Becker's Hospital Review

42 CIO / HEALTH IT Shulkin Delays Awarding EHR Contract to Cerner Amid Interoperability Concerns By Jessica Kim Cohen U .S. Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin, MD, in January told the Politico Morning eHealth newsletter he decided to delay awarding the agency's EHR contract to Cerner aer a De- cember meeting with company executives. Dr. Shulkin had told Congress on Sept. 27 the VA was on track with the original timeline to close the deal with Cerner and released a 30-day notice of award of a contract. In late October, various agency officials noted the con- tract had not been finalized and cited early November as the VA's new target. November likewise ended without a completed contract, in part because Congress had reportedly yet to approve the project's funding. Under the VA's estimated $10 billion contract, the agency would ask Cern- er to deploy an EHR that's interoperable with both the U.S. Department of Defense and private sector providers' EHR systems. However, during a meeting in early December, Dr. Shulkin said he dis- agreed with company executives about the definition of "interoperability." Dr. Shulkin argued Cerner's definition was too narrow, only covering Con- solidated Clinical Document Architecture. "To say it wasn't a good meeting would be an understatement," Dr. Shulkin told Politico. Dr. Shulkin said the VA staff have used the additional time to consult with IT experts about interoperability. It is unclear when the VA will finalize its contract with Cerner. n Allscripts to Acquire EHR Provider Practice Fusion for $100M By Jessica Kim Cohen A llscripts entered into a definitive agreement to acquire San Francisco-based EHR provider Prac- tice Fusion for $100 million in cash, the company confirmed Jan. 8. Allscripts officials plan to fund the $100 million pur- chase through existing secured credit facilities and cash balances, subject to adjustment for working capital and net debt. Officials have targeted the first quarter of 2018 to close the transaction. The acquisition of Practice Fusion's cloud-based EHR expands Allscripts' client reach with roughly 30,000 am- bulatory physician practices, according to Allscripts of- ficials. Under the agreement, Practice Fusion clients will also have access to Allscripts' solutions and services. "By adding Practice Fusion offerings to our portfo- lio, Allscripts will be further positioned for continued growth and long-term leadership in healthcare," said Rick Poulton, president of Allscripts. "Practice Fusion's affordable EHR technology supports traditionally hard- to-reach independent physician practices, and its cloud- based infrastructure aligns with Allscripts forward vision for solution delivery." n How Amazon Alexa Is Helping Novant Health Patients By Julie Spitzer W inston-Salem, N.C.-based Novant Health pa- tients can now use Amazon Alexa's electronic personal assistant to find the nearest physi- cian clinic, urgent care or medical center, Winston-Sa- lem Journal reports. According to Novant's website, patients who download the app can ask Alexa to search by facility name, clin- ic type, zip code or mileage. Alexa can also tell users about the services offered at each Novant clinic location, including whether or not walk-ins are accepted there, if they can get a flu-shot at that location and more. "At Novant Health, we are always looking for ways to make health care simpler and more convenient for our patients," Dave Garrett, senior vice president and CIO for Novant Health, told Winston-Salem Journal. "Tech- nology is changing the way we view the world and in- teract with one another. We have continued to invest in emerging technology for our patients and Amazon Al- exa is another example of that." n Philips Acquires Mayo Clinic Spinout VitalHealth By Jessica Kim Cohen A msterdam-based Royal Philips acquired VitalHealth, a pop- ulation health management company based in Ede, Neth- erlands, the company announced Dec. 8. Rochester, Minn.-based Mayo Clinic and Lunteren, Nether- lands-based Noaber Foundation founded VitalHealth in 2006 to provide patients with cloud-based population health man- agement solutions. The company's personalized care solutions — including telehealth applications and care coordination plat- forms — are used in more than 100 healthcare networks across the globe. "This strategic acquisition complements our current offering in population health management, and supports our commit- ment to deliver integrated solutions for care providers and patients to improve people's health," said Carla Kriwet, chief business leader of the connected care and health informatics businesses at Philips. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed. n

• Cover