Welcome to the weekly edition of Healthcare IT Today Bonus Features. This article will be a weekly roundup of interesting stories, product announcements, new hires, partnerships, research studies, awards, sales, and more. Because there’s so much happening out there in healthcare IT we aren’t able to cover in our full articles, we still want to make sure you’re informed of all the latest news, announcements, and stories happening to help you better do your job.

News and Studies

Follow-up rates for telehealth and in-office visits have remained consistent since 2020, according to analysis from Epic Research. That said, telehealth visits are more likely to result in follow-ups at the 7-, 30- and 9-day mark, especially in OB/GYN, podiatry, and internal medicine.

GLP-1 agonists have overtaken insulin in total prescriptions and cost among commercially insured patients, according to an analysis from Cedar Gate Technologies. The therapies are commonly prescribed to treat type 2 diabetes and are increasingly prescribed for weight loss.

The American Telehealth Association announced its policy priorities for 2024; they include making Medicare telehealth flexibilities permanent before the end of the year and removing the in-person requirement for the remote prescribing of controlled substances.

In a letter, the EHR Association warned that ONC’s proposed information blocking disincentives may be less effective than intended. Entities using certified EHR technology and participating in shared savings programs likely already adhere to information sharing standards, the group said, while entities that are exempt from use of certified EHR may have trouble complying.

Partnerships

• DeepScribe deepened its integration with Epic, now pushing documentation into specific fields of a patient’s chart.
• Tandem Diabetes Care integrated its t:slim X2 insulin pump with Abbott‘s FreeStyle Libre 2 Plus sensor.
• Every Cure is partnering with Atropos Health to use its Evidence Network to accelerate evidence generation on treatment effectiveness.
• Labcorp and Hawthorne Effect are collaborating to advance decentralized clinical trial capabilities.
• Mayo Clinic is deploying TruLite Health’s software for addressing clinical bias through a know-how agreement.
• Patient experience platform ixlayer joined the Innovators’ Network at the American Heart Association Center for Health Technology & Innovation.

Product and Company News from CES 2024

• Elevance Health will make smartphones eligible to qualified Medicaid members at no cost through a partnership with Samsung and service providers AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon. The program is supported by funding from the FCC’s Affordable Connectivity Program.
• Wellness app Vivoo launched an at-home digital UTI test.
• Infant monitoring company Owlet launched two FDA-cleared devices: Dream Sock and BabySat.

Product and Company News from JPM 2024 

• Butterfly Network received FDA clearance for Butterfly iQ3, its point-of-care ultrasound system.
• Digital pathology vendor Paige released Virchow, an application for detecting skin cancer.

Sales

• Michigan-based McKenzie Health System implemented eClinicalWorks EHR v12. In addition, Louisiana-based FQHC DePaul Community Health Centers selected eClinicalWorks AI solutions.
• Caregility released APS200 Duo, a dual-camera remote monitoring system, and announced Ohio Health and UMass Memorial Health as customers.
• Arizona-based Spectrum Healthcare chose NextGen Healthcare to support primary care and behavioral health delivery.
• Florida-based Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare selected Ensemble Health Partners for RCM technology and services.
• Three Veterans Integrated Service Networks are expanding their use of CliniComp to encompass care coordination.
• Retailer Hy-Vee selected Soda Health as the technology partner for its Smart Benefits program.

Awards and Recognitions

• The Children’s National Hospital Alliance for Pediatric Device Innovation announced five finalists for its “Make Your Medical Device Pitch for Kids!” competition for Black and Hispanic innovators.
• Musculoskeletal care physician group Commons Clinic launched the Center for Spine Economics, Outcomes & Research, which will feature a technology lab, research institute, and training program.

If you have news that you’d like us to consider for a future edition of Healthcare IT Today Bonus Features, please submit them on this page. Please include any relevant links and let us know if news is under embargo. Note that submissions received after the close of business on Thursday may not be included in Bonus Features until the following week.