News, Analysis, Trends, Management Innovations for
Clinical Laboratories and Pathology Groups
Hosted by Robert Michel

News, Analysis, Trends, Management Innovations for
Clinical Laboratories and Pathology Groups
Hosted by Robert Michel

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Becker’s Health IT Releases Lists of Providers That Paid the Most for Their EHRs

Apr 16, 2025 | Clinical Laboratory Information Systems (LIS), Laboratory Instruments & Laboratory Equipment, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Resources

New EHR installations may require new laboratory information system upgrades and interfaces

Electronic health record (EHR) systems continue to be one of the costliest investments healthcare providers can make. And the company that holds the largest portion of the EHR market is Epic, with anywhere from 36% to 44%, according to various published reports and research briefs.

Healthcare executives remorseful about the cost of their hospital’s EHR may take solace in Becker’s Health IT’s recent list of the “most expensive” Epic EHR installations. It is common for the largest projects to cross the $1 billion mark.

Clinical laboratory leaders tasked with interfacing their hospital’s laboratory information system (LIS) with their healthcare system’s EHR may find the following information useful. The investment in time begins months before the actual EHR implementation.

One example is Lake Charles Memorial Health System (LCMHS) Lake Charles, La. In a blog post, the health system reported that it took 18 months for its physicians, clinicians, and staff to prepare for the installation of their new Epic MyChart EHR.

“There are lots of things we wish our customers would do to make sure their system runs well. Making sure every user is trained, for example. Putting in upgrades quickly. Making sure that the hardware runs fast enough,” wrote Judy Faulkner, Epic founder and CEO, in an Epic blog post.

“The LCMHS staff and physicians have championed this project from the beginning, and I have them to thank for the success of this EMR transition and look forward to seeing the positive impacts as we settle into the operational changes and new experiences Epic brings Lake Charles Memorial Health System and those we serve,” said Devon Hyde (above), President and CEO of Lake Charles Memorial Health System, about the provider’s transition to a new Epic MyChart EHR. (Photo copyright: Lake Charles Memorial Health System.)

Top 10 Most Expensive Epic EHR Installs of 2024

While Becker’s noted that the following compilation is “not an exhaustive list,” here’s its list of the top 10 most expensive Epic EHR projects based on publicly available sources.

  1. Northwell Health, New Hyde Park, N.Y.:                                          $1.2 billion
  2. Trinity Health, Livonia, Mich.:                                                          $800 million
  3. AdventHealth, Altamonte Springs, Fla.:                                            $660 million
  4. Memorial Hermann Health System, Houston:                                   $500 million
  5. UAB Health System, Birmingham, Ala.:                                           $380 million
  6. Broward Health, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.:                                             $250 million
  7. Wellstar Health System, Marietta, Ga.:                                              $175 million
  8. Health First, Rockledge, Fla.:                                                             $160 million
  9. Sarasota Memorial Health Care System, Sarasota, Fla.:                    $160 million
  10. MultiCare Health System, Tacoma, Wash.:                                       $50 million

Largest Epic EHR Projects Ever

Beyond 2024, here are the “largest Epic EHR projects of all time,” Becker’s Health IT reported separately based on publicly available sources:

  1. Kaiser Permanente, Oakland, Calif:                                                   $4 billion
  2. Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn.:                                                         $1.5 billion
  3. Mass General Brigham, Somerville, Mass.:                                       $1.2 billion
  4. Northwell Health, New Hyde Park, N.Y.:                                          $1.2 billion
  5. NYC Health and Hospitals, New York, N.Y.:                                   $1 billion
  6. Sutter Health, Sacramento, Calif.:                                                      $1 billion
  7. New York-Presbyterian, New York, N.Y.:                                        $964 million
  8. Providence, Renton, Wash.:                                                               $800 million   
  9. Trinity Health, Livonia, Mich.:                                                          $800 million
  10. Duke University Health, Durham, N.C.:                                            $700 million
  11. UMass Memorial Health, Worcester, Mass.:                                     $700 million   

Training Key for New EHR: Report

According to a report by research firm KLAS titled, “EHR Implementations 2025: Investing in People to Avoid Pitfalls and Ensure Clinical Success,” in addition to the “tremendous financial undertaking,” healthcare organizations also face implementation challenges following EHR installations.

KLAS reported that among the healthcare leaders KLAS interviewed:

  • 27% had “an above-average EHR post-implementation” likely due to “providing technological foundation needed” at go-live, while,
  • 40% said implementation of the EHR “had significant misses” and,
  • 22% reported “average satisfaction with room for improvement.”

Providing staff with adequate training may smooth the way for new EHRs, according to the KLAS report. “Often, leaders wish they had invested in more training time and workflow-specific training in the context of patient care,” the authors wrote.

New EHR May Mean New LIS

Pathologists and clinical laboratory leaders may need to transition the laboratory information system (LIS) when the healthcare organization moves to a new EHR. At the very least, new interfaces will be required.

While a new EHR and LIS requires significant investments, they also provide opportunities for needed upgrades, competitive advantage, and security.           

—Donna Marie Pocius

Creating Added Value from Clinical Pathology Laboratory Testing Produced Improved Outcomes at University of Mississippi Medical Center and Broward Health

Jun 22, 2015 | Coding, Billing, and Collections, Digital Pathology, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Testing, Managed Care Contracts & Payer Reimbursement, Management & Operations

Innovative medical laboratories shared their successes in improving lab test utilization that included physician engagement and close monitoring of key metrics

DATELINE: ORLANDO, FLORIDA—One big challenge facing medical laboratories  and anatomic pathology groups in the United States today is the need to transition from a transaction-based business model (increasing specimen volume leads to increasing revenue) to a value-based business model (helping providers improve their use of clinical laboratory tests in ways that measurably improve patient outcomes while controlling or reducing the cost of care.)

Two trends reinforce the need for clinical laboratories to craft strategies to develop new ways to add value to lab testing services.

One trend is the move by Medicare and private health insurers to shift reimbursement for providers away from fee-for-service  and toward bundled reimbursement and budgeted reimbursement.

The second trend is the emergence of integrated clinical care organizations. The most visible of these are accountable care organizations (ACO) and patient-centered medical homes (PCMH). What these care delivery organizations have in common is that they require hospitals, physicians, clinical laboratories, imaging centers, nursing homes and other types of providers to work together more effectively so that patients receive healthcare in a seamless fashion because there is a continuum: primary care to specialty care to acute care and back again. (more…)

Clinical Pathology Laboratory Leaders Reported Big Savings from Cost-Cutting Programs during Last Week’s Lab Quality Confab

Oct 7, 2013 | Laboratory Hiring & Human Resources, Laboratory Instruments & Laboratory Equipment, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Pathology, Management & Operations, News From Dark Daily

A sold-out audience gathered at the seventh annual Lab Quality Confab and heard speakers from the nation’s most innovative medical laboratories share case studies about success in cutting lab expenses and improving quality

DATELINE: NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA—At a time when medical laboratories in the United States are experiencing significant financial challenges, there was plenty of guarded optimism among the clinical laboratory managers and pathologists who gathered in this famous city last week for the seventh annual Lab Quality Confab.

One reason for this optimism is that speakers and attendees at this sold-out meeting are the nation’s leading experts in the use of Lean, Six Sigma, and process improvement methods in medical laboratories and pathology groups. They know how to cut lab costs while maintaining quality and boosting the productivity of the lab’s staff and automated systems. (more…)

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