Data access and market power in health IT: an expert interview with Brendan "Health API Guy" Keeler, interoperability practice lead at HTD
On August 14, STAT and Reuters reported that the Federal Trade Commission has opened a broad inquiry into Epic Systems' business practices. According to those accounts, investigators have asked about Epic's employment agreements restricting former employees from joining competitors, and about whether Epic's position with hospitals has made it harder for competing technology vendors to obtain the patient data they need to operate. The FTC has reportedly sent investigative demands to other companies across health tech. Epic says it is a leader in interoperability and does not engage in anticompetitive behavior. No findings have been made, and the agency has declined to comment.
News of the investigation landed just before Epic's annual Users Group Meeting, where the company laid out a roadmap that keeps extending into adjacent markets — AI, payments, and clinical reference among them — while racking up new customer wins in the health system market.
Brendan Keeler is Interoperability Practice Lead at HTD Health and writes Health API Guy, the definitive source on interoperability, APIs, and health IT regulation. He previously worked at Epic, Redox, Zus Health, and Flexpa, and has written extensively on Epic's litigation history, the information-blocking rules, and the structure of health data exchange. HTN's Kevin O'Leary will sit down with him to work through both threads.
Live event open to everyone, replay and transcript exclusively available for HTN Pros.