HealthTech Remedy

Hospitals lose millions to medical billing errors. Discover how AKASA uses AI in revenue cycle management to cut claim denials and capture lost revenue.

Episode Resources:

• Against the Rules Podcast - Six Levels Down
• AKASA Official Resource Library
• CMS Guide to MS-DRG Classifications and Logic

With hospital operating margins often sitting in the single digits, the complex maze of medical billing is silently costing health systems millions in uncollected revenue. In this episode of HealthTech Remedy, we sit down with Benjamin Beadle-Ryby, co-founder of AKASA, to explore how generative AI is fundamentally transforming revenue cycle management (RCM). You will discover how shifting from manual coding to an autonomous revenue cycle can drastically reduce claim denials, uncover missed charges, and ultimately protect a hospital's financial mission. 

The conversation unpacks the structural complexity of hospital reimbursement, where a single inpatient encounter can generate 50,000 words of documentation that human coders must manually distill into precise ICD-10 and DRG codes. Benjamin shares the framework behind AKASA’s custom large language models, revealing how fine-tuning healthcare AI on a health system's specific historical data can seamlessly surface missed quality indicators in up to 10% of claims. We also debate the delicate balance of AI automation and human oversight, questioning what happens to the highly specialized knowledge of medical billers as these tools evolve. You’ll have to listen to find out why traditional rules-based systems are failing and exactly how generative AI could drive the cost to collect below one percent by 2030. 

If you enjoyed this deep dive into the intersection of health tech and healthcare finance, please subscribe and leave a review for HealthTech Remedy.

Discover how Marathon Health is solving the primary care shortage. CEO Dr. Jeff Wells reveals how advanced primary care lowers costs and improves outcomes.

Episode Resources:

• Marathon Health Study on Advanced Primary Care ROI
• 2024 AAMC Report on Physician Shortage Projections
• News on the Marathon Health and Everside Health Merger
• Overview of the Collaborative Care Model (CoCM) for Integrated Health
• KFF 2023 Employer Health Benefits Survey

Is the traditional healthcare system failing both patients and employers? In this episode of HealthTech Remedy, we sit down with Dr. Jeff Wells, CEO and co-founder of Marathon Health, to explore how his company is radically redesigning employer-sponsored healthcare. Tune in to discover how moving away from the broken fee-for-service system can actually improve patient outcomes, increase clinician retention, and drastically reduce healthcare costs for businesses.

The hosts and Dr. Wells break down the core philosophy behind "advanced primary care," a hybrid delivery model combining on-site, near-site, and virtual clinics that meets workers exactly where they are. They examine the stark differences between traditional health systems and Marathon Health’s value-based care approach, highlighting how 30-minute appointments and seamlessly integrated behavioral health lead to a massive reduction in hospital admissions. But how exactly does this employer-driven model manage to pay for itself in year one while simultaneously solving the notorious primary care shortage? You will have to listen to find out how Marathon Health's tech-enabled infrastructure is successfully flipping the economics of population health management on its head.

If you are passionate about the future of medical delivery and health tech innovation, be sure to subscribe to HealthTech Remedy and leave us a review.

Discover how the Pittsburgh health tech ecosystem drives healthcare innovation. Leaders from UPMC and PLSA reveal the exact playbook for building AI unicorns.

Episode Resources:

• Abridge Clinical AI Platform
• UPMC Enterprises Venture Arm
• Pittsburgh Life Sciences Alliance
• Krystal Biotech Precision Therapeutics
• ElevateBio’s Biomanufacturing Expansion in Pittsburgh
• CMU Computational Biology Department

Think Silicon Valley and Boston are the only undisputed capitals of healthcare innovation? Think again. In this episode of HealthTech Remedy, we explore how Pittsburgh has quietly transformed from an industrial Rust Belt giant into a dominant powerhouse for health tech innovation and venture creation. By tuning in, you'll discover the exact blueprint this region uses to turn cutting-edge academic research into billion-dollar healthcare unicorns like Abridge, giving you a fresh perspective on where to build, scale, or invest next.

We sit down with Mary Beth Navarra-Sirio formerly of UPMC Enterprises and Megan Kahn Shaw of the Pittsburgh Life Sciences Alliance to unpack the city's highly successful approach to incubating startups. They break down the "3C perspective" framework that seamlessly bridges the gap between raw AI talent at institutions like Carnegie Mellon and real-world clinical workflows at massive, integrated health systems. You'll hear why most medical device and healthcare AI companies fail not because of flawed technology, but due to a misunderstood business model - and exactly how Pittsburgh’s full-stack commercial sandbox prevents these fatal missteps. We also reveal the two specific sectors of data-driven health and precision therapeutics that this ecosystem is betting its entire future on, but you'll have to listen to find out why.

If you're an entrepreneur or investor looking for the next massive geographic advantage in health technology, check the show notes for links to the resources and alliances mentioned today. Don't forget to subscribe to HealthTech Remedy and leave us a five-star review so we can continue bringing you the stories behind healthcare's most innovative companies.

Discover how Stedi CEO Zack Kanter built a modern healthcare clearinghouse after the Change Healthcare outage. Learn how API-driven EDI and AI transform RCM.

Episode Resources:

• Stedi
• Stedi Documentation for Healthcare EDI and APIs
• Timeline of the 2024 Change Healthcare Cyberattack
• Guide to X12 Standards and HIPAA Regulations
• CAQH Index Reports on Healthcare Transaction Costs
• About Zack Kanter: Journey and Mission

When the largest U.S. healthcare clearinghouse went dark in a massive cyberattack, it exposed the fragile, outdated plumbing powering the medical system's financial backbone. In this episode of HealthTech Remedy, we sit down with Zack Kanter, founder and CEO of Stedi, to uncover how his company is replacing decades-old billing infrastructure with modern, developer-friendly technology. By tuning in, you'll learn how upgrading the invisible layers of Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) is the crucial first step to unlocking the true potential of AI in healthcare.

Zack shares his unconventional journey from selling automotive parts to tackling the massive technical debt hidden within healthcare's revenue cycle management. He breaks down why legacy clearinghouses relying on batch processing aren't equipped for real-time APIs, and how his team built a drop-in replacement in just five days during an industry-wide crisis. The conversation also explores how seamless, automated data pipes are the missing link required for agentic AI to finally transform administrative workflows. Listen in to find out how fixing this underlying plumbing is preparing the medical system for a fully programmable future. 

If you are ready to explore the foundational technologies shaping the future of care, be sure to subscribe to HealthTech Remedy and leave us a review. Don't forget to check the show notes for more information on Zack, Stedi, and the resources mentioned in today's conversation.

Learn how RevealDX uses AI and radiomics to characterize lung nodules, reduce false positives, and accelerate early cancer detection in this expert interview.

Episode Resources

• RevealDX
• The Fleischner Society
• ACR Lung-RADS
• National Lung Screening Trial (NLST)
• I-ELCAP Research
• HeartFlow

Lung nodules are one of the most common "incidentalomas" found in modern imaging, yet the path from detection to diagnosis is often fraught with patient anxiety and unnecessary biopsies. In this episode, we are joined by Chris Wood, the CEO of RevealDX, to discuss how his company is revolutionizing the diagnostic process. By using advanced AI to move beyond simple detection and into precise characterization, the platform helps clinicians distinguish between benign spots and high-risk malignancies before invasive procedures are required.

Chris shares his journey as a serial entrepreneur and details the rigorous process of building clinical evidence for AI-driven tools. We explore the critical role of radiomics in identifying subtle features invisible to the human eye and the complex landscape of health tech reimbursement. The conversation also covers how these tools can streamline hospital workflows, support overburdened radiologists, and ultimately improve the success rate of early cancer detection programs by catching malignancies when they are most treatable.

If you are a clinician, hospital administrator, or health tech founder looking to understand how to bridge the gap between innovative algorithms and routine clinical practice, this episode is essential listening. Chris provides a masterclass in navigating the "second wave" of healthcare technology, focusing on sustainable business models and measurable patient outcomes. Learn how a risk-adapted approach to lung nodules can save lives while reducing the burden on an overstretched healthcare system.

Learn how athenahealth is building the AI-native EHR to reduce clinician burnout. Paul Brient shares insights on ambient dictation and revenue cycle management.

Episode Resources

• athenaOne: All-in-One Health Software
• Paul Brient, Chief Product Officer Profile
• athenahealth Ambient Notes

Traditional electronic health records often feel like a digital burden rather than a helpful tool. Paul Brient, Chief Product and Operations Officer at athenahealth, joins the show to discuss how they are transforming the industry by building an AI-native EHR designed specifically for the modern ambulatory setting.

Paul shares the evolution of athenahealth from an OBGYN startup to a multi-billion dollar platform supporting 170,000 providers. We explore how ambient dictation is moving beyond simple transcription to automate clinical orders and significantly reduce clinician burnout. By leveraging data-driven insights, athenahealth is helping independent practices remain competitive through streamlined revenue cycle management and integrated patient engagement tools.

If you are a healthcare leader or clinician looking to reclaim your "pajama time" and understand the future of clinical documentation, this episode is for you. Learn how to navigate the AI hype cycle and implement technology that offers real, incremental value to your daily workflow.

Is the EHR causing physician burnout? Wellsheet CEO Craig Limoli joins HealthTech Remedy to discuss reducing "pajama time," integrating UpToDate, and using AI to transform clinical documentation.

Episode Resources:

• Learn more about Wellsheet
• Follow Craig Limoli on LinkedIn
• Details on the Wellsheet & UpToDate Partnership

In this episode of HealthTech Remedy, hosts Dr. Tim Showalter, Dr. Paul Gerrard, and Dr. Trevor Royce dive into one of the most persistent frustrations in modern medicine: the burden of the Electronic Health Record (EHR). We sit down with Craig Limoli, Co-founder and CEO of Wellsheet, to discuss how his company is tackling the dreaded "pajama time" - the hours physicians spend charting late at night - not by replacing the EHR, but by fixing how clinicians interact with it. If you’ve ever felt buried under thirty open tabs while trying to find a single lab result, this conversation is for you.

Craig breaks down Wellsheet’s unique approach as an intelligent "layer" that sits on top of existing systems like Epic and Cerner. We explore how their predictive workflow technology consolidates fragmented patient data into a single, intuitive view, and discuss their game-changing partnership with UpToDate that brings clinical guidelines directly into the decision-making process. The discussion also covers their latest AI advancements, including an agent that allows doctors to "chat" with a patient's chart to retrieve data instantly and features that automate inpatient documentation to save hours of manual work.

Finally, we look ahead to the "healthcare utopia of 2030." We discuss why smarter collaboration tools are essential for solving the looming clinical workforce shortage and how responsible AI can reduce burnout while improving patient safety. Whether you are a healthcare executive, a practicing clinician, or a tech enthusiast, this episode offers a pragmatic look at how intelligent workflows are reshaping the future of care delivery.

About Our Guest:

Craig Limoli is the Co-Founder and CEO of Wellsheet, a company on a mission to fix the usability crisis in healthcare technology. His journey began as a strategy consultant at IBM's Watson Health, where he witnessed firsthand the immense frustration clinicians faced with antiquated and inefficient EHR systems. Motivated by a nursing leader who broke down in tears over her inability to access the data needed to treat her patients, Craig left to build the solution himself. Wellsheet was born from this experience, with the goal of creating a single, intelligent "sheet" that synthesizes all relevant data for clinical decision-making.

Timestamps:

(00:00) Introduction: The Problem with Medical Charting

(02:56) Defining the Crisis: EHRs, "Pajama Time," and Clinician Burnout

(04:51) Wellsheet's Strategy: An Intelligent Layer, Not a New EHR

(08:28) Improving Care Team Collaboration and ROI for Health Systems

(13:25) Meet the Founder: Craig Limoli's Journey from IBM to Wellsheet

(17:58) The Strategic Advantage of Integrating With, Not Replacing, the EHR

(20:55) Product Deep Dive: How AI Summarizes Data and Automates Documentation

(25:21) Enhancing Workflows with Clinical Decision Support (UpToDate Integration)

(32:22) The Business Model: Selling to Clinicians and Hospital Executives

(34:31) Building Guardrails for AI in Healthcare

(37:24) The Future Vision for a Productive and Efficient Healthcare System

What were the biggest health tech trends in 2025? After a year of conversations with dozens of founders, clinicians, and investors, we're cutting through the noise to reveal what actually changed, where the hype fell flat, and where real momentum is building. We unpack the surprising gap between private equity investment and medical AI, debating whether AI is truly making healthcare faster and cheaper or if the money is flowing elsewhere.

In this special 2025 year-in-review, the HealthTech Remedy hosts - Dr. Tim Showalter, Dr. Paul Gerrard, and Dr. Trevor Royce - step back to connect the dots from a transformative year. We explore the massive theme of AI in healthcare, moving beyond buzzwords to distinguish between generative AI and classification models and how they are practically applied in the clinic today. We challenge the narrative of AI replacing doctors, arguing instead that technology is empowering clinicians with new "superpowers" and cementing the importance of the human element in patient care.

This episode synthesizes a year of insights into the most important health tech trends of 2025. We dive deep into the rise of physician entrepreneurs in health tech, highlighting how clinical leaders are the key to building successful companies that solve real-world workflow problems. We also tackle the foundational, less glamorous, but critical challenges of healthcare data integration and EHR interoperability, discussing how solving these "1980s engineering problems" is finally unlocking modern innovation. From automating healthcare administration nightmares with companies like Infinitus Systems to creating entirely new categories of patient care with Viz.ai, we cover the companies and ideas that challenged our thinking. We discuss the last-mile delivery solutions of Sprinter Health and Hims & Hers, the drug repurposing mission of Every Cure, the paradigm-shifting vision of the Enhanced Games, and key takeaways from the HLTH 2025 conference. Join us as we reflect on the lessons learned and what they mean for the future of healthcare.

Timestamps

(00:00) Holiday Banter & Intro

(00:55) Reflecting on 2025's Key Health Tech Learnings

(02:37) The Big Picture: AI Investment vs. Private Equity in Healthcare

(05:31) Defining the Role of AI: Generative vs. Classification and Augmenting Humans

(07:05) The Rise of Physician Entrepreneurs in Health Tech

(09:58) The Foundational Challenge: Healthcare Data Integration and EHR Interoperability

(12:47) Standout Companies and Surprising Insights from 2025 (Every Cure, Infinitus Systems, Hims & Hers)

(16:36) Tackling an Endless Pain Point: Automating Healthcare Administration

(18:09) Beyond Efficiency: How AI Is Creating Net-New Healthcare Products (Viz.ai)

(20:17) Unlocking Untapped Data: From Endoscopy Footage to Clinical Guidelines

(21:59) Key Company Takeaways from the HLTH 2025 Conference (Rimidi, Weight Watchers, GE Healthcare)

(24:40) Rethinking Human Performance: The Provocative Case of the Enhanced Games

(27:07) Final Reflections on the Podcast Journey & Top Episodes of the Year

Episode Resources

Companies Discussed in This Episode:

• Every Cure
• Infinitus Systems
• Sprinter Health
• Hims & Hers
• Viz.ai
• Artisight
• Virgo
• Cohere Health
• Turquoise Health
• SmarterDX
• ASCO (American Society of Clinical Oncology)
• GE Healthcare
• WeightWatchers
• Rimidi
• Enhanced Games

How does a pharmacist become a venture capitalist? Hear Meg Powell's story on the transition from big pharma to startup and her advice for women in healthcare leadership.

Episode resources:

• Learn about 501 Ventures
• Follow Meg Powell on LinkedIn

Have you ever wondered if your clinical training could lead to a career in high-stakes investing? This episode charts the incredible journey of Meg Powell, who forged a unique path from pharmacist to venture capitalist. Meg shares the invaluable lessons, pivotal moments, and scrappy determination that took her from a small town in North Carolina to the executive suites of Big Pharma, the trenches of a successful startup, and finally to the helm of her own venture capital firm. We explore the core question: How do you build a multifaceted career in healthcare, and what does it truly take to transition from clinician to entrepreneur to investor?

In this deep-dive conversation, Meg Powell, co-founder and CEO of 501 Ventures, reveals the playbook for navigating a dynamic career in the life sciences. She details her foundational years at Eli Lilly and GSK, explaining why a transition from big pharma to startup life provided her with indispensable training and an unparalleled network. Meg walks us through the origin story of Target RWE, a pioneering real world evidence company she co-founded with Dr. Mike Freed. She shares the challenges of building a profitable company from the ground up with minimal funding, the importance of finding the right co-founder, and the strategy behind their successful exit. We also learn about her experience with imposter syndrome and how being a "scrappy entrepreneur" became her greatest asset.

Now, Meg is focused on the next frontier of medicine through healthcare venture capital. She discusses the formation of 501 Ventures with her partner Enrique Conterno (former President of Lilly Diabetes) and their investment thesis in the booming metabolic health and obesity market, fueled by innovations like Tirzepatide (Zepbound). A significant part of our discussion is dedicated to women in healthcare leadership. Meg speaks candidly about the "aha moments" that ignited her passion for mentorship, the challenges she faced, and how she is paying it forward with "The Fierce Collaborative," a network dedicated to supporting women and mothers in the life sciences. This episode is packed with authentic career advice, insights into the future of healthcare investing, and the inspiring story of a leader who has consistently broken new ground.

About our guest:

Meg Powell is the Co-founder and CEO of 501 Ventures, a venture capital firm focused on metabolic health. A PharmD by training, Meg began her career in Big Pharma at Eli Lilly and GlaxoSmithKline before transitioning to the startup world. She was the co-founder and CEO of Target RWE, a leading real-world evidence company that she grew from an idea to a highly successful exit. Meg is a passionate advocate for women in leadership and a mentor to the next generation of healthcare entrepreneurs.

Most doctors have brilliant ideas, but why do 98% of them fail before they ever reach a patient? The brutal truth is that a clinical mindset is not an entrepreneurial mindset, and the skills that make a great doctor are not the same ones that build a successful company. In this episode, we sit down with the ultimate physician entrepreneur, Dr. Arlen Meyers, to uncover the harsh realities of medical innovation and why your great idea is probably destined to fail without a fundamental shift in thinking.

Dr. Meyers, an academic surgeon turned serial entrepreneur, shares his own frustrating journey as an "accidental med-tech entrepreneur" trying to commercialize a cancer-detecting gadget. This experience revealed a massive gap in medical education: the complete lack of training in the business of medicine. This gap inspired him to create the Society of Physician Entrepreneurs (SoPE), a global network dedicated to helping clinicians navigate the treacherous path from idea to impact. We explore the critical need for doctors to develop an entrepreneurial mindset, whether they are launching a startup, pioneering medical innovation within a hospital (as an "intrapreneur"), or considering a physician career change. Dr. Meyers provides a clear definition of what it truly means to be a physician entrepreneur, arguing that it's a mindset that can be developed, not just an innate trait. He introduces the concept of the "innerpreneur"—the hidden innovator DNA that many clinicians possess but don't know how to activate. We also discuss why he believes most MD-MBA programs are a "bad idea" and why teaching the business of medicine must be integrated directly into medical school. Finally, Dr. Meyers explains the mission of the Society of Physician Entrepreneurs and offers his most important piece of advice for any doctor pursuing an entrepreneurial role: "make it personal, but don't take it personally."

About Our Guest:

Dr. Arlen Meyers is an academic surgeon, professor, MD, and MBA who became frustrated by the lack of entrepreneurial support for clinicians. He is the founder of the Society of Physician Entrepreneurs (SoPE), a global non-profit organization that provides education, resources, and networking to help physician innovators get their ideas to patients. After a long career in academic medicine, he now dedicates his time to teaching, writing, and consulting to bridge the gap between medicine and entrepreneurship.

Chapters:

(00:00) Why Most Medical Ideas from Doctors Are Doomed to Fail

(01:37) Dr. Meyers' Journey: From Accidental Med-Tech Entrepreneur to Innovator

(06:09) Defining the Physician Entrepreneur and the "Innerpreneur" Mindset

(12:06) The Critical Gap in Medical Education: The Business of Medicine

(18:24) The Creation of the Society of Physician Entrepreneurs (SoPE)

(21:37) The Forgotten Skill: Why Physician Entrepreneurs Must Learn to Sell

(25:23) The Future of the Physician Entrepreneur Ecosystem

(29:01) Final Advice: Making It Personal, But Not Taking It Personally

Episode Resources:

• Learn more about the Society of Physician Entrepreneurs (SoPE)
• Read Dr. Meyers' articles on Substack
• Connect with Dr. Meyers on LinkedIn