Not-for-Profit Massachusetts eHealth Collaborative To Create For-Profit Subsidiary To Help Companies Adopt Health IT
The not-for-profit Massachusetts eHealth Collaborative, which has played a key role in implementing electronic health records in the state, is creating a for-profit unit that will help commercial health care companies and providers adopt the technology, the Boston Globe reports. Micky Tripathi, CEO of the collaborative, said, "With this separate company, we can address commercial customers' needs for electronic health records implementation," adding, "We have an immediate need to grow right away."
In a statement, Alan Macdonald, chair of the collaborative, said that the new unit already has begun working for several commercial companies, including Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and its physician group. Macdonald said that the collaborative will continue its not-for-profit work "to improve the quality, safety and efficiency of care through the adoption of electronic health records and health information exchange." Tripathi said that profits generated from the new unit, after taxes, will be used to fund the collaborative's not-for-profit work.
According to the Globe, the move comes as Massachusetts prepares to expand a three-community EHR pilot project that was run by MEHC. The state has allocated $15 million this fiscal year for continued EHR implementation, but it is not known when that money will be released. Gov. Deval Patrick (D) is expected to announce the creation of a new EHR oversight council that will conduct the bidding process and select the firms for the state contracts (Krasner, Boston Globe, 2/19).
