Athenahealth launches new EHR-embedded telehealth tool

Athenahealth announced this week that it had launched an embedded telehealth tool to allow practitioners to conduct virtual visits without having to download separate software or use another third-party app. The Watertown, Massachusetts-based cloud computing vendor said athenaTelehealth – which is free for its athenaOne electronic health record tool customers until September 30 – enables providers to more easily conduct HIPAA-compliant telehealth visits within practice workflows, from scheduling to patient messaging, video conferencing, simultaneous-encounter documentation and billing. “I have been using athenaTelehealth exclusively in my family medicine practice for several weeks now,” said Dr. Dillon Miller, a Blue Ridge, Georgia-based physician, in a statement. “My patients and my staff understand telehealth is the future of patient care, and I am glad to see athenahealth has given us a product to facilitate this new standard of care."