Patients will have online access to care from virtually anywhere at any time
“>Watch telehealth consultation demo featuring USF Health’s Dr. Stephen Klasko
CHICAGO – ACE 2012 (August 15, 2012) – Allscripts unveiled plans for a new telehealth solution to expand convenient access to care while enabling patients and providers to save time and money. The solution will integrate the American WellTM Online Care telehealth platform into the Allscripts Electronic Health Records (EHR) platform, taking another step toward Allscripts vision of a Connected Community of Health™.
Integrating telehealth with Allscripts EHRs will give patients new ways to access care, whether they are at home or on the road. Healthcare providers will benefit by offering high-quality online voice and video interactions documented via their electronic health record, enhancing care coordination across providers.
Dr. Stephen Klasko, CEO of USF Health and dean of the Morsani College of Medicine, speaks via video chat (telehealth consultation) at the Allscripts annual client conference about the value of telehealth.
University of South Florida (USF) Health, a partnership of USF’s colleges of medicine, nursing, public health and pharmacy as well as USF Physician Group, is planning to use this new offering in a unique relationship with The Villages, the country’s largest over-55 residential community, located near Tampa, Florida. USF Health announced a partnership with American Well to make Online Care part of its integrated patient-centered healthcare system for The Villages.
“USF Health’s mission is to establish a care model that represents the future of health, a university-community partnership with a specific focus on patient-centric and collaborative care,” said Stephen Klasko, MD MBA, Chief Executive Officer of USF Health. “We are delivering tomorrow’s healthcare today by combining the most innovative EHR and telehealth platforms as a significant step toward ensuring continuity and delivering care directly to the homes of the residents of The Villages.”
Consumers are used to online voice and video services to communicate with family and friends, paving the way for patients to be comfortable accessing healthcare online. And, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services identified telehealth as one solution for Accountable Care Organizations to improve healthcare outcomes and satisfaction.
“Allscripts telehealth solution will help provide convenient, safer and secure access to care and enable that care to be documented in the electronic health record—so that other providers can have up-to-date information. It will also give physicians an opportunity to get paid for telehealth, something that was a hurdle in the past,” said Glen Tullman, Chief Executive Officer of Allscripts. “Our open platform architecture enables this integration, which we expect to be available in January, and takes us another step closer to a Connected Community of Health™.”
Allscripts is partnering with American Well, the leading U.S. telehealth company which currently partners with some of the country’s largest payers. The companies will work to integrate American Well’s Online Care platform into Allscripts electronic health records platform. The integrated product should reach general availability early next year.
“The momentum behind the telehealth movement is growing at a remarkable pace. As patients demand improved access to care, providers seek alternative delivery methods to deliver care efficiently and effectively as payment models trend away from fee-for-service,” said Ido Schoenberg, MD, Chairman and CEO of American Well Corporation. Meanwhile, legislative and regulatory barriers are also being removed. Schoenberg added, “Today, forty state Medicaid plans reimburse for telehealth services and 16 states mandate private insurer coverage for telehealth – including four states which have passed such laws since March. Integrating Online Care with Allscripts Electronic Health Records will offer providers a solution to meet these mandates while improving access to quality healthcare.”
Clients will begin testing the integrated solution later this year. Allscripts expects the full solution to be generally available in 2013.
About ACE
ACE, the Allscripts Client Experience, is Allscripts annual client conference. Throughout the three-day event, ACE attendees will have access to more than 400 educational sessions, user group meetings and partners demoing on the Allscripts open platform.
About Allscripts
Allscripts (NASDAQ: MDRX) delivers the insights that healthcare providers require to generate world-class outcomes. The company’s Electronic Health Record, practice management and other clinical, revenue cycle, connectivity and information solutions create a Connected Community of Health™ for physicians, hospitals and post-acute organizations. To learn more about Allscripts, please visit www.allscripts.com, Twitter, YouTube and It Takes A Community: The Allscripts Blog.
Media contacts:
Ariana Nikitas, 312-506-1236, or 773-490-5657
ariana.nikitas@allscripts.com
Claire Weingarden, 312-447-2442 or 773-484-5858
claire.weingarden@allscripts.com
