New workflow advances U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services interoperability goals
BOSTON & BALTIMORE–(BUSINESS WIRE)–athenahealth and b.well Connected Health today announced a new point-of-care workflow allowing patients to securely share their health information digitally during intake—without paper forms, faxes, or multiple portal logins. The companies expect a broader rollout of this capability in 2026.
The new workflow advances the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) Health Tech Ecosystem Initiative goal to replace manual intake and fragmented data exchange with patient-directed tools, an effort called Kill the Clipboard. athenahealth and b.well are doing their part to fulfill this pledge by ensuring patients who want to incorporate their data into these processes can do so with ease.
“Your health data should follow you, not the other way around,” said Sam Lambson, vice president of data and ecosystem platform for athenahealth. “This collaboration shows what’s possible when healthcare technology puts patients in control of their data and removes friction for providers.”
How it works
For patients, this begins at the point of care with practices using athenaOne®, athenahealth’s AI-native, cloud-based platform that combines electronic health record, revenue cycle management, and patient engagement tools.
- Patients use apps powered by b.well to digitally collect their medical records from different sources into a single, patient-controlled view.
- Patients choose what information to share with providers and present it using a QR code.
- Practice staff scan the QR code to securely retrieve the authorized information, review it, and add it directly to the patient’s chart within athenaOne.
- After the visit, the appointment summary flows back to patients—available in both their athena patient portal and apps powered by b.well.
Because b.well connects with consumer health apps and wearables, patients can also choose to share device-generated information, such as activity data, alongside their clinical records when they deem it relevant to their care.
“Patients shouldn’t have to work around healthcare technology systems to bring their data into care,” said Kristen Valdes, CEO and Founder of b.well. “With this approach, they can share exactly what they want, when they want, without losing control of their information.”
Part of a broader interoperability effort
athenahealth joined the CMS Health Tech Ecosystem initiative in July 2025 pledging to advance easy and secure data exchange and support the Kill the Clipboard goals. b.well also joined the initiative at the same time and pledged to be a CMS Aligned Network and Patient Facing Application for both Kill the Clipboard and Conversational AI.
The collaboration between athenahealth and b.well is one example of those ideas in action across real-world clinical workflows. athenahealth is a single-instance platform, which makes it uniquely suited to immediately and securely roll out these updates to its entire network. b.well’s platform helps patients aggregate, manage, and securely share their health information across care settings.
Both companies emphasized that patient-centered interoperability depends on broad adoption across the healthcare ecosystem. Open approaches to data sharing benefit patients, providers, and technology developers alike, regardless of the electronic health record system.
About athenahealth, Inc.
Since 1997, athenahealth has been curing complexity for ambulatory healthcare practices and the patients they serve, empowering them to deliver the best possible care and business outcomes through innovative clinical, financial, and patient engagement solutions. athenahealth connects practices, health systems, payers, partners, and patients to create a thriving ecosystem that delivers accessible, high-quality, and sustainable healthcare for all. Learn more at www.athenahealth.com.
About b.well
b.well Connected Health is the most data-rich digital health platform for AI-powered consumer experiences, personalized care, and better outcomes. The company solves healthcare’s fragmentation problem with a scalable, FHIR®-based platform that unifies health data, solutions, and access to healthcare services in one place. By creating longitudinal health records, cleansing and standardizing fragmented data through its proprietary Data Refinery, and delivering proactive insights, b.well empowers organizations to engage consumers in real time, simplify access to care, and support regulatory compliance. Learn more at www.bwell.com.
Contacts
Ashley Henson
media@athenahealth.com
