NextGen pins lower revenue on higher attrition
EHR vendor NextGen Healthcare scaled back its earnings guidance for 2019 after reporting a $2.3 million decline in quarterly revenue.
The company’s revenue dropped to $130 million in the last quarter due to “an uptick in attrition” along with larger deals with longer implementation time frames. Net income reached $13 million, up from $8 million during the same quarter last year.
“While we remain committed to our multi-year growth targets due to the strength or our bookings and pipeline along with solution enhancements coming to market, we are slightly adjusting guidance for this year,” CEO Rusty Frantz said in a statement. (SEC filing)
Cerner updates DOD, VA rollout
Cerner President of Government Services Travis Dalton said he is “encouraged by the progress being made” at three Department of Defense treatment facilities where the company is rolling out a new EHR.
In a blog post, Dalton said the three sites have avoided 2,300 duplicate lab orders and 400 chest x-rays, and seen a 40% bump in portal messages. He added that the company is well positioned for the next phase in California and Idaho and said Cerner would apply what it learns from the initial DOD implementations to its Department of Veterans Affairs overhaul.
The update comes days after Politico reported that the MHS Genesis rollout still has huge problems. (Blog post)
Ransomware singles out healthcare
A new report from Symantec shows that healthcare was by far the most targeted sector in the U.S. by ransomware attacks.
Of the 67 ransomware attacks identified by researchers in 2018, 24% targeted the healthcare sector. Finance was the next highest, accounting for 7% of accounts.
“Why healthcare was a particular focus remains unknown,” researchers wrote. “The attackers may believe that healthcare organizations are easier to infect. Or they may believe that these organizations are more likely to pay the ransom.” (Report)
HHS opens Health Sector Cybersecurity Coordination Center
The Department of Health and Human Services unveiled a new Health Sector Cybersecurity Coordination Center (HC3) on Tuesday in what officials say is a replacement for the now-dissolved Healthcare Cybersecurity Communications and Integration Center (HCCIC).
Working with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), HHS developed a “coordination center” in the HC3 to help coordinate activities with the healthcare sector and report threats.
An HHS spokesperson told FierceHealthcare HC3 is the new name for HCCIC, which “better suits its mission and distinguishes us as a vital component in efforts to defend of the HPH sector’s information technology infrastructure.”
“The mission is to support the defense of the HPH sector’s data and information systems by coordination and information sharing within the sector and cultivating cybersecurity resilience, regardless of an organization’s technical capacity,” spokesperson Carla Daniels added. (Release)