Health records giant Epic hit with antitrust suit
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Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios
Health data startup Particle Health sued electronic health records giant Epic Systems for federal antitrust violations on Monday, charging it uses its control over troves of patient records to stifle competition.
Why it matters: About 36% of hospitals use Epic for their EHRs, and Particle estimates in its lawsuit that as many as 94% of American patients have at least one record stored in an Epic EHR.
State of play: Payer platforms like Particle digitize the process of retrieving medical records and analyzing their data. Insurers have traditionally done this manually.
- Epic has its own platform. The lawsuit charges that Epic purposely "made it commercially impossible" for rivals to access records stored in Epic EHR software.
Zoom in: Particle claims Epic started retaliating against the company after it found a way to circumvent Epic's block on other payer platforms.
- Federal regulations require Epic and its competitors to make their records available in response to requests concerning health treatment.
- Particle realized in 2023 that payers are increasingly involved in actual services offered to its members. This allowed Particle to help payers access records for treatment decisions and then use them for purposes like health analytics, the lawsuit claims.
- Epic's actions are anticompetitive and a violation of antitrust laws, according to the complaint, which seeks monetary damages and injunctive relief.
What they're saying: "Doctors need the full medical records of their patients, and this lawsuit represents more than just a business dispute. It's about medical ethics and protecting patients' rights to their health data," Particle CEO Jason Prestinario wrote in a LinkedIn post about the lawsuit.
The other side: "Particle's claims are baseless," an Epic spokesperson said in a statement to Axios.
- "Epic will continue to protect patient privacy and vigorously defend itself against Particle's meritless claims."
