Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1424600
64 CIO / HEALTH IT 'Looking for ivermectin? Click here': How some telehealth firms push the controversial drug By Hannah Mitchell S everal telehealth companies are of- fering patients access to the contro- versial anti-parasite drug ivermectin, which the FDA has warned should not be used to treat COVID-19, The Guardian re- ported Sept. 13. Five things to know: 1. At the top of a Florida-based tele- health website, there is a bright orange banner that reads, "Looking for ivermec- tin? Click here." The website also assures patients that they have fast shipping and high-quality medications, according to the report. 2. Misinformation online has fueled ru- mors that ivermectin can treat COVID-19, but the CDC and FDA warned in August that COVID-19-positive patients should not use the drug. 3. Some anti-vaccine activists are direct- ing patients to telehealth providers that will offer up the drug, according to the report. At least three of these sites have ties to a right-wing political group, Amer- ica's Frontline Doctors, according to The Guardian. 4. Telehealth company MyFreeDoctor promotes ivermectin on its website. It was founded by America's Frontline Doctor's member Ben Marble, MD. SpeakWithAn- MD is also frequently promoted on social media accounts that endorse ivermec- tin. It works in partnership with Ameri- ca's Frontline Doctors and charges $90 for consultations. 5. Stella Immanuel, MD, a member of America's Frontline Doctors, posted on her medical practice's Facebook page that they are getting more than 700 patients a day signing up for visits to get ivermectin, The Guardian reported. n Cerner awarded $158M to continue VA EHR rollout By Hannah Mitchell C erner has been awarded $158 million by the Department of Vet- erans Affairs to continue deploying its EHR at VA medical facilities. Three things to know about the deal: 1. Cerner is obligated to receive $14 million in funding from a nine-month con- tract valued at $23.9 million, Fed Health IT reported Sept. 13. The funding was awarded under Cerner's existing EHR modernization ID code with the VA. 2. Cerner has also been awarded an 18-month contract valued at $134.1 million to continue its EHR rollout with the VA, Fed Health IT reported Sept. 9. Cerner is obligated to receive $113 million of the contract's value. 3. Krishnakumar Kuntipuram was named lead federal project manager at Cerner, Fed Health IT reported Sept. 7. Mr. Kuntipuram previously worked as an IT manager and has experience managing multimillion-dollar con- tracts with the federal government at the Veterans Health Administration and Defense Department. n Class action targets Georgia health system over ransomware attack that exposed 1.4 million patients' info By Jackie Drees S avannah, Ga.-based St. Joseph's/Candler Hospital Health System is being accused of failing to properly protect patients' personal and health information, which was exposed by a ransomware attack in June, Savannah Morning News reported Sept. 11. Six things to know: 1. e health system reported the breach to HHS Aug. 10 as affecting 1.4 million individuals. 2. St. Joseph's/Candler discovered "suspicious network activity" June 17 and shut down its IT systems. During the downtime, St. Joseph's/Candler switched to backup operation methods, including paper documentation, to limit the potential effects of the ransomware attack. 3. Daniel Elliot, a patient of St. Joseph's/Candler, filed the class-action lawsuit Aug. 28 on behalf of himself and the 1.4 million patients, employees and clients whose infor- mation was exposed by the incident, according to the report. 4. e lawsuit alleges St. Joseph's/Candler failed to "design, adopt, implement, control, direct, oversee, manage, monitor and audit appropriate data security process, controls, policies, procedures, protocols and soware and hardware systems" to keep patients' data secure, the publication reported. 5. e plaintiffs are seeking a jury trial, an unspecified amount of monetary relief for punitive damages, restitution and attorney's fees. 6. St. Joseph's/Candler denied the publication's request for comment, citing the hospi- tal's policy against commenting on pending litigation. n