AdvancedMD, a software-as-a-service (SaaS) medical billing services provider that supports 13,000 medical providers nationwide, acquired PracticeOne earlier this year.
The Draper, Utah-based company purchased PracticeOne on Jan. 6, 2010, another example of the consolidation occurring in the healthcare software arena. The acquisition allows AdvancedMD to integrate privately-held PracticeOne's SaaS-based electronic medical health record (EHR) technologies into its AdvancedMD Practice Management software. The move enables AdvancedMD to offer a web-based integrated clinical and financial medical practice application. In addition, AdvancedMD will leverage PracticeOne's web-based portal, which lets patients securely access their medical information via a web browser or smartphone.
Under SaaS, a service provider owns and operates the applications, which users launch within a web browser. Under this model, medical providers no longer must buy and maintain applications; instead, they generally pay a monthly fee to the service provider who then is responsible for ensuring the application and data are available, usable, secure and up-to-date.
AdvancedMD predicts EMR adoption will accelerate over the next several years, as government agencies mandate new reimbursement reporting and patient care monitoring requirements under the Health Information Technology for Clinical and Economic Health (HITECH) Act. Research supports this theory: Today, only 10 percent of hospitals and 17 percent of ambulatory hospitals have a functional, comprehensive EHR in place, according to one online report.