Allscripts Healthcare Solutions Inc. and privately-held Lyft announced a partnership to allow doctors to order Lyft rides for patients. The collaboration is intended for non-emergency transportation, the companies said, and they plan to integrate it into the patient’s electronic health record, which stores patient information electronically, so a doctor could note a patient’s transportation needs and then “an automated workflow” would set up a Lyft. Patient pickup, expected arrival and arrival would also be noted for doctors and other medical personnel. This would also allow transportation for follow-up care to be scheduled, the companies said. Allscripts is one of the top five electronic health record vendors in the U.S., according to the publication Healthcare IT News. Transportation is a notoriously difficult issue in health care, and typically cited as a reason why patients miss doctor’s appointments. The companies did not say in their release who would pay for the Lyft rides, and did not immediately return MarketWatch’s request for comment. The Monday announcement follows a program called Uber Health launched by rival transportation company Uber last week, which also allows health providers to schedule rides for patients; many hospitals are paying for the rides themselves, since it’s cheaper than missed appointments, the Atlantic reported last week. Allscripts shares were not active in premarket trade. Shares have risen 1.4% over the last three months, compared with a 2.4% rise in the S&P 500 .
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