Health IT, Policy

Epic hopes a lobbyist can help fight its closed-system image on the Hill

Epic Systems CEO Judy Faulkner tried to set the record straight last year when she […]

Epic Systems CEO Judy Faulkner tried to set the record straight last year when she told Forbes that criticisms about its EMR’s lack of interoperability were “totally wrong.” And other company leaders have been working on the Hill to try to overcome its closed-system reputation, too.

Yet Epic, which generally tends to avoid the spotlight, is still portrayed as the bad guy on the Hill by some lawmakers. Meanwhile, a group of major EMR competitors has formed an interoperability alliance reportedly without inviting the company.

The next step for Epic in fighting this bad-guy perception was to hire a lobbyist, Modern Healthcare first reported.

According to a lobbying registration found in the the federal Lobbying Disclosure Act database, Epic retained lobbyists Card & Associates in August. The company told Modern Healthcare it’s a move to “educate members of Congress on the interoperability of Epic’s healthcare information technology.”

Cerner, McKesson and AllScripts also retain lobbyists, according to the database.

Read the full story here.

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