51ÊÓƵ

The cyberattack that forced Ascension to shut off access to its electronic health records cost the nonprofit hospital system roughly $1.3 billion, according to STAT’s analysis of financial documents the health system released Tuesday evening. (Herman, 9/18)

51ÊÓƵ Health News: Cyberattacks Plague The Health Industry. Critics Call Feds’ Response Feeble And Fractured

Central Oregon Pathology Consultants has been in business for nearly 60 years, offering molecular testing and other diagnostic services east of the Cascade Range. Beginning last winter, it operated for months without being paid, surviving on cash on hand, practice manager Julie Tracewell said. The practice is caught up in the aftermath of one of the most significant digital attacks in American history: the February hack of payments manager Change Healthcare. (Tahir, 9/19)

The Veterans Affairs Department said Tuesday it has partnered with EHR companies Epic and Oracle Health to identify veterans receiving care outside of the VA. Oracle and Epic, the top two companies in total market share among EHR vendors for acute care hospitals, have added the VA's Veteran Confirmation application programming interface to their systems. The API will help providers identify veterans receiving care in their health systems. (Turner, 9/18)

Chicago-based healthcare firm Oak Street Health has agreed to pay $60 million to resolve allegations from the U.S. Department of Justice that it paid kickbacks to third-party insurance agents in exchange for recruiting seniors to Oak Street’s primary care clinics. The DOJ alleged in a statement today that Oak Street’s Client Awareness Program, designed to grow patient membership, had third-party insurance agents contacting seniors eligible for or enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans, seeking to recruit them to Oak Street locations. (Davis, 9/18)

Drugmaker Eli Lilly on Wednesday urged a federal appeals court to overturn a $183 million judgment against it in a case accusing it of defrauding Medicaid, arguing that it was being wrongly held liable despite following its reasonable interpretation of the government health insurance program's requirements. (Pierson, 9/18)

CarePoint Health submitted plans with New Jersey authorities to lay off more than 2,600 workers at three of its hospitals in the state. The layoffs would take effect Dec. 12, according to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification notice filed with the state. (DeSilva, 9/18)

Hospitals in the Philly area are ranked below the national average by patients when it comes to doctor communication, according to a federal survey. Across the region, hospitals received an average score of three stars for how well doctors communicate with patients, while the national average was a four-star rating. (Mulvey, 9/18)