AdventHealth Swaps Out Cerner Revenue Cycle Management for Epic

One of the nation’s largest health systems is replacing its current Cerner revenue cycle management along with its EHR with a platform from Epic, according to a press release from AdventHealth.

The Florida-based health system of 50 hospitals announced on its website Tuesday that it is installing a “single, integrated electronic health record (EHR) and revenue cycle management system” across its acute care, physician practice, ambulatory, urgent care, home health and hospice facilities.

“Our journey to become a consumer-focused clinical company requires a fully connected network throughout our entire enterprise,” Terry Shaw, president and CEO of AdventHealth, said in the press release. “Connecting our network with a robust, integrated health record platform will give our caregivers access to the clinical information they need at the point of care and ultimately advance our consumer promises through a more seamless experience for those we serve.”

AdventHealth’s implementation of the Cerner EHR and revenue cycle management system was one of the largest EHR implementations to occur in the US for the top EHR company. The health system first implemented Cerner’s products in 2002 when it was a 38-hospital system known as Adventist Health System. The health system rebranded itself to AdventHealth at the beginning of 2019.

With Cerner’s EHR and revenue cycle management systems, AdventHealth hospitals have been recognized for its health IT use, including HIMSS Stage 6 and 7 awards and Most Wired recognition in both 2014 and 2015.

However, rumors have recently surrounded the quality of the health system’s revenue cycle management product. Users on the social news aggregation and discussion website Reddit posted two months ago that AdventHealth was considering an EHR replacement because leaders felt the quality of Cerner’s revenue cycle management product was lacking and they were misled about the product’s functionality.

Hospitals have had trouble with Cerner’s revenue cycle management product in the past, with one hospital eventually settling with the health IT company after reports that product malfunctions led to over $38 million in financial losses.

Cerner’s revenue cycle management product has been described as the company’s Achille’s heel, but a recent report from the market research company KLAS found that Cerner is improving its relationship with those who use the revenue cycle management product even though most users have not seen many tangible financial improvements yet.

AdventHealth did not comment on the rumors in its announcement. Instead, the health system signaled that its new focus on becoming a more “consumer-centric, connected and identifiable national system of care” prompted it to replace its current EHR and revenue cycle management systems with a single one from Epic.

With an Epic EHR, AdventHealth expects health records to be “easily accessible regardless of the care setting in which a patient interacts with the health system,” which will allow for “greater efficiency and coordination.”

The health system plans to leverage Epic’s Community Connect program, which enables users to connect with community providers and caregivers through an integrated portal, to extend the EHR system to affiliated providers. It will also use Epic’s infrastructure to support the AdventHealth mobile app that allows consumers to access their health information online.

The Epic EHR implementation will begin in March and last for about three years, the health system stated in the press release. The implementation will impact more than 1,200 care sites across the health system.

In a statement emailed to RevCycleIntelligence, Cerner stated:

AdventHealth has made the business decision to transition over the next few years management of its EHR and revenue cycle management system to another supplier. The shift is expected to take up to five years and Cerner is committed to working closely with AdventHealth to continue delivering superior health care technology solutions throughout the transition.