Health IT Business News – June 10, 2015

The World Economic Forum Academy, a global online learning initiative, has released its video series on “Strategic Shifts in Healthcare,” including commentaries by leaders in the public and private healthcare sector on Big Data, mobile health, personal genomics, consumer healthcare, and related topics. Among the leaders featured in the video series is Dan Burton, CEO of Health Catalyst, who was interviewed on the topic of “Big-data based analytics” and the technology’s impact on improving healthcare. Read more

ZirMed®, cloud-based enterprise financial and clinical performance solution company, has announced it will be hosting its 2015 ZirMed User Group Conference (ZUG 15), August 17-18 in Chicago, near its newly opened Healthcare Analytics Center of Excellence. This year’s conference theme, “Architect Your Future,” will focus on building a complete financial and clinical performance system to optimize revenue cycle and population health. ZUG 15 is a two-day event of educational sessions on topics ranging from reimbursement, to patient responsibility to denials management. The event offers vital insights and tools to help providers work more efficiently, improve their revenue stream and reduce reimbursement delays. The conference also offers valuable formal and informal networking opportunities – such as receptions and roundtables – for attendees to learn from their peers and specialists from around the nation. Read more

Kareo, provider of cloud-based software and services for independent medical practices, announced it has completed its product integration with DoctorBase, a practice marketing and patient engagement solution acquired by Kareo in March. Customers of Kareo and DoctorBase now have access to an integrated suite of front office tools, including online scheduling, appointment reminders, patient recall, and mobile secure messaging – helping providers find new patients and engage successfully with their current patients. Read More

CareCloud has a new CEO with a 25-year history as “a Silicon Valley tech guy” who says the company will be staying put.The home-grown, fast-growing Miami healthcare technology company has announced that Ken Comée would replace Albert Santalo as CEO, but that Santalo would stay with the company as chairman and chief strategy officer. The company also announced its existing investors injected another $15 million in funding into the venture-backed company. CareCloud was founded by Santalo, a tech serial entrepreneur, in 2009 and now has 240 employees and offices in Miami and Boston. The company provides cloud-based practice management, electronic health record and medical billing software and services for medical groups. Read more

eHealth Technologies, provider of image exchange solutions and Orion Health, a population health management and healthcare integration company, announced that they have partnered to enable North Dakota Health Information Network (NDHIN) to provide healthcare providers across the entire state of North Dakota with access to medical images as a part of the state-wide Health Information Exchange (HIE). The two companies have signed a strategic partnership agreement that incorporates eHealth Connect® Image Exchange into the Orion Health Open Platform, enabling its users to access, view, compare and transfer fully diagnostic quality medical images such as x-ray, Computed Tomography, Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Ultrasound studies from anywhere they can access the Orion Health platform. Read more

PatientsLikeMe and Partners HealthCare announced they are working together to give Partners HealthCare patients access to tools and information that can help improve decision making with their clinical teams and enhance health outcomes. PatientsLikeMe Executive Vice President of Marketing and Patient Advocacy Michael Evers said the agreement is the first to provide access to the website from within a provider’s patient portal. “We’re excited to work with such an esteemed health system to help patients and their care teams have a more complete understanding of patients’ whole health experience, and to support shared decision making about next steps.” Read more

PointClickCare, provider of cloud-based software platform for the senior care market, announced that its electronic health record (EHR) platform has been approved for electronic prescribing of controlled substances, as a result of obtaining DEA EPCS certification. The successful completion of the audit, performed by the Drummond Group, enables PointClickCare customers immediately to leverage its proprietary ePrescribing solution, built to integrate seamlessly with its EHR platform and designed specifically for the long-term care industry, in advance of the recently extended New York State ePrescribing mandate of March 2016.  Read more

Netsmart applauds provisions of the “Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Act,” (HR 2646) introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives today by Rep. Tim Murphy (R-PA). The bill extends to behavioral health and addiction treatment providers the ability to receive Medicaid and Medicare incentive funds for the Meaningful Use of certified electronic health records (EHRs) to more closely match those available to hospitals and other primary care providers. The Murphy-sponsored legislation has bipartisan support, and is aimed at addressing the mental health crisis nationwide where 60 million people experience mental illness in a given year. Co-sponsor of the bill is Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX). Read more

Optima Health, a Virginia-based service of Sentara Healthcare, has selected Emmi Solutions to address gaps in care and quality measures. Optima Health Medical Management and Quality Teams will leverage Emmi’s interactive web-based programs and automated, personalized call campaigns to improve care management for diabetes, asthma, low back pain and obstetrics among other chronic conditions. “By partnering with Emmi, Optima Health is helping members to understand the value of preventive screenings and exams and teaching them the skills needed to self-manage their chronic conditions,” said Thomas Lundquist, M.D., MMM, FAAP, FACPE, Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer of Optima Health. Read more