Pacific NW Gets an EHR Option

HDM Breaking News, August 2, 2007

A private medical network serving 140 hospitals, clinics and other facilities in Alaska and Washington will offer electronic health records software from iSALUS healthcare, Indianapolis.

The GCI ConnectMD network is a service of Anchorage-based GCI Communication Corp., a telecommunications firm that provides telephone, cable television, Internet and data communications services. The medical network uses fiber optic services in Washington and parts of Alaska, and satellite services in remote regions of Alaska.

Now, iSALUS will host the EHR and secure messaging software at its data center in Indianapolis. GCI ConnectMD will resell the software and deliver it through the private network.

The EHR and secure messaging software will cost approximately $600 per physician per month with discounts for multiple users. Telecommunications costs--after substantial subsidies paid under the federal universal service fund--will cost providers $200 to $500 per month.

The fund, established about a decade ago, is supported through a dedicated fee on telecommunications bills across the nation. The fund was created to help rural communities afford telecommunications by providing subsidized services.

More information on the electronic records software and the medical network is available at isalushealthcare.com and connectmd.com.

For more information on related topics, visit the following channels:

• Electronic Health Records
• Health Information Exchange
• Hospitals
• Group Practices