Lyft announces partnership with Allscripts to help patients get to doctors appointments

News brief: Ride-hailing service Lyft announced a new integration with electronic health records (EHR) company Allscripts Monday, allowing doctors to book rides for patients through Lyft’s service. The step comes just a few days after competitor Uber announced a new healthcare initiative, although both companies have been working on healthcare integrations for some time. Transportation issues prevent 3.6 million Americans from getting to or from a doctors appointment today, a number that Lyft said it is aiming to cut in half by 2020.  Lyft’s Allscripts integration will let some 180,000 physicians who use Allscripts request Lyft rides for patients who have difficulty getting to and from appointments, a widespread problem that primarily affects vulnerable populations like elderly and low-income Americans.