STAT+: As Epic’s dominance grows, its iron grip is choking innovation in health technology

Highlights Epic Systems Corp., the nation’s dominant seller of electronic health records, relies on fierce and uncompromising business tactics to drive adoption of its technology products by U.S. hospitals. A STAT investigation found that Epic’s practice of selectively withholding access to patient data has disadvantaged rival software developers and put one company in charge of determining who thrives and who withers in the market for health technology innovation. Epic says it provides more connections to its data than required by federal law and has won praise for its support of its many hospital customers. But executives at some of those hospitals, along with app developers, said Epic’s growing market power is blocking adoption of the most beneficial software products. By most measures, Epic Systems Corp. is a runaway success. Its record-keeping systems, invented at the dawn of personal computers in a Wisconsin basement, are now ubiquitous inside the nation’s largest hospitals. The company collects more than $6.5 billion a year in revenue, wins the lion’s share of new contracts, and holds data on some 8 in 10 Americans. Almost nothing happens in this technology universe without Epic’s involvement — or approval. But the company’s increasing dominance is driven by fierce and uncompromising business tactics that have crushed competitors, thwarted innovation, and put a single, privately-held business in charge of patient data needed to power medicine’s next generation of technology. A STAT investigation found that Epic, the nation’s largest seller of electronic health records, is selectively withholding access to these data to the disadvantage of rival software tools, leaving its own products unchallenged. Executives of 12 companies that Epic showcases on its app marketplace for hospital customers told STAT that the software giant has undercut their businesses by denying access to crucial data interfaces and technical specifications, spreading negative rumors about their products, or charging high fees for access. STAT+ Exclusive Story Already have an account? Log in This article is exclusive to STAT+ subscribers Unlock this article — plus in-depth analysis, newsletters, premium events, and news alerts. Already have an account? Log in View All Plans To read the rest of this story subscribe to STAT+. Subscribe