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Season 1 | Episode 55 - Sep 3, 2026

The Strategist in Brief: September 3, 2026

Episode Description

Related Topics:
Health Technology Artificial IntelligenceFinance and Operations
Relevant Roles:
Chief Strategy Officers

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  • Epic recently unveiled Ergo Visit, a platform that combines the company’s AI tools into a single workflow that assists clinicians before, during, and after an outpatient visit.

    • The announcement caught our attention because the ongoing migration of care to outpatient settings has turned the office visit into a key battleground where systems compete for access, patient loyalty, and increasingly scarce physician time.

    • To learn more, we interviewed Falyn Curtis, VP of Clinical Systems at Ochsner Health, the first system to put the tool into clinical use.

      • One month in, Ochsner is judging the tool on how physicians perceive it—less burnout, faster chart completion—rather than measurable ROI. The system is using time savings to ease physician workload and strengthen the patient-provider relationship rather than booking more patients.

      • Ochsner leans on layered AI governance including an AI Center of Excellence, an AI steering committee, and frontline clinicians to vet new tools as AI increasingly shapes clinical decisions.

  • New data from Aon forecasts that U.S. employer health costs will rise 9.5% in 2027, continuing an elevated trend for the past four years.

    • On the other hand, data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that health benefit spending is relatively stable as a share of total worker compensation. Instead, rising healthcare costs are translating into higher out-of-pocket spending.

    • Payers also report that AI upcoding is driving up healthcare spending.

  • More than 40 health systems across the country have posted alerts about a MyChart phishing scam that targets seniors with free Medicare kits or wellness packages.

    • As the industry-leading EMR vendor, Epic is a proven partner but also a recognizable target for bad actors.

    • Phishing scams predominantly target older Americans, making an aging patient population a ripe target. At past THMA forums, we’ve also heard about C-suite leaders and highly compensated physicians getting targeted by bad actors.

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About Our Host

Anika Rasheed

Anika is a Senior Analyst on the Strategy Catalyst team.

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