HITshow Daily: December 3, 2025 (Wednesday)
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Today on HITshow:
Systems are trying to create more capacity and less friction, but the risks and the dollars are right there in the room with them. New reporting reveals persistent patient-safety concerns with the VA’s EHR modernization despite billions spent. The U.S. House passes legislation extending Medicare waivers supporting acute hospital-at-home care for five more years. Humana and Epic roll out automated digital insurance verification starting with Medicare Advantage. LCMC Health moves to systemwide ambient AI implementation with Nabla following a successful pilot. Plus rapid-fire updates on hospital deal drama, payer contract negotiations going sideways, autonomous coding claims, and major bankruptcy threads.
HOST: RHONDA BROOKS
📍 VA EHR Modernization Safety Concerns — Anika Shah
New reporting reveals persistent patient-safety and workflow issues tied to the VA’s EHR modernization despite billions spent. VA leaders say the system is improving and preparing for 2026 expansion, but clinicians report major problems still showing up in day-to-day care. A reminder: big EHR transitions are clinical operations and safety at scale, not just IT projects.
📍 Hospital-at-Home Extension — Teresa Vaughn
The U.S. House passed legislation extending Medicare waivers supporting acute hospital-at-home care for five more years. If it becomes law, it keeps the program’s legal runway in place through around 2030, giving health systems confidence to invest in home-based workflows and virtual nursing models.
📍 Automated Coverage Verification — Peter Betterworth
Humana and Epic rolled out automated digital insurance verification and streamlined check-in, supporting 800K+ Humana Medicare Advantage members across ~120 health systems. Fewer manual steps, cleaner billing inputs, better patient experience—small friction fixes that add up.
📍 Ambient AI Systemwide Implementation — Nate Collier
LCMC Health is moving systemwide with ambient AI using Nabla after a successful pilot. The next phase: less “does it work,” more “how do we govern, scale, and measure real impact?” Durable, safe workflow change is the hard part.
📍 SSM Health vs. UnitedHealthcare — Teresa Vaughn
SSM Health negotiating with UnitedHealthcare—if no deal by December 31, some patients lose in-network access January 1, 2026. Prepare your comms plan now.
📍 UConn Health / Aetna Out-of-Network — Teresa Vaughn
UConn Health now out-of-network for many Aetna members after missed deadline; ~15,000 patients affected. Expect confusion, rescheduling, and surge in “what does this mean for me” calls.
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