US firm Athenahealth, a provider of cloud-based services to doctors and hospitals, has acquired Epocrates, the well-known US mhealth developer, in a deal worth approximately $293 million.

The cash offer of $11.75 per share was approved by both companies’ boards and exceeds Epocrates’ Friday (4 January) closing price by 22 per cent. Athenahealth expects the deal to close early in the second quarter of 2013.

Acquiring Epocrates’s eponymous app will enable Athenahealth, which handles insurance claims and patient payments, to expand a newer part of its business which offers software for drug prescription and electronic health records, according to Bloomberg.

The Epocrates app, which offers drug information to the medical profession, is used by 338,000 physicians in the US (August 2012 figures).

The app, which is available for iPhone, iPad, Android and BlackBerry, has high recognition among US doctors. “Epocrates is to healthcare IT what Angry Birds is to games,” said Jonathan Bush, CEO and cofounder of Athenahealth.