Happtique, subsidiary of the Greater New York Hospital Association’s for-profit arm GNYHA Ventures, announced the first apps in its registry, which came from 10 companies that paid to have their apps go through the certification process. The launch happened almost two years after Happtique first announced its plans to create a certification program.

The apps in Happtique's group ranged from calorie counters to chronic disease managers, and the developers included: Power20, MyNetDiary, Cardiio, CalorieKing, GenieMD, iHealthVentures, Osmosis, QxMD Medical, Tactio Health Group, and GreatCall. While some apps, like MyNetDiary, are available on iOS and Android platforms, the registry specifies the platform on which the app is cleared.

To pass the certification program, Happtique looks at four aspects of the app, which MobiHealthNews first wrote about in 2012 -- operability, privacy, security and content. Part of the application process for certification requires developers to submit proof of FDA certification, if applicable, and sources of content from the app.

A year ago, Happtique launched a pilot for its health app prescription program, mRx, which was meant to help the company get an idea as to how many apps physicians prescribe through the platform and how many of their patients actually download the apps as prescribed.

In May, GNYHA Ventures decided to re-focus Happtique on hospital customers and repurpose its budget. This led to several high profile employees parting ways with the company including CEO Ben Chodor and Chief Marketing & Strategy Officer Tammy Lewis. At the time, GNYHA SVP of Communications Brian Conway told MobiHealthNews despite the changes to the budget, the certification program and mRx were both on track for completion.