By MICHELLE RONAN-NOTEBOOM

HIMSS and CHIME to HHS: ONC Needs Full-time National Coordinator

In a letter to HHS Secretary Sylvia Burwell, CHIME and ONC stress the need to hire a full-time National Coordinator for the ONC, should Karen DeSalvo continue to serve as both the ONC head and the assistant secretary of health:

“If Dr. DeSalvo is going to remain as the Acting Assistant Secretary for Health with part-time duties in health IT, we emphasize the need to appoint new ONC leadership immediately that can lead the agency on the host of critical issues that must be addressed.”

AMA Calls for Removal of MU Penalties

The AMA calls for all MU penalties to be halted and for the program to be more flexible with a shorter reporting period.  In addition, the AMA urges policymakers to refocus the MU program on interoperability and seek ways to improve product usability.

Cerner Breaks Ground at New Campus

Cerner breaks ground at a new $4.45 billion campus in Kansas City, which is expected to house 16,000 new Cerner employees within the next 10 years. The project includes about $1.75 billion in public tax subsidies.

Epic Eying Smaller Market Segment with Remote Hosting Services

Epic Systems reveals plans to offer remote hosting services next year with medical clinics and smaller hospitals the likely target market. Looks like Epic is positioning itself to take on a segment of the market that it has traditionally ignored, now that almost all the large health systems have already made long-term commitments to Epic, Cerner, or one of the smaller EHR vendors.CFO Facing Prison Time for False MU Claims

Joe White, the former CFO of the now-shuttered Shelby County Hospital (TX), pleads guilty to falsely attesting to Meaningful Use in order to obtain $800,000 in stimulus dollars. To give the appearance that the hospital was using MU-certified technology, he had employees and the software vendor input patient data from paper records, often several months after the patients were discharged. White faces up to five years in prison.

The eHealth Initiative Offers Framework for Interoperability, Population Health Improvements

The eHealth Initiative releases its 2020 roadmap draft for HIT, which calls for the alignment of interoperability and MU efforts with other healthcare regulatory and industry initiatives. The roadmap, which was based on input from 150 companies, focused on business and clinical motivators, data access and use, and interoperability.

Show Me the Money

• EMR provider Modernizing Medicine, Inc. closes $15 million of an expected $20 million funding round, led by Summit Partners and Pentland Group. The Boca Raton-based company anticipates adding 100 new jobs over the next year.
• Sentarian, a start-up that offers a remote patient intelligence platform, secures $12 million in financing led by Reed Elsevier Ventures, Frost Data Capital, and TELUS Ventures.
• Catholic Health Initiatives selects Allscripts Hosting Solution for enterprise-wide IT through 2020.
• CoverMeMeds announces a growth investment by Francisco Partners.
• Xerox jumps into telehealth with a capital investment in HealthSpot, a provider of kiosks that use video conferencing to connect providers and patients. The investment will allow HealthSpot to expand its national presence across retail pharmacies, long-term care centers, large employers, and EDs.

New Blood

Recondo Technology names Jay Deady, former CEO of Awarepoint, CEO and member of the company’s board of directors.