September 15, 2026
Netsmart Media Contact:
Natalie Caruso
ncaruso@ntst.com
913.308.2080
OVERLAND PARK, Kan., Sept. 15, 2026 — Netsmart, an industry-leading healthcare technology provider for community-based care organizations, unites with clients and partners for the 19th annual CONNECTIONS2026 (CONN26) conference in Denver, Colorado. The annual conference recognizes client achievements, advancing innovation and the impact of the Netsmart CareFabric® platform, which has helped transform whole-person care delivery and impacted the lives of more than 176 million1 lives nationwide.
In the opening keynote, Netsmart CEO Mike Valentine highlighted how decades of digitization have created the infrastructure and data foundation needed to make augmented intelligence (AI) effective today. The Netsmart Meaningful AI strategy centers on augmented intelligence rather than artificial intelligence to amplify human expertise while keeping healthcare professionals in control of decisions. The keynote traced the expansion of CareFabric solutions and services beyond the electronic health record (EHR), demonstrating how embedded AI supports clinical, financial and operational workflows.
“The investments we have made alongside our clients over the past decade have built the foundation for this moment,” said Netsmart CEO Mike Valentine. “As we bring AI, data and workflows together across the CareFabric, we can help organizations put that foundation to work in new ways, simplifying daily tasks and creating capacity for work their teams have wanted to take on. CONNECTIONS is an opportunity to celebrate that progress and show how the platform will continue to evolve with the communities we collectively serve.”
A highlight of the keynote was the evolution of the AI and automation portfolio across the Netsmart CareFabric platform. For clinicians, Bells® has moved well beyond note recommendation assistance. It now delivers a broader suite of capabilities spanning group documentation, ambient listening, quality coaching, and predictive analytics. Together, these capabilities reduce administrative burden and return valuable time to clinicians so they can focus on the people they serve.
Bells Quality Coach enables organizations to review up to 100% of clinical notes, replacing limited random sampling with scalable, consistent oversight. This allows organizations to identify trends earlier, strengthen documentation quality and drive improvement across clinicians and programs.
Across the revenue cycle, Benny has progressed from retrieving claim information to providing intelligent denial guidance and supporting coding decisions. AutoStatus functionality within AlphaCollector™ streamlines claim-status workflows, while the enhanced Benny Collections Assistant provides denial-resolution guidance including support for eligibility checks, corrections and resubmission. Through AlphaCoding, Benny the Coding Assistant surfaces relevant clinical documentation, suggests diagnosis codes and presents supporting evidence for coder review.
Otto, the AI-powered virtual support assistant has expanded from simplifying support case management to empowering clients to find answers and take action through conversational assistance. Its capabilities include AI-powered search and support case updates, giving clients additional ways to address questions within their workflows.
During the keynote, Netsmart leaders highlighted several key achievements and efficiency gains including:
Attendees also received a preview of the next two AI agents that will work across the CareFabric platform, beginning with focused capabilities such as asking questions of analytics data and rethinking the intake process to leverage AI and interoperability to streamline access to care. The roadmap explores how intelligence embedded throughout the platform could help teams coordinate work before, during and after care.
Beyond the keynote, attendees can explore the latest new features and innovations in the Solutionarium and participate in the AI Data Lab, hosted in collaboration with Amazon Web Services (AWS). In the Interoperability Lab, Netsmart leaders will help attendees evaluate how the Netsmart Qualified Health Information Network (QHIN™) can support referrals, care coordination and support access to a more complete view of an individual’s care as the network continues to grow.
Throughout the three-and-a-half-day event, 78 client experts and Netsmart speakers will share experiences and best practices for advancing community-based care across more than 125 education sessions. CONN26 attendees are encouraged to visit the Solutionarium to explore more than 50 different Netsmart solutions and Marketplace partner demos to identify opportunities aligned with their clinical, operational and financial priorities.
About Netsmart
Netsmart is an industry-leading healthcare technology organization empowering providers to deliver value-based care to the individuals and communities they serve. The Netsmart CareFabric® platform serves as a unified, connected framework of solutions and services for human services, post-acute, payer and public sector communities. Together with our clients and Marketplace vendors, we develop and deliver innovative technology, including electronic health records (EHRs), interoperability, analytics, augmented intelligence (AI), population health management and telehealth solutions and services that assist organizations in transforming the care they deliver. The result has helped make a positive impact on the lives of more than 165 million individuals.
For more than 55 years, Netsmart has helped provider organizations in their efforts to improve the health and wellbeing of the communities we collectively serve. To learn more, visit ntst.com and connect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook or X.