While the CEOs involved in Monday's CommonWell Health Alliance announcement--in which five electronic health record vendors agreed to work together for improved interoperability--made it clear that all EHR vendors have an open invitation to join, Epic CEO Judy Faulkner said this week that her company has not, to date, been asked to participate.
Faulkner also said that the collaboration appears to be more of an attempt to compete with her Verona, Wis.-based company, which boasts $1.5 billion in annual revenue, according to Bloomberg.
"It appears on the surface to be used as a competitive weapon and that's just wrong," Faulkner told Bloomberg. "It's wrong for the country."
Epic Chief Operating Officer Carl Dvorak had more harsh words for CommonWell, calling it a "marketing opportunity," according to Forbes. Dvorak added that he doesn't think Epic would join the alliance, and said the company, instead, would prefer for a national standard to be set.
"They create the perception of leaders in the space, when they're followers," he told Forbes.
When asked whether or not Epic was asked to join CommonWell at Monday's announcement, McKesson CEO John Hammergren reiterated that any EHR vendor can join, but said that there was an urgency to get the company off the ground.
"Part of this was, 'let's get this out the door and encourage everyone to join,'" Hammergren said. "The fact that we're up here doesn't mean this is an exclusive group."
To learn more:
- read the Bloomberg article
- here's the Forbes piece