"Insurance companies are amazed at how quickly and accurately I can access information that has a significant impact on our business operations. athenahealth has revolutionized the way our office operates."
Dr. Robert Mills
PediatriCare Associates, Toledo, OH
Letter from Jonathan
In addition to working on innovations suggested by our Posting Advisory Group (most of which we expect you to feel by the next Client Listening Survey), we've been busy planning our biggest, best-ever User Conference. Between all the new conference sessions and the many opportunities to connect and have fun, I'm most looking forward to our new strategy-level courses geared towards healthcare executives and leaders - including one presented by yours truly. Can't wait to see you in October!
Also, after months of soliciting and analyzing your feedback, we've pulled together some exciting and substantial posting changes to the upcoming release of athenaNet. And there are several exciting developments in healthcare information technology, including a new bill supporting a nationwide health information technology infrastructure. Make sure to check out Ann's Compliance Corner for a sneak peek at the new federal rules encouraging physicians to adopt electronic health records. For all this and more, read on.
athenahealth's 5th Annual User Conference is October 10-13, 2006: New Strategy Development Courses
For the past few months, we've been busy planning our biggest and most useful User Conference to date. One of the many things we're excited about this year is our new selection of Strategy Development courses. Get a sneak peek here.
Posting Issues: What We're Working on Now
Release 9.4, due for launch in mid-September, contains some very exciting and long-awaited improvements in the unpostables workflow. Click here for the scoop on how we're going to improve this area (and for longer-term changes to come).
New Bill Promotes Nationwide Health Information Technology Infrastructure
On July 27, 2006, House Bill H.R. 4157, the "Health Information Technology Promotion Act of 2006" was passed in the U.S. House of Representatives. H.R. 4157 includes a number of provisions aimed at promoting the coordination and adoption of interoperable health information technology in the United States. Learn more here.
Ann's Compliance Corner
On August 8, 2006, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released new regulations to encourage physicians to adopt electronic prescribing and electronic health records. Find out how this affects your practice here.
athenista spotlight: Meet Jasmine Gee
By day she helps clients make the most of athenaNet, including helping practices realize their operational and financial dreams. By night she dives into "light" reading, with a little TiVo on the side. Meet Jasmine Gee, this month's featured athenista. Miss one of our athenista profiles? Click here for the archive.
KLAS 2006 Year End Report - We Need Your Help!
As you many of you know, KLAS* (considered the "JD Powers of healthcare") ranked athenahealth #1 in the 1-5, 6-25 and 26-100 MD market segment for ambulatory billing and scheduling in 2005. We achieved this milestone due to the diligent efforts of our clients who filled out surveys on our behalf. Now, we need your help to maintain our #1 status in 2006. The deadline for the year-end rankings is approaching quickly, so please visit the KLAS website today to complete a 10-minute survey. Thank you in advance for your participation! Contact ashirrell@athenahealth.com with any questions.
*Top 20:2006 Mid-Year Report Card is copyrighted by 2006 KLAS Enterprises, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Our Second Year on Inc. Magazine's Top 500
athenahealth has been selected by Inc. Magazine as one of the nation's fastest growing private companies for the second straight year. As part of the 25th anniversary of the Inc. 500 award, the magazine ranked privately held companies according to year-over-year sales growth from 2002 to 2005. Click here for more.
Vital Stats
Days in Accounts Receivable (DAR) remained stable between August 2005 and August 2006, with lost patient care revenue (LPCR) at 4.8%. While we focus our efforts on making progress in our smaller, more problematic segments (Medicaid, WorkComp, and Self-Pay), we have experienced some small slippage in our larger, better-performing payer segments, resulting in a net zero (except for a few hotspots) across our client base.
athenaFunnies: Reservations, Please
True stories from the athenahealth vault
A client was traveling to Boston for her son's graduation, and called athenahealth to ask where she should make reservations for dinner. Without hesitation, we recommended The Stockyard.
Best wishes,
Johnathan Bush
