News 8/17/20

Top News

Consumer-facing telemedicine and prescription delivery startup Thirty Madison raises $47 million, bringing its total funding to $70 million. The three year-old company offers treatments for migraines, hair loss, and acid reflux. Newly launched virtual urgent care services are offered on a pay-as-you-can basis.

Webinars

August 19 (Wednesday) 1:00 ET. “A New Approach to Normalizing Data.” Sponsor: Intelligent Medical Objects. Presenters: Rajiv Haravu, senior product manager, IMO; Denise Stoermer, product manager, IMO. Healthcare organizations manage an ever-increasing abundance of information from multiple systems, but problems with quality, accuracy, and completeness can make analysis unreliable for quality improvement and population health initiatives. The presenters will describe how IMO Precision Normalize improves clinical, quality, and financial decision-making by standardizing inconsistent diagnosis, procedure, medication, and lab data from diverse systems into common, clinically validated terminology.

September 3 (Thursday) 2:00 ET. “How Does A Global Pandemic Reshape Health IT? A Panel Discussion.” Sponsor: Intelligent Medical Objects. Presenters: Rob Wallace, chief product officer, IMO; Andrew S. Kanter, MD, MPH, chief medical officer, IMO; Lori Kevin, VP of enterprise IT and security, IMO; Sahas Subramanian, MCA, enterprise architect, IMO. As COVID-19 continues to spread, regulation changes, code system updates, and an increased reliance on technology are making it hard to stay on top of the many ways the pandemic is altering health IT. What’s more, we’re confronting challenges that rely heavily on technological solutions – like accurate reporting tools or telehealth adaptations – and we need those solutions now. The panel of subject matter experts across the enterprise will share insights on how the global pandemic is reshaping the health IT world.

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

Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock

Health IT vendor MTBC reports a 17% increase in Q2 revenue, taking in nearly $20 million. The company saw a dip in quarterly revenue during the COVID-19 lockdown earlier this year, but has since seen patient encounters at client sites return to within 6% of weekly averages seen during January and February.

Research and Innovation

Urgent care clinics across the country saw a peak in patient visits during the month of July, according to new data from Experity and the Urgent Care Association. On average, 253 patients visited urgent cares during the week of July 11, compared with 88 per week in April. The increase seems in keeping with Dr. Jayne’s latest in-the-trenches observations, which, in a nutshell, highlight the stress put on urgent cares as stressed patients try to delay care and avoid hospitals.

Other

Patient safety, evidence-based medicine and technology decision-support nonprofit ECRI partners with the Institute for Safe Medication Practices to form a joint patient safety organization. According to ECRI President and CEO Marcus Schabacker, MD, the new PSO will bring “up-to-date information and real-time guidance to assure healthcare leaders that they’re making the best decisions to keep patients, long-term care residents, and staff safe.”

Ava Clara Bridal Couture in Virginia Beach hosts a bridal gown giveaway for healthcare workers as a way to say thank you for all they’ve done over the last several months. The boutique, which has held similar giveaways for teachers, had such overwhelming interest when they first announced the event in April that they increased the number of gowns from 50 to 75. The brides-to-be had about 30 minutes to find their dream dresses.

Sponsor Updates

• Nordic volunteers help The River Food Pantry distribute over 100 pounds of curbside emergency food and supplies per household.
• PerfectServe announces bidirectional integration between its clinical communication platform and Nuance’s PowerConnect Actionable Findings solution within the radiologist’s Nuance PowerScribe reporting workflow.

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News 8/12/20

Top News

ONC announces a $2.5 million funding opportunity to help state and local public health agencies strengthen their connections to HIEs. Applications are due September 1.

Webinars

August 19 (Wednesday) 1:00 ET. “A New Approach to Normalizing Data.” Sponsor: Intelligent Medical Objects. Presenters: Rajiv Haravu, senior product manager, IMO; Denise Stoermer, product manager, IMO. Healthcare organizations manage an ever-increasing abundance of information from multiple systems, but problems with quality, accuracy, and completeness can make analysis unreliable for quality improvement and population health initiatives. The presenters will describe how IMO Precision Normalize improves clinical, quality, and financial decision-making by standardizing inconsistent diagnosis, procedure, medication, and lab data from diverse systems into common, clinically validated terminology.

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

Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock

Kaiser Health News looks at the continued pressure primary care physicians find themselves in as a result of COVID-19-induced revenue decreases:

• Corporate owners are giving some practices an ultimatum – show viability or face sale or closure, forcing those practices to cut costs at a time when budgets are already beyond razor-thin.
• Payments for virtual visits are still inadequate, and not all patients have access to technology.
• Most physicians and analysts say transitioning away from fee-for-service to fixed monthly payments for value-based care  will be key to primary care’s survival.

People

Cloud-based imaging company Emergent Connect names John LoGioco (Zebra Medical Vision) head of growth.

AristaMD promotes Pamela Gould, RN to chief growth officer.

Announcements and Implementations

Greenway will launch an integrated telehealth solution powered by Twilio, its patient messaging vendor, in the fall.

Middleton Family Medicine (MA), a part of the Congenial Healthcare network, implements Epion Health’s telemedicine software.

Research and Innovation

Telemedicine number-crunching shows no signs of slowing down: The Chartis Group’s latest data finds that urban residents used telemedicine for primary care visits 28% more than those in rural areas. National utilization of telemedicine has fallen from its peak level of 50% in mid-April; between 18 and 20% of visits are now conducted virtually.

Meanwhile, a study of 1,000 behavioral healthcare providers shows that virtual visits are here to stay. Eighty percent deliver care virtually at least 60% of the time, while 70% say they’ll deliver care virtually 40% of the time moving forward. Twenty percent say they’ll need new EHRs to accommodate anticipated telemedicine capacity.

Other

Piedmont Orthopedics/OrthoAtlanta experiences a ransomware attack, according to DataBreaches.net, which reports that the attackers have already dumped 3.5 GB of data online – including medical records.

In other cybersecurity news, a consultant discovers a database containing the details of 3.1 million patients left exposed online by practice management and marketing company Adit. The consultant, who notified the company, says the data was destroyed by an unknown actor a week later.

Physicians in Alaska share their experiences with telemedicine, with access to technology being the biggest barrier to utilization by the state’s rural patients. Virtual mental health appointments have taken off, according to Cohen Veterans Network President and CEO Anthony Hassan. The clinic network, including one in Anchorage, has seen 98% of its visits go virtual – a big jump from its traditional 18%. “I know (virtual care) isn’t a panacea; people do need to come in,” he said. “But our outcomes in-clinic and telehealth are equal.”

Sponsor Updates

• Reduce Operating Costs and Total Cost of Care with the Right EHR (AdvancedMD)
• National Health Center Week: Continuing the Legacy (EClinicalWorks)
• Addressing key questions and misperceptions of the 2021 E/M changes (Nordic)

Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

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News 8/10/20

Top News

Oak Street Health’s IPO raises $328 million, well above its hoped-for $250 million. Shares initially priced at $21 rose to over $43 before settling down to $40 by end-of-day trading. The Chicago-based primary care company for Medicare patients now carries a $5 billion valuation.

Webinars

August 19 (Wednesday) 1:00 ET. “A New Approach to Normalizing Data.” Sponsor: Intelligent Medical Objects. Presenters: Rajiv Haravu, senior product manager, IMO; Denise Stoermer, product manager, IMO. Healthcare organizations manage an ever-increasing abundance of information from multiple systems, but problems with quality, accuracy, and completeness can make analysis unreliable for quality improvement and population health initiatives. The presenters will describe how IMO Precision Normalize improves clinical, quality, and financial decision-making by standardizing inconsistent diagnosis, procedure, medication, and lab data from diverse systems into common, clinically validated terminology.

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

Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock

Ginger raises $50 million, which it will use to scale its virtual therapy and psychiatry services to payers. The company, which has traditionally marketed its technology to employers, has raised $120.7 million since launching in 2011.

Canadian telemedicine company CloudMD sets up shop in the US through the purchase of a clinic that will rely on its software and services to care for its chronically ill patients. Healthcare Networks of America co-founder Fred Roh will oversee the new facility and help to develop a stateside-network of satellite telemedicine clinics.

Announcements and Implementations

Tiffany Griffiths, Psy.D. & Associates selects the SmartCare EHR from Streamline Healthcare Solutions.

Golden Valley Health Centers in California will implement the CareVention HealthCare Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly technology and services from Tabula Rasa HealthCare for its new PACE program in Modesto.

Public and behavioral health-focused EHR vendor Patagonia Health adds telemedicine capabilities to its EHR for public and behavioral healthcare providers.

The Oregon Clinic rolls out InteliChart’s Healthy Outcomes patient engagement software across its 60 locations in and around Portland.

Government and Politics

Governors from Washington, Colorado, Nevada, and Oregon announce they will work together to identify and share best practices for telemedicine to better support state residents. While their telemedicine policies will reflect individual state needs, they will be based on shared principles related to access, privacy, standards of care, equity, payment/reimbursement, and patient choice.

Research and Innovation

A survey of 2,400 people finds that nearly half prefer providers who offer telemedicine, though only 28% have taken advantage of virtual visits. Top reasons for using telemedicine include renewing prescriptions, getting regular check-ups, and discussing new symptoms and lab results.

Other

Practice management software vendor MedEvolve notifies patients of a former customer that a data breach at her practice may have compromised patient information, though none has been misused thus far. The May 2018 data breach involved an FTP server left open on the Internet.

CNBC’s Chrissy Farr shares the results of an informal poll.

Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

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News 8/5/20

Top News

EHR Integration Services merges with health IT development company Byte Sized Solutions to form Keena Healthcare Technology. The new company will focus on clinical workflow and interface development, as well as EHR conversions and data archiving.

Founding partner Craig Luce began his career with IDX Systems, moving to Allscripts when it acquired IDX in 2000. He founded EHR Integration Services in 2006.

Webinars

August 19 (Wednesday) 1:00 ET. “A New Approach to Normalizing Data.” Sponsor: Intelligent Medical Objects. Presenters: Rajiv Haravu, senior product manager, IMO; Denise Stoermer, product manager, IMO. Healthcare organizations manage an ever-increasing abundance of information from multiple systems, but problems with quality, accuracy, and completeness can make analysis unreliable for quality improvement and population health initiatives. The presenters will describe how IMO Precision Normalize improves clinical, quality, and financial decision-making by standardizing inconsistent diagnosis, procedure, medication, and lab data from diverse systems into common, clinically validated terminology.

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

Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock

Radiation Business Solutions acquires MBR Medical Billing for an undisclosed sum.

MedCoShare launches in Philadelphia to offer physicians co-working office space. Membership plans include reserved office space, medical equipment, and cleaning and disposal services. The company’s initial space includes eight exam rooms and two offices that could accommodate 10 full-time physicians.

Primary care development company Tandigm Health and Gateway Medical Associates (PA) launch Tandigm Physician Services, which will offer independent practices technologies and services for value-based care.

Announcements and Implementations

ReferWell adds virtual visit scheduling capabilities from Bluestream Health to its care coordination and transition software.

Other

Physician education company Knowledge to Practice announces GA of CurrentMD COVID, a series of subscription-based microlearning modules designed to help physicians diagnose, treat, and manage COVID-19 patients.

Sponsor Updates

Blog Posts

• Preparing your stakeholders for new information blocking rules (Nordic)
• Where to Find COVID-19 Reimbursement Rates & Billing Change Information (AdvancedMD)
• Hire the Best! Tips for Finding Office Talent (EClinicalWorks)

Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

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News 8/3/20

Top News

Reuters reports that Web-based prescription savings company GoodRx is preparing to file for an IPO.

It added telemedicine services last year through its acquisition of HeyDoctor, and has had a busy 2020 with the addition of a labs marketplace with COVID-19 testing options, the hiring of new executives, and national expansion of its virtual visit capabilities.

Webinars

August 19 (Wednesday) 1:00 ET. “A New Approach to Normalizing Data.” Sponsor: Intelligent Medical Objects. Presenters: Rajiv Haravu, senior product manager, IMO; Denise Stoermer, product manager, IMO. Healthcare organizations manage an ever-increasing abundance of information from multiple systems, but problems with quality, accuracy, and completeness can make analysis unreliable for quality improvement and population health initiatives. The presenters will describe how IMO Precision Normalize improves clinical, quality, and financial decision-making by standardizing inconsistent diagnosis, procedure, medication, and lab data from diverse systems into common, clinically validated terminology.

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

Acquisitions, Funding, Business, and Stock

Colorado-based virtual scribe company Skywriter MD announces plans to expand operations into Lubbock, Texas, including hiring 100 additional employees.

Medicare-focused primary care company Oak Street Health amends its regulatory statement to reflect its goal of raising $250 million in an IPO expected later this week. It has raised nearly $550 million and now operates 54 medical centers in eight states.

NextGen reports a slight drop in Q1 revenue to $130.9 million, a result CEO Rusty Frantz attributes to a decrease in patient volume across the vendor’s ambulatory sites.

Announcements and Implementations

The Center for Reproductive Medicine implements Meditab’s FertilityEHR at its three clinics in Alabama.

Greenway Health will leverage Amazon Web Services to build a cloud-based data services platform for regulatory analytics.

Virginia Cardiovascular Specialists adds virtual visit capabilities to its NextGen Enterprise system.

Chesapeake Medical Imaging (MD) goes live on ERad’s RIS, PACS, speech recognition, and patient and physician portals through a virtual implementation at six of its 13 facilities.

ARC Fertility (CA) selects patient payment technology from Rectangle Health.

Idaho Health Data Exchange implements social services search and referral capabilities from Aunt Bertha.

Other

The California Medical Association and Orange County Medical Association host several dozen drive-by PPE distribution events for qualifying healthcare workers that work in smaller practices. Each pre-registered recipient receives a box filled with 350 N95 masks, 2,000 surgical masks, 2,000 pairs of gloves, 100 gowns, and 50 face shields.

Sponsor Updates

Blog Posts

• How Virtual Waiting Rooms Protect Patients, Staff, and Productivity (PerfectServe)
• Are quality metrics becoming MacGuffins of healthcare? (Nordic)

Contacts

Jenn, Mr. H, Lorre

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