Samwise Healthcare IT Newsletter
Friday, June 19, 2026
Telehealth Use Climbs 10.1% in Q1 2026 as Mental Health Tops All Diagnoses Nationwide
The FAIR Health Quarterly Telehealth Regional Tracker—the first of its kind—found that telehealth utilization rose 10.1% nationally from Q4 2025 to Q1 2026, measured as a share of medical claim lines (from 5.01% to 5.51%). Mental health conditions ranked first in every age group nationally and in every U.S. Census region, representing 52.1% of patients with telehealth claims. Regional growth was strongest in the Midwest, at 12%, and the Northeast, at 11.8%, while rural areas outpaced urban areas. The report, released June 15 by the independent research organization FAIR Health, tracks telehealth expansion using a database of more than 49 billion private healthcare claims.
Sources: Fierce Healthcare
Varist Launches AI-Scale Malware Detection to Protect Medical Imaging and EHR Systems
Varist has launched its DICOM Detection Engine, a malware detection system built to protect healthcare communications networks, electronic health records, and picture archiving and communication systems used in medical imaging. The engine combines large-scale file scanning with real-time simulation of suspicious files to detect threats within milliseconds, including AI-powered malware designed to automate and customize attacks. As PACS and radiology workflows face growing cyberattacks, the system targets infection vectors specific to DICOM-format medical imaging files—a format traditional antivirus tools were not designed to scan. Varist announced the product on June 16, 2026.
Sources: Business Wire
Epic Systems Forces Healthcare Staffing Firm to Rebrand in Trademark Settlement
Epic Systems has reached a trademark settlement requiring healthcare staffing firm Epic Staffing Group to rebrand under a new name. Epic Systems filed suit in 2024 in U.S. District Court in Wisconsin, arguing that Epic Staffing’s use of “Epic Travel Staffing,” “Epic Specialty Staffing,” and “Epic Government” branding was likely to confuse healthcare customers and trade on Epic Systems’ established reputation. The settlement dismisses the case without prejudice; financial terms were not disclosed. Epic Staffing has not yet announced a replacement name or transition timeline. The case highlights Epic Systems’ active defense of a trademark that is among the most recognized in healthcare IT.
Sources: Modern Healthcare
NuraLogix Receives FDA Clearance for Contactless Heart Rate and Respiration Monitoring SDK
NuraLogix has received FDA 510(k) clearance for its Anura Mobile Core SDK, enabling smartphone cameras to measure heart rate and respiration rate in adults without physical sensors or wearables. The cleared technology works in adults aged 18 and older for health monitoring purposes and is not intended to diagnose or treat medical conditions. NuraLogix, a Canadian company with global operations, says the SDK can be embedded into healthcare applications to support remote monitoring workflows and reduce reliance on contact-based vital sign measurement devices. The clearance represents regulatory recognition for a new class of camera-based physiological measurement tools in U.S. clinical settings.
Sources: NuraLogix
AGS Health Launches InnovationWorks to Deliver AI-Driven Revenue Cycle Outcomes
AGS Health has launched InnovationWorks, a dedicated center of excellence for building AI and automation solutions in healthcare revenue cycle management. The company says InnovationWorks draws on more than a decade of RCM, AI, data management, and clinical expertise to produce ROI-driven tools—rather than experimental pilots—focused on denial prevention, clinical documentation integrity, and billing accuracy at scale. Healthcare providers face intensifying financial pressure from insurer claim denials, which rose significantly in 2025, making revenue cycle automation a growing investment priority. AGS Health serves major provider organizations across the United States as a tech-enabled RCM partner.
Sources: AGS Health
Bridge Releases Patient Access and Revenue Suite to Automate Intake and Payments
Bridge, a provider of white-labeled patient engagement technology, has launched its Patient Access and Revenue Suite within the BridgeInteract platform, integrating intake, scheduling, and payment automation for healthcare clinics. The suite is designed to remove friction for patients and caregivers by combining digital intake forms, automated scheduling reminders, and contactless payment processing in a single system. Bridge says the launch addresses healthcare organizations’ need to consolidate patient-facing tools rather than managing multiple point solutions with separate vendor relationships. The product launch comes as patient access and revenue cycle technology continues to attract strong investment across the health IT sector.
Sources: PR Newswire
MedeAnalytics Expands Analytics Portfolio with New Medicare Advantage and Employer Group Tools
MedeAnalytics has announced enhancements to its cross-domain enterprise analytics portfolio, adding new capabilities for Medicare Advantage and employer group health plan performance management. The updated Medicare Advantage modules give health plans improved visibility into risk adjustment accuracy, utilization trends, and quality performance, addressing growing pressure on MA plans as CMS continues to revise star rating calculations and tighten reimbursement. The employer group tools help health plans demonstrate financial outcomes for self-insured clients. MedeAnalytics, which serves health plans and integrated delivery networks, says the enhancements span all lines of business to deliver a unified analytics view across its customer base.
Sources: MedeAnalytics
Carta Healthcare Extends Lighthouse Platform to 21 Additional Clinical Registries
Carta Healthcare has expanded its Lighthouse clinical data management platform to support 21 additional clinical registries across eight registry families, including the ACC/NCDR, Society of Thoracic Surgeons National Database, AHA Get With The Guidelines, and ACS quality programs. Carta now supports more than 70 clinical registries in total. The platform automates extraction and submission of structured clinical data to registries, reducing the manual chart abstraction burden for hospitals and health systems that must report to multiple national programs. The expansion also adds coverage for oncology, perinatal care, core measures, and vascular quality initiatives.
Sources: PR Newswire
Curated by JD · samwise.agency
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