NextGen and VHA Team Up – Analyst Blog

NextGen Healthcare Information Systems Inc., a 100% subsidiary of electronic health record provider Quality Systems Inc. (QSII), recently entered into an agreement with VHA Inc., a nation-wide health care facility network serving 1,400 non-profit hospitals and 30,000 non-acute care providers.

 

As per agreement terms, VHA will promote NextGen’s financial and clinical solutions to its ambulatory and hospital subscribers. NextGen will, in turn, offer preferential pricing for its technology solutions, thereby enabling VHA members to achieve seamless coordination of care in different settings. 

 

NextGen has demarcated its offerings. Its integrated NextGen Ambulatory Practice Management and NextGen EHR products enable coordination of patient care with formalized clinical and administrative workflows in any health care facility. NextGen Inpatient Financials and NextGen Inpatient Clinicals, on the other hand, extend the company’s services to community and rural hospitals.

 

NextGen has paid due consideration to the fact that community hospitals are largely underserved and lack access to top-class healthcare technology solutions. NextGen and VHA are also concerned about how the latest solutions will enable health care providers satisfy meaningful use requirements for electronic health record (EHR) intended by U.S. government incentives.

 

Member facilities of VHA also stand to gain from NextGen’s educational programs on topical issues related to EHR. Last, but not the least, health care facilities can gainfully utilize NextGen’s Grants Resource Center to assist them apply for funding under health care reform.

 

Quality Systems develops and markets health care information systems that automate certain aspects of medical and dental practices. The company primarily operates through two divisions, the larger NextGen division and the much smaller QSI Dental division. It derives more than 90% of its annual revenues from the NextGen division.

 

We expect Quality Systems to benefit from the migration of small physician practices to EHR under the federal Stimulus. On the negative side, it competes in a fragmented market with larger competitors, such as Allscripts Healthcare Solutions Inc. (MDRX) and Cerner Corp. (CERN). We currently have a Neutral rating on Quality Systems.