Skip to main content
Subscribe
  • Login
  • My Account
  • Logout
  • Register For Free
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Current News
    • Providers
    • Insurance
    • Government
    • Finance
    • Technology
    • Safety & Quality
    • Digital Health
    • Transformation
    • ESG
    • People
    • Regional News
    • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Patients
    • Operations
    • Care Delivery
    • Payment
    • Midwest
    • Northeast
    • South
    • West
  • Blogs
    • AI
    • Deals
    • Layoff Tracker
    • HLTH 2024
    • Sponsored Content: Vital Signs Blog
  • Opinion
    • Letters
    • From the Editor
  • Events & Awards
    • Awards
    • Conferences
    • Galas
    • Virtual Briefings
    • Webinars
    • Nominate/Eligibility
    • 100 Most Influential People
    • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
    • 40 Under 40
    • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
    • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
    • Innovators Awards
    • Diversity Leaders
    • Leading Women
    • Best in Business Awards
    • The 2030 Playbook Conference
    • Innovations in Patient Experience
    • Leading Women Conference & Awards Luncheon
    • Leadership Summit
    • Workforce Summit
    • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
    • Diversity Leaders Gala
    • - Looking Ahead to 2025
    • - Financial Growth
    • - Hospital of the Future
    • - Value Based Care
    • - Looking Ahead to 2026
  • Multimedia
    • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
    • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
    • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
    • Sponsored Video Series - Checking In with Dan Peres
  • Data & Insights
    • Data & Insights Home
    • Hospital Financials
    • Staffing & Compensation
    • Quality & Safety
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Skilled Nursing Facilities
    • Data Archive
    • Resource Guide: By the Numbers
    • Surveys
    • Data Points
  • Newsletters
  • MORE+
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Media Kit
    • Jobs
    • People on the Move
    • Reprints & Licensing
    • Sponsored Content
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. Technology
December 09, 2022 04:35 PM

Epic to temporarily shut down its app market

Brock E.W. Turner
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print
    Epic_Systems_112109_Sign.jpg
    ylem, Wikimedia Commons

    Epic, the electronic health record giant based in Verona, Wisconsin, is shutting down its app market and overhauling how its end users interact with third-party applications. 

    Epic’s app market, where developers can list their applications for end users to explore, will shut down temporarily on January 9, said Nate Bubb, technical services division lead at Epic. The company will reopen the app market at a date to be determined.

    In its place, Epic is launching Connection Hub, which will be an online directory where vendors can self-report if they’ve connected into Epic’s application programming interface. It will switch all existing applications on the app market to Vendor Services, a program where vendors can receive developer support and a chance to test their code before going onto Connection Hub. Bubb said no services will be affected by the transition. 

    Not a Modern Healthcare subscriber? Sign up today.

    While Epic said this will increase the number of third-party vendors that can connect into its system, critics say the company is making it harder for providers to pick their own solutions.  

    “Imagine if Apple did the same thing,” said Glen Tullman, CEO of Transcarent, a virtual visits and benefits management company, and former CEO of Allscripts, an Epic competitor, via text message. “Whose interest is Epic really serving?” 

    According to Epic, its health system customers were seeking clarity on apps that the EHR company had vetted. Epic said it isn’t de-platforming solutions, but revamping its system was necessary as more applications have connected into its API.  

    “We have to support our core software and to [form] any kind of deeper relationship across 1000 vendors is not sustainable,” Bubb said. “I can’t look anyone in the eye and tell [users] we’re doing the deep-level of vetting that they thought were doing.” 

    Under the plan, a redesigned app market will feature applications with Epic’s seal of approval. Bubb said it will include a smaller lineup of apps than the 800 or so that are presently listed. The other apps will be listed on the Connection Hub directory if they are live with one customer. They won’t receive as much marketing and technical support as those on the app store.  

    Download Modern Healthcare’s app to stay informed when industry news breaks.

    Experts say providers are going to be pushed towards those apps that are on the Epic app market.  

    “They want to maintain control,” said Alexander Lennox-Miller, lead analyst in healthcare IT at CB Insights. “It basically allows them to have two tiers.”  

    Epic said it hasn’t yet determined which apps will get selected for its revamped app store. Critics say the EHR company could be scrutinized for which companies get on this app market.  

    “They’re going to have to find out how they build transparency for customers,” said Erik Brown, a senior partner in consultancy West Monroe’s product experience and engineering lab. “Who are the vendors they have relationships with versus other similar solutions they might not be directly promoting?” 

    Bubb said the company was not stacking the deck against certain third-party vendors but its end users sought help in sorting out a crowded market.  

    "If you look at the last few years, more than $50 billion has been invested in digital health startups that come and go,” Bubb said. “I’ve heard from a lot of customers that there’s a lot of noise and they want more signal.”  

    According to Bubb, Epic has not had internal discussions about the fees it will seek for solutions that receive its seal of approval.   

    Brown said health systems should research and examine any implementation with the same level of scrutiny regardless of where it’s listed. Lennox-Miller cautioned developers in spaces where Epic is likely to compete. 

    “If you have a product that’s filling a gap that Epic doesn’t offer, and it becomes extremely popular and takes off... Epic’s next step is going to be to develop an equivalent and they’re going rollout it out, and it’s going to be free to all their clients,” Lennox-Miller said.  

    However, Lennox-Miller wasn’t completely down on Epic for making this move.  

    “Prior to this Epic had their relatively closed off ecosystem, walled garden approach,” Lennox-Miller said. “They’ll still have some version of that with the app market with their preferred vendors or whatever you want to call that, but having more stuff that is potentially well-integrated, truly interoperable with core EHR functions is better in my opinion.” 

    This story first appeared in Digital Health Business & Technology.

    Related Articles
    Epic outlines what's ahead for patient portal, Cosmos
    Court slashes punitive damages in Epic-Tata trade secrets suit
    A third of U.S. hospitals use Epic, report finds
    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Send us a letter

    Have an opinion about this story? Click here to submit a Letter to the Editor, and we may publish it in print.

    Recommended for You
    IU Health Methodist
    IU Health patient data compromised in cyberattack
    U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
    Upcoming FDA draft on pulse oximetry's racial bias draws questions
    Most Popular
    1
    UnitedHealth under criminal investigation for Medicare fraud: WSJ
    2
    States, providers face brunt of GOP Medicaid cuts plan
    3
    UnitedHealth Group to cut Medicare drug plan commissions
    4
    Federal dementia pilot has rocky rollout for some providers
    5
    'Legendary' Hemsley takes over at UnitedHealth amid rough seas
    Sponsored Content
    Digital Health Intelligence Newsletter: Sign up to receive a twice-weekly (T, F) morning newsletter featuring the latest reporting on technologies, trends, players and money fueling the rapid changes in how healthcare is developed, paid for and delivered.
    Get Newsletters

    Sign up for enewsletters and alerts to receive breaking news and in-depth coverage of healthcare events and trends, as they happen, right to your inbox.

    Subscribe Today
    MH Magazine Cover

    MH magazine offers content that sheds light on healthcare leaders’ complex choices and touch points—from strategy, governance, leadership development and finance to operations, clinical care, and marketing.

    Subscribe
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS

    Our Mission

    Modern Healthcare empowers industry leaders to succeed by providing unbiased reporting of the news, insights, analysis and data.

    Contact Us

    (877) 812-1581

    Email us

     

    Resources
    • Contact Us
    • Help Center
    • Advertise with Us
    • Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Editorial Dept
    • Submission Guidelines
    • Code of Ethics
    • Awards
    • About Us
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Modern Healthcare
    Copyright © 1996-2025. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Current News
      • Providers
      • Insurance
      • Government
      • Finance
      • Technology
      • Safety & Quality
      • Digital Health
      • Transformation
        • Patients
        • Operations
        • Care Delivery
        • Payment
      • ESG
      • People
      • Regional News
        • Midwest
        • Northeast
        • South
        • West
      • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Blogs
      • AI
      • Deals
      • Layoff Tracker
      • HLTH 2024
      • Sponsored Content: Vital Signs Blog
    • Opinion
      • Letters
      • From the Editor
    • Events & Awards
      • Awards
        • Nominate/Eligibility
        • 100 Most Influential People
        • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
        • 40 Under 40
        • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
        • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
        • Innovators Awards
        • Diversity Leaders
        • Leading Women
        • Best in Business Awards
      • Conferences
        • The 2030 Playbook Conference
        • Innovations in Patient Experience
        • Leading Women Conference & Awards Luncheon
        • Leadership Summit
        • Workforce Summit
      • Galas
        • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
        • Diversity Leaders Gala
      • Virtual Briefings
        • - Looking Ahead to 2025
        • - Financial Growth
        • - Hospital of the Future
        • - Value Based Care
        • - Looking Ahead to 2026
      • Webinars
    • Multimedia
      • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
      • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
      • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
      • Sponsored Video Series - Checking In with Dan Peres
    • Data & Insights
      • Data & Insights Home
      • Hospital Financials
      • Staffing & Compensation
      • Quality & Safety
      • Mergers & Acquisitions
      • Skilled Nursing Facilities
      • Data Archive
      • Resource Guide: By the Numbers
      • Surveys
      • Data Points
    • Newsletters
    • MORE+
      • Contact Us
      • Advertise
      • Media Kit
      • Jobs
      • People on the Move
      • Reprints & Licensing
      • Sponsored Content