Thanks all! Nice comments, and frankly I'm okay with rumors, if they can be squashed with the facts. It is clear that the sales techniques of the big boy EHR systems are to use misinformation as a way to compete with our low cost solution. (Without the rumors and false statements by our competitors, who in their right mind would pay so much money for a piece of software?)
Since the most common response by our competitor when asked why they are so expensive compared to Amazing Charts is, "You get what you pay for," and, "They aren't CCHIT certified," - it is clear that these must be addressed.
"You get what you pay for," is already addressed by the AAFP user ratings, KLAS ratings, and other sources where actual users rate the software. Amazing Charts consistently scores significantly better than our competitors despite our significantly lower cost. According to these surveys, Amazing Charts is much more usable than most other software programs according to dozens of users who have purchased us compared with the reports from users of our competitor's software. (AAFP members can review these scores at
http://www.centerforhit.org/x290.xml. )
I tried to post the actual AAFP numbers online, but got an email from the AAFP saying I could not - although their legal agreement says nothing about not being able to. But rather than piss off the group that represents many of our clients, I took the numbers down. (Of course, feel free to post your thoughts after you take a look.) It is really astounding that we score so much higher than all these well-known competitors. In fact, my reading of these ratings implies that the more money a product costs, the worse a product scores. Go figure.
In terms of the second issue, CCHIT certification - well, it is time. We are now actively determining what bells, whistles, and hoops we need to jump through to get certified. (Not to mention the 36K up-front cost!) We have decided that we must dive head-first into this nightmare, and complete certification before we do any other major development. This means PM is delayed while we make this push. I know this will be met with some frustration (including my own), but it is clear that without CCHIT certification, users won't be able to apply for many of the funds that may be made available with the government bailout and users will not receive higher reimbursements from insurers.
This is obviously a big decision, and is being made as we implement the plan outlined in my last post. Part of the plan is that we are now forming an Amazing Charts Advisory Committee which will be made up of about ten users who have consistently provided excellent guidance and help for our users and community. If you are one of these people, and are willing to help us make Amazing Charts what our users want/need it to be, please email me directly.
Thanks!
Jon
