What is Change Healthcare?
Change Healthcare is a healthcare technology provider of revenue cycle management, payment management and health information exchange solutions. Focused on value-based healthcare systems, the company creates products for payers, providers and patients.
Issues that can be addressed with Change Healthcare services are patient personal information access, claims management, payment accuracy, customer engagement and network management. It also provides the ability to make choices based on quality, cost, and convenience. All products are interoperable and AI-driven, spanning across all clinical market segments.
Change Healthcare continues to lead in providing interoperable and AI-driven technologies across clinical market segments.
Change Healthcare provides services in three categories:
- Network. Change Healthcare offers an Intelligent Healthcare Network that gives customers access to approximately 800,000 physicians, 117,000 dentists, 60,000 pharmacies, 5,500 hospitals, nearly 400 vendors and 600 laboratories as well as nearly all government and commercial payers.
- Software and data analytics. Change Healthcare has enhanced its software an data analytics platform to offer tools for financial performance, clinical decision support, value-based payment models, clinical workflow optimization and enhanced patient engagement.
- Technology-enabled services. This segment offers financial and administrative management, value-based care, communication, pharmacy benefits administration and healthcare consulting services. The inclusion of AI tools for analytics and operational efficiency is central to this offering.
Additionally, Change Healthcare has continued its migration of services to cloud platforms, leveraging Amazon Web Services to enhance performance, security and scalability. Their increased focus on cloud-based and AI-powered offerings has improved efficiency in revenue cycle management and patient engagement solutions.
History of Change Healthcare
Prior to being acquired by Emdeon, a subsidiary of WebMD, Change Healthcare was established in 2007 to develop healthcare consumer engagement and health plan cost transparency tools. The acquisition took place in 2014, and in 2015, Emdeon and its associated business units rebranded under the Change Healthcare name.
In 2016, McKesson Corporation and Change Healthcare Holdings created a new healthcare company by combining all of Change Healthcare's business with most of McKesson's Technology Solutions businesses.
In 2022, UnitedHealth Group's Optum division completed its acquisition of Change Healthcare, further expanding the company's technological and financial footprint in the healthcare sector.
In early 2024, Change Healthcare faced a significant ransomware attack that disrupted payment processing and health services. This cyberattack had widespread implications across the healthcare sector, causing losses for providers and prompting a federal investigation regarding patient privacy and data security.
Notable Change Healthcare acquisitions
Several notable acquisitions contribute to Change Healthcare's growth and service offerings,:
- The Sentinel Group, which specializes in investigational services to combat healthcare fraud.
- FutureVision Investment Group, a provider of electronic data processing and information management services.
- EquiClaim, a healthcare audit and recovery services provider.
- Goold Health Systems, a healthcare management organization known for pharmacy benefit and related services to state Medicaid agencies.
- Capario, a provider of cloud-based healthcare technology platforms.
- Altegra Health, a developer of intervention platforms that combine data aggregation and analytics with engagement and reporting tools.
Integrating RCM and clinical workflows through a customized EHR implementation can help a healthcare practice streamline efficiencies. See how a customized EHR implementation with RCM boosted a practice's growth. Check out the top ways artificial intelligence will impact healthcare. Explore what distinguishes health information exchanges from health data utilities.
