By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    HIPPA compliance
    How Medical Office Staff Can Make Your Practice HIPAA Compliant
    October 29, 2021
    Everything you need to know about hyaluronic acid treatment
    Everything you need to know about hyaluronic acid treatment
    February 10, 2022
    Which Mushroom Capsules Are Good for Your Health?
    May 5, 2022
    Latest News
    6 Easy Healthcare Ways to Sit Less and Move More Every Day
    September 10, 2025
    7 Most Common Healthcare Accreditation Programs: Which Should You Use?
    August 20, 2025
    Hospital Pest Control and the Fight Against Superbugs
    August 20, 2025
    Hygiene Beyond The Clinic: Attention To Overlooked Non-Clinical Spaces
    August 13, 2025
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    Extending the Frontiers: Working Despite Alzheimer’s and Campus Smoking Bans
    September 1, 2011
    Wall Street Protesters Need a Cause Like Healthcare
    October 6, 2011
    Maps 2.0: Interacting With Our Health Care World
    November 14, 2011
    Latest News
    Healthcare at a Crossroads: Why Leadership Matters More Than Ever
    September 9, 2025
    How Social Security Disability Shapes Access to Care and Everyday Health
    August 22, 2025
    How a DUI Lawyer Can Help When Your Future Health Feels Uncertain
    August 22, 2025
    How One Fall Can Lead to a Long Road of Medical Complications
    August 22, 2025
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: Startup Founder Reacquires His Patient Portal Business
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Business > Finance > Startup Founder Reacquires His Patient Portal Business
BusinessFinanceNewsTechnology

Startup Founder Reacquires His Patient Portal Business

Deanna Pogorelc
Deanna Pogorelc
Share
5 Min Read
SHARE

patient portal startupOriginally published on MedCityNews.com.

 In 2010, entrepreneur Steve Malik achieved the pinnacle of entrepreneurial success when he sold his patient portal company, Medfusion, to Intuit Inc. for $91 million.

patient portal startupOriginally published on MedCityNews.com.

 In 2010, entrepreneur Steve Malik achieved the pinnacle of entrepreneurial success when he sold his patient portal company, Medfusion, to Intuit Inc. for $91 million.

More Read

Why Doctors Should Have Their Own Website
Promoting Healthcare Innovation Through Challenges
Antibiotics for a Virus? How to Just Say No
5 Things to Look for in a Next Generation Revenue Cycle Management System
MD Connect Drives 250,000th Digital Referral In Vein Market

Now, three years later, he’s buying it back.

Malik said he sees abundant opportunities in the patient portal market as Meaningful Use stage 3 lingers. Up to this point, engaging patients  with portals has been a struggle for providers — even at places like Mayo Clinic. Although rules for Meaningful Use stage 3 have been delayed until next year, draft guidelines proposed earlier this year required that 10 percent of patients would have to communicate with their provider through a portal.

And he thinks Medfusion, now called Intuit Health, has a big advantage in making that happen. “Intuit has invested tremendous amounts of dollars in the long-term potential of the business, particularly in scalability aspects of the solution that as a small company I could not have put the R&D into,” he said.

Malik remained general manager of the Cary, North Carolina-based company for two years after its acquisition, and has been vetting deals with other health IT companies as a venture capitalist over the past several months. That’s where he really saw the company’s advantage in the market, he said.

For example, in the three years that the company has been owned by Intuit, the number of physicians using it has essentially tripled in size, he said. Mobile accessibility was also never a consideration when he sold the company. But Intuit, which makes which makes Quicken and TurboTax software, applied its skills in mobile utilization to create a mobile app, which sees a rate of patient utilization about six times higher than the web version, he said.

In addition, Intuit had been able to apply some of its expertise in automation to Intuit Health’s billing, scheduling and patient engagement solutions. “The single biggest factor holding patients up today is that they have to enter data and no one wants to do that,” Malik said. “We’re making it easier for patients to not have to fill it in and creating more of a ‘do-it-for-me’ environment.”

Ultimately, though, Intuit decided its healthcare software development business didn’t align with the growth model of the company overall and would be better served by a company focused on the healthcare industry. In July, it announced it planned to sell Intuit Health Group. The terms of the deal with Malik were not disclosed.

“I envision a world where providers, after your visit, say ‘here’s an app for you,’” Malik said. An important part of that vision is that data from the patient would also flow back into the EHR. That’s a long way from where it was when he started the company 15 years ago, when the term “patient portal” wasn’t even being used yet. Now, the average Intuit Health customer has about 18 percent of its patients using the portal, he said.

Future plans for growth include making a move into the community health space. “There’s still a lot of movement and opportunity and we’re excited about those growth potentials,” he said. “There are a lot of tethered portals today that work with one EHR vendor, but as you look at consolidation of practices and hospitals, most community systems have multiple IT environments. To be the agnostic leader and work with virtually any HIT is a huge advantage and you’ll see us moving more into that community practice space.”

TAGGED:intuit healthmedfusion
Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

a woman walking on the hallway
6 Easy Healthcare Ways to Sit Less and Move More Every Day
Health
September 9, 2025
Clinical Expertise
Healthcare at a Crossroads: Why Leadership Matters More Than Ever
Global Healthcare
September 9, 2025
travel nurse in north carolina
Balancing Speed and Scope: Choosing the Nursing Degree That Fits Your Goals
Nursing
September 1, 2025
intimacy
How to Keep Intimacy Comfortable as You Age
Relationship and Lifestyle Senior Care
September 1, 2025

You Might also Like

Healthcare Maps from RAC

March 17, 2011

Bladder Cancer Care in America Gets a Failing Grade

July 12, 2011
health and fitness
Medical InnovationsTechnologyWellness

Data-Driven Exercise for the Disabled

August 17, 2013
Think Patients Are Bad At Communicating? Rethink Your Systems
Hospital Administration

Think Patients Are Bad At Communicating? Rethink Your Systems

January 17, 2019
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?