BOSTON – Not content with sitting still while its Emageon purchase is in the works. AMICAS has announced a new deal to market its radiology and medical imaging products Down Under.
The Boston-based vendor announced on Tuesday an exclusive partnership with Healthinc, a Sydney, Australia-based provider of digital medical imaging solutions and radiology information management, to market the company’s PACS, Reach and RadStream products in Australia. Those products will be integrated with Healthinc’s OCCAM RIS solution.
"The automation needs for the practice of radiology in Australia are very similar to those in the United States,” said Stephen Kahane, AMICAS’ president, CEO and chairman, in a press release. “AMICAS' solutions focus on critical issues to radiology, including servicing referring physicians, managing critical results and offering intrinsic clinical tools for mammography and 3D. Our solutions have had a proven impact on the business of imaging in the United States and we expect these solutions to be well adopted in Australia.”
Healthinc, which has products in more than 350 sites around Australia, will be distributing AMICAS PACS Version 6.0 as well as Reach, which allows radiology practices and departments to connect with and provide service to referring physicians, and RadStream, which automates and documents critical results communications.
"Our partnership with AMICAS provides an immense opportunity for us to deploy a completely Web-based solution that has unparalleled functionality and offers a level of service to referring physician that is unmatched," said Michael Beck, managing director of Healthinc. "When seamlessly coupled with Healthinc's OCCAM RIS, this solution provides radiology practices with the most advanced business management tools available."
AMICAS, meanwhile, is expecting its $39 million offer to acquire Emageon to be completed sometime during the second quarter of this year. The Birmingham, Ala.-based technology provider for hospitals, healthcare facilities and imaging networks moved to ease the transition earlier this week when it announced a settlement to a shareholder lawsuit that had been filed in the wake of the Emageon-AMICAS deal.
Emageon reported last week a 33.7 percent decrease in revenues in 2008, amounting to a net loss of $42.3 million when compared to 2007 figures.
The company’s revenues dropped from $104.6 million in 2007 to $69.3 million last year. After losing $7.1 million in 2007, the company last year cut 20 positions, to bring its employee total to 306.
Emageon had hoped to be bought for $62 million by Tampa, Fla.-based Health Systems Solutions, but that deal fell apart in January when HSS’ principal financier collapsed under the weight of an ongoing international fraud investigation. AMICAS, which had been identified as a potential suitor along with HSS last year, then stepped in and negotiated a new deal, contingent on shareholder approval.
