Digital Transformation

This evolution of healthcare involves using technology to improve diagnosis, treatments, monitor patients, enhance hospital operations and culture, and bolster consumer-focused care. This includes virtual reality tools, wearable devices, workflow software, health apps and other digital health tools.

The AI breakthrough in healthcare is still years away

Despite all the rage among startups, Silicon Valley and health IT professionals about how artificial intelligence (AI) could revolutionize healthcare, the technology just isn’t there yet, according to a report in VentureBeat.

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Swiss pharma company Roche buying Alphabet-backed oncology data startup for $1.9B

Swiss pharmaceutical giant Roche announced it will pay $1.9 billion to acquire Flatiron Health, a startup founded by two former Google employees focusing on oncology-based electronic health record (EHR) software.

Apple CEO wants presence in healthcare beyond apps, devices

While Apple has taken some steps into the healthcare space, CEO Tim Cook told investors that the company believes it can make a “significant” contribution to the industry beyond wellness apps.

Judge tosses lawsuit alleging double-billing by Epic: ‘Based on pure speculation’

A federal judge in Florida has tossed out a lawsuit against Epic Systems, saying the plaintiff “parroted” the language of the False Claims Act without offering support for her claim that the company’s billing system software double-billed Medicare and Medicaid for anesthesia services.

Rural patients reluctant to use telemedicine—even when infrastructure is in place

Telemedicine has often been touted as a way to provide easier access to care in rural parts of the U.S., but a study from the Bipartisan Policy Center and the Center for Outcomes Research and Education found it may be the patients themselves who limit the positive impact of those services.

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Epic, Optimum earn top honors in Best of KLAS awards

For the eighth consecutive year, Epic was named the top software suite in the 2018 edition of the Best of KLAS: Software & Services Report, while Optimum Healthcare IT won the award for top overall IT services firm for the second year in a row.

Why Apple may change EHRs for the better

Adding health records to Apple’s health app didn’t excite advocates for greater patient access to their medical data, but Harvard Medical School professor Ken Mandl, MD, MPH, argues it could be a major breakthrough in promoting sharing of health records and eventually allow patients to see all their health data collected from many different sources.

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Most meaningful use criteria considered useful by doctors

While physicians have often blamed the meaningful use (MU) program for worsening their administrative burden and taking time away from patients, family physicians did believe more than half of the MU criteria was useful.

Around the web

The tirzepatide shortage that first began in 2022 has been resolved. Drug companies distributing compounded versions of the popular drug now have two to three more months to distribute their remaining supply.

The 24 members of the House Task Force on AI—12 reps from each party—have posted a 253-page report detailing their bipartisan vision for encouraging innovation while minimizing risks. 

Merck sent Hansoh Pharma, a Chinese biopharmaceutical company, an upfront payment of $112 million to license a new investigational GLP-1 receptor agonist. There could be many more payments to come if certain milestones are met.