor, acquires occupational health and practice management technology company Meddbase.

Therapy-focused health IT vendor Raintree Systems acquires Yoomi Health, a New York-based company specializing in digital tools and remote patient monitoring for physical therapy.

Iris Telehealth lays off staff less than a week after acquiring telepsychiatry company InnovaTel. LinkedIn posts suggest laid-off staffers were primarily in marketing and talent acquisition roles.

Aligned Marketplace raises $3 million in seed funding. The company has developed an online platform that helps self-insured employers connect to advanced primary care providers.

The Wall Street Journal reports that a potential take-private deal between Walgreens and private equity firm Sycamore Partners, first reported in early December, is no longer on the table. Shares of the retail pharmacy, which recently posted better-than-anticipated quarterly revenue and earnings, dropped on the news.

Announcements and Implementations

Springfield Family Physicians (OR) adopts Sunoh.ai’s AI medical scribe technology.

Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

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News 1/22/25

Top News

Eleos announces $60 million in Series C funding. The company, which offers AI solutions for behavioral healthcare providers, has offices in Boston and Tel Aviv.

It plans to use the investment to scale its newest clinical documentation improvement product, Eleos Compliance, and expand into underserved behavioral healthcare markets like substance abuse treatment centers and post-acute care.

Webinars

January 23 (Thursday) 11 ET. “Maximizing Revenue With Minimal Resources: Work Smarter, Not Harder in Claims Management.” Sponsor: Inovalon. Presenter: Travis Fawver, senior sales engineer, Inovalon. Navigating the challenge of hitting revenue goals is daunting, but billing doesn’t have to be. The presenter will explore how strategic adoption of new technology can transform claims management processes from reactive to proactive. Learn how to reduce denials while empowering staff to focus on high-value activities, and gain proven strategies to simplify workflows, automate routine tasks, and build a more efficient RCM operation to maximize reimbursement.

Stream on demand. “Healthcare Data Security: Aligning Processes with Evolving Threats & Regulations.” Sponsor: Inovalon. Presenters: Anthony Houston, MBA, senior director of security, risk, and compliance, Inovalon; Paul Wilder, MBA, executive director, CommonWell Health Alliance; Luke McNamara, MPA, deputy chief analyst, Google Cloud; Michael Quinn, VP of strategic partner development, Inovalon. Hear leaders in healthcare data security discuss some of the top recent threat evolutions and how organizations can proactively respond by making ongoing improvements to security protocols.

Previous webinars are on our YouTube channel. Contact Lorre to present or promote your own.

People

Andrea Giamalva, MD (UW Health) joins Experity as chief medical officer.

Envision Healthcare names Carrie Damon (KPMG) CIO.

Announcements and Implementations

Sphinx Medical Technologies uses business phone system technology from Sangoma Technologies to enhance its CallMyDoc automated patient relationship management software.

Flatiron Health adds DeepScribe’s AI documentation capabilities to its OncoEMR for community oncologists.

Duly Health and Care will incorporate My Viva’s digital health plan for the treatment of obesity into its patient care programs.

Research and Innovation

An MGMA poll of 622 members finds that 42% used a no-show fee in 2024, with the majority of those respondents noting that their no-show rates remained consistent between 2023 and 2024. A quarter of respondents with no-show fees reported a decrease in no-show rates, compared to practices without a fee.

Black Book Research’s latest survey of behavioral healthcare IT end-users finds that Netsmart ranks highest for integrated ambulatory EHR, practice management, and RCM software; while Valant ranks highest for customer satisfaction with behavioral health patient portals and telehealth software. Accompanying analysis points out that the majority of survey-takers prefer integrated solutions and plan on expanding their use of behavioral telehealth in 2025.

Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

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News 1/20/25

Top Posts

Knack RCM, which provides revenue cycle services to ambulatory providers and durable and home medical equipment suppliers, acquires HealthyBOS, a DME-focused revenue cycle company based in the US and the Philippines.

Webinars

January 23 (Thursday) 11 ET. “Maximizing Revenue With Minimal Resources: Work Smarter, Not Harder in Claims Management.” Sponsor: Inovalon. Presenter: Travis Fawver, senior sales engineer, Inovalon. Navigating the challenge of hitting revenue goals is daunting, but billing doesn’t have to be. The presenter will explore how strategic adoption of new technology can transform claims management processes from reactive to proactive. Learn how to reduce denials while empowering staff to focus on high-value activities, and gain proven strategies to simplify workflows, automate routine tasks, and build a more efficient RCM operation to maximize reimbursement.

Stream on demand. “Healthcare Data Security: Aligning Processes with Evolving Threats & Regulations.” Sponsor: Inovalon. Presenters: Anthony Houston, MBA, senior director of security, risk, and compliance, Inovalon; Paul Wilder, MBA, executive director, CommonWell Health Alliance; Luke McNamara, MPA, deputy chief analyst, Google Cloud; Michael Quinn, VP of strategic partner development, Inovalon. Hear leaders in healthcare data security discuss some of the top recent threat evolutions and how organizations can proactively respond by making ongoing improvements to security protocols.

Previous webinars are on our YouTube channel. Contact Lorre to present or promote your own.

Announcements and Implementations

NextGen Healthcare adds gastroenterology-specific workflows to its EHR software.

Ascend Medical, which offers in-office, virtual, and home-based care in Georgia and Texas, creates a patient app using digital front-door technology from Amenities Health.

The Sequoia Project designates EClinicalWorks a QHIN.

Capital Digestive Care implements Latica’s data insights platform for improved visibility into internal metrics, development of new care pathways, and the ability to access and contribute to gastrointestinal research via Latica’s GI data repository.

Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

More news: HIStalk.

Follow on X, Bluesky, and LinkedIn.

Get HIStalk Practice updates.
Contact us online.
Become a sponsor.