Healthcare IT News published more than 1,150 news and feature stories this past year – covering the trends and happenings in artificial intelligence, cloud and edge computing, cybersecurity and privacy, electronic health records, interoperability, patient and provider experience, telehealth and remote monitoring.

Here are the 10 stories our readers clicked on the most.

House passes veterans healthcare package without RESET Act
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs announced this past week its plans to restart its EHR Modernization project – in 2026. The previous month, the Senator Elizabeth Dole 21st Century Veterans Healthcare and Benefits Improvement Act was voted up on Capitol Hill, but without an original section of the bill that would have set several implementation and reporting requirements for increased oversight of the rollouts.

Chronic disease 'patient burnout' – a silent issue that must be tackled
We hear a lot about the critically important challenge of clinician burnout. But patients experience it too, and it's a challenge that needs attention. One telehealth clinician exec said too many people are feeling overwhelmed by the needs associated with managing their chronic conditions. But she made the case that certain artificial intelligence use cases could help ease those burdens.

New AI foundation model can detect rare cancers – but needs digital support to proliferate
An artificial intelligence tool developed by digital pathology company Paige, born out of a partnership with Microsoft Research, is billed as one of the largest image-based AI foundation models for detecting cancer. The model, Virchow, can help spot small, complex and rare cancers and give pathologists detection and diagnostic insights that weren't possible even recently. AI can now detect cancers it hasn't even been trained on, the company says.

AHA, H-ISAC warn hospitals about Black Basta following Ascension cyberattack
In May, the Health Information Sharing and Analysis Center and the American Hospital Association warned providers that they also faced risks from nation-state bad actors following the massive and debilitating cyberattack on St. Louis-based Ascension. Russia-backed ransomware group Black Basta had set its sights on the healthcare sector and was ramping up the intensity of its attacks, they said.

Joint cybersecurity advisory warns of Iran-based attacks
In September, the FBI and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency offered a joint alert about another nation-state cyber risk, this one from Iran. The group – operating under evocative monikers such as Pioneer Kitten, Fox Kitten, UNC757, Parisite, RUBIDIUM and Lemon Sandstorm – work closely with ransomware affiliates to lock victim networks and extract ransom payments, the agencies said.

Mental health provider drastically reduces chart audit time with help from AI
Cerebral, a virtual mental healthcare provider, aims to democratize access to high-quality care to all, its associate director of behavioral operations told us in August. Visits are done via video chat, and members can message their care team directly and get medications delivered straight to their door. The company, whose platform offers precise data feedback that could be missed in manual auditing, has decreased time spent on audits by 78%, she said.

CMS clarifies rules for HIPAA compliance when texting patient data
Texting of patient orders among members by healthcare teams is permissible at hospitals and critical access hospitals when done through a HIPAA-compliant secure platform in compliance with CMS Conditions of Participation rules, the agency announced in February, while urging providers to "implement procedures/processes that routinely assess the security and integrity" of the platforms being used.

Nuance AI copilot now fully embedded in Epic EHR
More than 150 hospitals and health systems were already using the DAX Copilot in their Epic electronic health record workflows to draft clinical notes and record patient visits, the Microsoft voice AI subsidiary said when announcing the general availability of Nuance Dragon Ambient eXperience Copilot in January.

Slow down AI adoption, one tech CEO cautions
For all its immense promise for healthcare, artificial intelligence has plenty of downside risks, as we have reported over the past year. One IT exec urged a more cautious and deliberate approach to AI deployments, and said healthcare leaders must demand ethical artificial intelligence and ensure that their RFPs list safeguard requirements. That takes time, which could mean pulling back from some investing.

Chief AI Officer: Healthcare's hot new role demands a rare combination of skill sets
Still, the continued adoption of AI is all but a certainty across all areas of healthcare, and more and more providers are taking a proactive and strategic approach to their AI initiatives large and small by delegating responsibility to an emerging new C-suite role. The Chief AI Officer – overseeing automation projects in both clinical and business environments, standing up governance structures, managing portfolios of different tools – requires deep and diverse experience, as we showed in this installment of our ongoing new series.