The EHR company put on its usual spectacular show, and while there were few groundbreaking announcements, there are signs that the industry is beginning to see the technology in a new light.

Epic’s annual User’s Group Meeting (UGM) last week delivered on its promise: bold, optimistic, and befitting the largest EHR company in the country.

But for healthcare executives who are part of the Epic universe, as well as outsiders, there wasn’t much that could be called newsworthy. The company and its influential boss Judy Faulkner are notorious for keeping things to themselves.

With this in mind, here are the four key findings:

1. The AI ​​hype machine continues to run. According to Faulkner, there are already more than 100 AI-powered tools in Epic’s toolbox, and the company has an ambitious agenda to advance the technology for both vendors and consumers. With this announcement, Epic is in the thick of the AI ​​race, alongside some of the tech titans it also works with. And with little more than a passing mention of collaborating with others and developing open source tools, it’s clear the company is making AI its next big marketing feature.
2. Playing with payers? The Epic Payer Platform is neither revolutionary nor new. But it addresses a perennial concern in healthcare: How do you get providers and payers to sit at the table to share data and address key pain points in how care and reimbursement are linked? Faulkner said about half of Epic’s health system and medical group customers, as well as seven of the nation’s largest payers, are plugged into the platform, with the goal of reducing denials and improving the approval process. But will payers want to play in that sandbox? And what incentives could Epic offer to get their interest?
3. Looking at the little ones. Epic has long focused on the largest health systems and hospitals, to such an extent that some competitors have changed their approach and are now focusing on smaller providers, from rural hospitals to physician offices, even FQHCs, Rural Health Clinics and specialty practices. Faulkner’s mention of the Washington State Health Care Authority, a collaboration between the state and Epic launched several years ago to support EHR adoption among smaller providers, could be an indication that the company wants to expand its reach.
4. Pay attention to the patientFrom plans to make MyChart a more interactive tool for patients to big plans for Cosmos, it’s clear that Epic wants to get more involved in patient-centered care. Cynics will say they’re giving patients the same opportunity to experience the frustration with technology that doctors experienced a few decades ago, but this strategy may be the most impactful of all to come out of the UGM. It recognizes that the EHR has evolved despite any perceived shortcomings. If patients can get as much value out of this platform as doctors, the opportunities for care collaboration and—yes, we’re saying it—value-based care are pretty good.