Bonus Features – September 3, 2023 – 60% of cybersecurity incidents impact patient care, the average medical device has six or more security vulnerabilities, and more

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 Research

• ONC renewed its contract for The Sequoia Project to be the Recognized Coordinating Entity for TEFCA implementation. That process will involve working with seven current Qualified Health Information Network candidates, along with any future QHIN applicants.
• Five in six (83%) of hospital executives are worried about losing business to ambulatory surgery centers, according to survey data from Alexander Group. Two-thirds reported additional market pressure in the form of rising operating budgets.
• Hospitals and physician practices saw a 9% year-over-year increase in revenue in July, according to the latest monthly report from Syntellis. That said, operating margins were 1.1% in July, a drop from 2% in June but nonetheless the fifth straight month of positive margins.
• Health insurance consumers are increasingly comfortable with digital tools, the latest Voice of the Member survey from Cognizant said. Since the start of the pandemic, willingness to share digital data has increased 30%, while the importance of price transparency tools has increased 10%.
• The American Telemedicine Association published Health Data Privacy Principles, paying particular attention to consistency in regulations, definitions of consumer health, consumer consent, and legal enforcement.
• In a report, the Digital Medicine Society identified three priorities for successful digital health product innovation: Alignment between the FDA and payer decision-makers, alternate pathways to market for novel products, and better coordination among FDA business units.

Cybersecurity Reports

• More than 60% of cybersecurity incidents adversely impact patient care, a study from Claroty said. Nearly half (47%) impact physical systems such as medical devices or building management, while 30% affect protected health information.
• Thanks to limited cybersecurity staffing and resources, healthcare organizations can fix no more than 20% of their known medical device vulnerabilities, according to the latest report from Asimily. This poses a significant risk, as the average device has at least six vulnerabilities.
• Healthcare saw a 700% jump in distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks in the first half of 2023 compared to the first half of 2022, according to an analysis from Zayo. That compares to a 200% increase over the same time period across all industries.
• Firmware vulnerabilities in connected medical devices have increased 59% in the last year, research from Securin, Health-ISAC, and Finite State indicated. Nearly 1 in 6 have been weaponized, researchers added, meaning they’re ready to be used to attack a victim.

Partnerships

• Syniverse integrated its SMS text messaging capabilities with Epic‘s Hello World communications platform.
• Zyter|TruCare integrated findhelp, a social care network, into the latest release of its Connected Health platform.
• Workflow automation company Regard continued its partnership with OpenAI and integrated its large language model, GPT-4, into its new chatbot.
• Veda is integrating OutCare Health’s OutList, a directory of LGBTQ+ affirming providers, into its insurer-facing provider directories.
• Humana and Interwell Health are launching a value-based kidney care model for Medicare Advantage members in 13 states.

Product and Company News

• GoodRx launched a real-time benefit check for Provider Mode, its point-of-prescribing tool for healthcare professionals.
• Population health management vendor Orion Health formally launched Virtuoso, a digital front door to preventive care, following a pilot across the province of Ontario.
• Virtual psychiatric care provider Talkiatry launched in five more states, with a reach that now covers 58 million children under 18 in 31 states.
• More than 83% of teens using BeMe Health to support their behavioral health reported improved self-esteem and ability to cope with stress, according to a study conducted with Stanford University.
• Vera Healthcare and Vera Medical Vehicles are deploying 50 mobile care units to provide health and dental care to seniors in Florida.
• Care coordination and monitored scheduling of patients after total joint replacement decreases reported pain by nearly 30% and improves care plan adherence, according to research published by Luna.
• Initiating non-small-cell lung cancer treatment prior to reviewing a patient’s genomic test results contributes to considerably inferior patient outcomes, research published by Integra Connect indicated.
• Remote monitoring company AION Biosystems received FDA 510(k) clearance for iTempShield, a device worn on the skin to measure body temperature.

Sales

• Banner Health chose nference for biomedical data analysis.
• Long Island-based PsychiaTreat selected selected eClinicalWorks Behavioral Health.
• Parkview Health chose KeyCare for virtual urgent care; the community health system serves Indiana and Ohio.
• Michigan Medicine chose hc1 Insights‘ Performance Analytics for its MLabs research laboratory.
• Chronic care medication provider TwelveStone Health Partners chose TailorMed to connect patients with financial assistance programs.

Certifications and Recognitions

• Gartner released its first Magic Quadrant for Clinical Communication and Collaboration, with PerfectServe ranked highest in ability to execute.
• Identity verification software maker Melissa announced compliance with Project US, an ONC initiative to create a industry-wide specification for representing patient addresses.

People

• Payment software company Lyric made three executive appointments: Akshay Sharma as Chief AI Officer, Vijay Murugappan as Chief Commercial Officer, and Yevgeny “Gene” German as Chief Product & Technology Officer.
• Physical therapy and rehab software maker Raintree Systems announced Megan MacLean as Chief Customer Officer.
• Medical imaging hardware and software maker Exo named Kurt Hammond as Chief Commercial Officer.
• Patient engagement vendor Carenet Health promoted Michael Thomas to Executive Vice President of Shared Services to lead the company’s new Shared Services division.
• NTT DATA announced Craig Hovda as the Lead of the company’s Health Plan & Life Sciences business.
• Evidence generation platform Atropos Health announced a Life Science Advisory Board as part of its entry into the life science market.
• Care coordination company Quantum Health announced two advisory boards – musculoskeletal and behavioral health – which will launch in 2024.

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.