Virtual well being startup Dorsata has filed a lawsuit in opposition to EHR supplier athenahealth and ladies’s well being corporate Unified Ladies’s Healthcare. The startup alleged that athenahealth stole industry secrets and techniques, used misleading trade practices and breached its contract — and that Unified aided and abetted those purported practices.

Dorsata filed its lawsuit within the civil court docket of Suffolk County, Massachusetts on Wednesday. Dorsata alleged 9 counts in opposition to athenahealth: unfair and misleading acts and practices, breach of oral contract, breach of fiduciary accountability, not unusual legislation fraud, unjust enrichment, robbery of industry secrets and techniques, tortious interference with present shoppers, breach of nondisclosure settlement and industrial disparagement. The startup additionally introduced two counts in opposition to Unified — assisting and abetting a breach of fiduciary accountability, in addition to breach of contract.

The defendants moved to impound the criticism on Friday morning, Dorsata CEO David Fairbrothers informed MedCity Information. Through looking to impound the criticism, athenahealth and Unified are in search of to get rid of public get right of entry to to the lawsuit and save you Dorsata from talking about it to the clicking. Alternatively, on the time of this newsletter’s e-newsletter, the criticism used to be nonetheless to be had for public viewing on Massachusetts’ state court docket site. 

That specialize in knowledge equipment that lend a hand obstetricians, Dorsata provides a platform that goals to scale back disparities in hospital therapy throughout being pregnant and save you avoidable headaches. About 700 OB-GYN suppliers around the nation use the startup’s platform, Fairbrothers mentioned. Dorsata partnered with athenahealth in 2016 and has been offering its instrument to obstetricians who use the corporate’s EHR since then, he added.

The criticism alleged that during 2021, athenahealth approached Dorsata and “proposed that they paintings in combination to pursue a broader courting with Unified, the biggest obstetrics and gynecological medical doctors staff in the US.” To do that, athenahealth steered that it paintings along side Dorsata to offer Unified with an built-in answer, the lawsuit mentioned.

Subsequent, Dorsata signed a non-disclosure settlement and equipped industry secrets and techniques and different confidential knowledge to athenahealth — together with monetary projections, buyer pricing, subject material contracts and device structure — in step with the criticism. The startup’s determination to offer this knowledge used to be “closely influenced” via the possibility that it might be got via athenahealth, the lawsuit mentioned.

Working underneath the figuring out that the 2 events would provide the device product to Unified as a three way partnership, Dorsata advanced a device referred to as vU. Alternatively, athenahealth used to be concurrently growing its personal model of vU that it deliberate to pitch to Unified with out Dorsata’s wisdom, the lawsuit charged.

Dorsata poured “vital time and assets” into the improvement of vU, and in consequence, the corporate wanted “a vital money infusion to proceed to expand its trade,” in step with the lawsuit. The startup determined to borrow $6 million from athenahealth on account of its trust that athenahealth “would both acquire Dorsata or proceed its three way partnership to increase their courting with Unified.” Athenahealth “cultivated this belief,” the criticism mentioned. When it gave Dorsata those price range, athenahealth additionally signed a promissory be aware prohibiting Dorsata from doing trade with any of its competition, the startup alleged.

Through assuring Dorsata that it used to be considering creating a joint answer for Unified, athenahealth “used to be ready to obtain vital wisdom of the internal workings of Dorsata’s generation,” the lawsuit alleged. It wasn’t till after this insider knowledge used to be shared that Dorsata discovered athenahealth by no means had any aim of pitching the joint product to Unified, the criticism mentioned.

When athenahealth minimize Dorsata out of its take care of Unified, the startup used to be left with a “restricted talent” to generate the earnings had to pay the EHR seller again its $6 million via 2025, the criticism mentioned. It additionally mentioned that athenahealth is telling Dorsata’s shoppers that the startup “is financially impaired and won’t stay in trade sooner or later.”

Dorsata is looking for damages within the quantity of lack of anticipated earnings, lack of corporate valuation, harm to popularity, long term misplaced trade and unlawfully won industrial market benefit. The startup has additionally requested the court docket to forestall athenahealth from accumulating the $6 million it loaned to Dorsata via deeming the EHR seller’s promissory be aware “a fraudulent artifice meant to forestall Dorsata from competing on the market.”

An Athenahealth spokesperson informed MedCity Information the corporate believes “the swimsuit is with out benefit” and plans to shield itself “vigorously.”

MedCity Information’ interview with Dorasata’s Fairbrothers took place in a while after athenahealth moved to impound the criticism, so he used to be barred from commenting particularly concerning the lawsuit. Alternatively, he did talk about the wider factor to hand, stating that it’s now not unusual for EHR corporations to lie to their virtual well being companions.

“I’ve had greater than a few virtual well being founders succeed in out to me previously day with their tales in their EHR companions in the end competing with them head-to-head after years of building and paintings with their mutual shoppers,” Fairbrothers mentioned. “To me, that is anti-competitive and monopolistic in a vital business to our nation.”

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