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Andrč
Schwager, Aubrey Group, Inc.
 Andrč
Schwager is CEO and Chairman of the Board of
Aubrey Group, to which he brings over 35 years of experience in
development and management of high technology businesses. Andrč
has served on Aubrey’s Board of Directors for 12+ years,
became Chairman of the Board in 2008, and assumed the
additional role of CEO in late 2009, following the passing of Aubrey
Group Founder Vytas Pazemenas. Aubrey Group provides a highly
skilled and knowledgeable team of engineers, medical, scientific,
manufacturing and business professionals focused on engineering and
manufacturing medical devices and in-vitro diagnostics. Also, its Entrepreneurial
Services Program provides education, information, and concrete
deliverables in the necessary business, funding, financial, marketing,
regulatory, manufacturing, and intellectual property areas required for
a successful new product development venture or company.
Andre's
career includes consulting with companies such as Medtronic to
develop transformation strategies. He was also Founder, Chairman and CEO
of Satmetrix, a next-generation customer experience solution provider
and co-developer of the Net Promoter metric; President of Seagate
Enterprise Management Software; President and CEO of Netlabs; President
and CEO of three start-up companies that were successfully acquired; and
spent 13 years with Hewlett-Packard. Andrč
has joined the
OC Spectrum (Device/Dx) Round Table. |
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Abaxis
Gets
FDA Clearance for New Clinical Assay, C-Reactive Protein
Abaxis, Inc., where Clint Severson is CEO,
announced that
the FDA has granted 510K marketing clearance of the new C-Reactive
Protein assay when used by healthcare professionals in conjunction
with the Piccolo Xpress point-of-care analyzer. As a result, U.S.
healthcare professionals can now conduct on-site chemistry
analysis in less than 12 minutes for many types of conditions.
Abraxis BioScience
to Spin-off Abraxis Health in 2010
Abraxis BioScience, where
Patrick Soon-Shiong, MD, is Executive Chairman,
intends to spin-off its Abraxis Health
division this year. Subsequently, it's expected that Patrick will
remain Executive Chairman of Abraxis BioScience and CEO and Chairman of Abraxis
Health. Abraxis BioScience will continue its core focus on the global
commercialization of ABRAXANE, its robust Phase 3 Clinical Program, and
its proprietary nab Technology Platform, while Abraxis Health will
pioneer a new paradigm in
healthcare delivery rooted in evidence-based medicine and
bioinformatics.
Aetna Uses Social Networking to Enhance
Fitness & Addiction Recovery Programs
Aetna Health, where Pam Kehaly is
President of National Accounts,
announced a new team-based fitness and nutrition
program for employers nationwide that uses online social
networking to encourage people of all health and fitness levels to
work together with their colleagues to achieve optimal health. Aetna Health Connections
Get Active! is
modeled after Aetna’s own successful employee program, in which 57% of
employees participated in 2009.
Meanwhile,
Aetna Behavioral Health has signed a contract with OneRecovery,
a social networking platform aimed at helping people who are
recovering from alcohol or drug addiction to stay sober. Aetna and OneRecovery are
also introducing
the OneRecovery platform to several substance abuse treatment facilities
within the Aetna network to establish a continuum of care.
AIM Offers New Patient Safety Podcasts
American Imaging Management, where David Soffa, MD, is Senior
VP of Medical Affairs, has released new educational podcasts on the
Patient Safety section of its Web
site, discussing radiation exposure associated with cardiac imaging
procedures, including Cardiac Computerized Tomography.
Axolotl Participates in Colorado HIE
Expansion
Axolotl Corporation, where
Ray Scott is CEO, and Quality Health Network (QHN), a successful health information exchange (HIE),
have announced QHN's expansion to Aspen and Montrose, Colorado. Using Axolotl's Elysium Exchange platform
deployed by QHN, the independent hospitals and physicians of Aspen and
Montrose are now electronically connected to each other and with
other independent hospitals and physicians in Grand Junction, CO.
Meanwhile, Ray
is serving as co-chair and a featured speaker this week at
the National Health Information Exchange Summit in Washington, DC,
designed to support national, state and local leaders in
effectively navigating the challenges related to building HIE
capacity.
CareMeridian Nearly Doubles Las Vegas
Center's Capacity
CareMeridian, LLC, where Jim Ashby is CEO, has expanded its
post-acute healthcare facility in Las Vegas to 35 beds (from 18)
and
6,281 square feet. CareMeridian Las
Vegas is currently the only skilled facility in Nevada
providing a designated pediatric program.
Meanwhile, CareMeridian recently celebrated
the six-month anniversary of its 31-bed Phoenix, Arizona facility.
El Camino & Good Sam Hospitals Win Clinical
Excellence Awards
El
Camino Hospital, where Ken Graham is CEO,
and Good Samaritan Hospital, where Andy Leeka is CEO, have
earned 2010 Clinical Excellence Awards
from HealthGrades, an independent ratings organization. Of 5,000
nonfederal hospitals in the U.S., fewer than 270 (less than 5%)
received the recognition. HealthGrades evaluates a hospital across
26 diagnoses and procedures, with a hospital needing to have a
star rating in at least 19 of the categories.
El Camino also won HealthGrades’ 2010
Excellence Awards for Bariatric Surgery;
Pulmonary Care; Gastrointestinal Care; Spine Surgery;
Women's Health; and is Five Star Rated in Women's
Health.
Good Samaritan also won HealthGrades’ 2010
Excellence Awards for
Joint Replacement; Stroke Care; Maternity Care; Women's Health; and is Five
Star Rated in Women's Health.
Epocrates
& RealCME Deliver
Enhanced e-Learning Offerings
Epocrates, Inc., where Rose Crane is CEO,
and RealCME have partnered to deliver continuing medical
education (CME) curriculum, available for the iPhone and online. Epocrates will provide broader access to the courses and powerful
learning tools developed on RealCME's course development and analytic
technology platform. Physicians will be able to complete CME courses in
new formats, including "Virtual Patient" interactions and
interactive grand rounds. CME providers can build integrated, evidence-based courses utilizing the RealCME platform and reach Epocrates'
large, active network of healthcare professionals.
Genomic Health Launches Colon Cancer Test
Worldwide
Genomic Health, where Randy Scott, Ph.D., is Executive Chairman,
announced worldwide commercial
availability of its Oncotype DX colon cancer test, the first multigene
expression test developed for the assessment of risk of recurrence
in patients with stage II disease. The 12-gene advanced diagnostic
test is clinically validated to predict individual recurrence risk
in stage II colon cancer patients following surgery.
GSK Gets FDA OKs for Epilepsy, Breast Cancer
Treatments
GlaxoSmithKline, where Arlene Kirsch, Ph.D., is Area VP,
has received FDA approval for LamictalXR
(lamotrigine) Extended-Release Tablets as once-a-day, add-on therapy for
epilepsy in patients ages 13+ years with primary generalized
tonic-clonic seizures.
Also, the FDA has granted GSK
accelerated approval for a new combination regimen using TYKERB (lapatinib)
as a first-line, all-oral treatment for women with metastatic breast
cancer.
HeartMath Success Gets Media Coverage
HeartMath, LLC, where Bruce Cryer is CEO, was recently
featured in the Santa Cruz Sentinel for its success in
reducing healthcare expenses for
The Reformed Church in America. ABL Healthcare Online
reported this case study in our
January 21st issue; below are photos of Bruce from the
Sentinel.
Hospice of the Valley Achieves Foundation
Grant
Hospice of the Valley, where Sally Adelus is CEO,
has met the
Sobrato Family Foundation’s 2:1 matching grant goal. The
Foundation’s unrestricted funds will be used to support general
operations and new funds raised will provide end-of-life and grief
care to families facing advanced illness. Hospice of the Valley
received the Foundation’s first installment of $80,000 a year ago
and has since raised over $80,000 in new funds to qualify for
Sobrato’s second year grant award.
IBM to Acquire Initiate Systems
IBM,
where Bill Craddock is Client Service Leader West of Global
Business Services,
has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Initiate Systems, a
market leader in data integrity software for information sharing
among healthcare and government organizations. Initiate's software
helps healthcare clients work more intelligently and efficiently
with timely access to patient and clinical data. It also enables
governments to share information across multiple agencies to
better serve citizens. This marks the 30th acquisition IBM has
made to advance its capabilities in information and analytics.
Kindred
Promotes Darvish to VP, Overseeing 8 SoCal Hospitals
Kindred Healthcare has promoted Adam Darvish to Vice President of
its Hospital Division, where he will continue to oversee
Kindred's eight Southern California hospitals. Adam
has been with Kindred for 20+ years, most recently serving as
Executive Director of the Southern California District. Kindred's
Hospital Division is the largest provider of long-term acute care
hospital services in the U.S. based on revenues.
McDonough Holland & Allen Tops Law Firms in Female Partner %
McDonough Holland &
Allen PC, where Marcia Augsburger, JD, is a Shareholder, has
been ranked first in Law360’s listing of the nation’s top 100 law
firms with the highest concentration of female partners. Sixteen of McDonough’s 46
partners -- nearly 35% -- are female, significantly exceeding the national average of 19%.
Molina Joins Cisco in Telemedicine Pilot Program
Molina Healthcare, Inc., where Ed Kim is a
Corporate VP, is teaming with
Cisco and the state of California in a
telemedicine pilot program to provide health and wellness services
to underserved communities throughout the state. More than 15 sites,
including Molina facilities, will be
equipped to deliver telemedicine primary and specialty care services
using Cisco HealthPresence, a care-at-a-distance technology solution
that combines state-of-the-art video, audio, and medical
information to create a patient care experience similar to when
patients visit their neighborhood healthcare providers.
OrthAlign
Raises Over $5M
OrthAlign, Inc., where Pieter Wolters is CEO, concluded its Series A
financing round with a $5.2 million Series A2 tranche led by
California Technology Ventures, and including
Research Corporation Technologies and Okapi Venture Capital.
"This round of financing provides us with the capital to launch our
first product, the KneeAlign system, in 2010, and to continue
developing other products in our pipeline," said Pieter.
Pediatrix Acquires Physician Group Practices in
Washington, Louisiana
Pediatrix
Medical Group, where Dave Mintz is VP of Pacific Region
Operations,
has completed the acquisition of two neonatal physician group
practices: *In Spokane, WA, the two-physician practice currently provides neonatal and well-baby care at
Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center, and will join Pediatrix's
existing group of five neonatologists; *In Shreveport, LA, the
neonatal practice consists of three physicians who staff the Level
III NICU
at CHRISTUS Schumpert Sutton Children's Medical Center.
ValleyCare
Adds 24 New Beds in Pleasanton
ValleyCare Health System,
where Marcy Feit is CEO, has opened its new, 24-bed One West Wing at ValleyCare
Medical Center in Pleasanton
--
designated for medical/surgical
patients, for which ValleyCare invested nearly $10 million in the
build-out.
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Late
last year, one of our younger - and healthier - Technology Members
nearly checked out, permanently. While he was on his daily, morning run,
John Tanner, PhD, CEO of Tanner Research, collapsed due to a
sudden heart attack. Fortunately for him -- as well as his family,
company, ABL Round Table friends, and the thousands of people his life
and products have touched – his neighbor’s visiting mother just happened
to be in the front yard and saw John go down; she yelled into the house
for help. Even better, this visitor’s husband had recently seen CCR -
Cardiac Compression Resuscitation - demonstrated on Oprah and
rushed out and began administering it. Meanwhile, John’s neighbor (the
couple’s daughter) called 911.
Thanks to a series of amazing coincidences - including a crack 911
rescue team stationed nearby, and a top cardiologist being available
in Huntington Hospital, John has recovered completely - and has
become an evangelist for healthy eating and monitoring your
cholesterol and blood pressure closely, even if your doctor doesn't.
Most people who suffer massive heart attacks, particularly when
they're alone, aren't nearly as lucky as John was. One of the 911
rescuers had NEVER actually saved someone from a massive heart attack
in the 10 years he's been on his job.
So
when I received a 45-second slide show on the benefits of coughing
should you feel a heart attack "coming on" when you're alone, I
was all set to forward it with this blog. Fortunately, our intrepid
ABL Online Editor, Janet Rich, spent some time researching the
Internet, and identified some
activities that are much more highly endorsed by the American Heart
Association. Also, Dr. Tanner writes:" My favorite life-saving
info comes from scientific studies summarized in the book Prevent
and Reverse Heart Disease, by Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn. I am trying
to get everyone I know to read this book. Another astonishing book
summarizes scientific studies of the relationship between diet and not
only heart disease, but cancer, diabetes, osteoporosis, and many other
diseases. This book, The China Study, by Colin Campbell, PhD,
is another must read."
PLEASE SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THESE ISSUES :
send to janet@abl.org
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Single-Payer Plan Clears California
State Senate
Last week,
the California Senate approved a bill designed to lay the
foundation for a state-run, single-payer healthcare system in
California. The bill now moves to the Assembly.
SB 810, by Sen. Mark Leno
(D-San Francisco), would replace California's private insurers
with a state-run healthcare agency. All California residents
would be eligible for health coverage under the system, and
residents could purchase private plans to cover services not
offered through the state program. Officials estimate that
Leno's proposal would cost about $200 billion annually.
Funding likely would come from a combination of federal and
state healthcare funds, along with a possible payroll tax. In
addition, Leno said the system would generate additional
savings by reducing administrative costs. Leno's bill would
create a commission to recommend a financing plan for the
healthcare system. The plan would go before voters for
approval before it could take effect. Meanwhile, Gov.
Schwarzenegger has pledged to veto it if it is sent to his
desk. (San
Francisco Chronicle, 1/29; AP/Los Angeles Times, 1/28/10)
Schwarzenegger Renews Push for Federal
Funding
This week, Gov. Schwarzenegger sent a letter urging
California's congressional delegation to fulfill his
longstanding request for $6.9 billion in new federal funding –
in response to President Obama's fiscal year 2011 budget
proposal, which would provide only $1.5 billion of the
governor's request. In his letter, Schwarzenegger called for
the federal government to pay the state about $1 billion to
compensate California for federal billing errors related to
Medicare. He noted that some congressional leaders already are
working on a bill that would provide $700 million of the
funds. He also urged the federal government to provide states
with greater authority to cut health and social service
programs, noting that recent court decisions prevented
California from implementing about $1.4 billion in scheduled
budget cuts. In addition, Schwarzenegger called for CMS to
adjust California's payment calculations under the Medicare
Part D prescription drug program. He also asked for more funds
to house undocumented immigrant inmates. (Sacramento Bee &
Office of the Governor release, 2/2/10)
White
House Budget Boosts Health IT, Community Health Centers, Rural
Healthcare
Under
President Barack Obama's fiscal 2011 budget, many agencies
under HHS would see slight increases in funding over their
2010 numbers. For starters, department heads at the FDA,
Health Resources and Services Administration, Indian Health
Service, and the government's health IT group will see budget
increases of hundreds of millions of dollars. But the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention, conversely, would see a
decrease in funding, going from $6.4 billion this year to a
projected $6.3 billion in the next fiscal year.
In its spending breakdown, the Obama administration plans
to push for $110 million more for wiring doctors' offices and
hospitals; $290 million for community health centers; and $79
million for rural healthcare. The administration also calls
for a temporary $25.5 billion increase in state Medicaid
payments to offset increased use of the program.
The budget itself, however, assumes that major health
reform legislation would be approved this year. The spending
blueprint allows for a $150 billion hit to the deficit, on par
with congressional estimates. It also puts the total price of
reform at more than $712 billion over the next decade, lower
than either the Senate's or the House's legislative packages.
(HITS -
Modern Healthcare's daily IT e-newsletter, 2/2/10)
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Healthcare
Sector Grew as Economy Contracted in 2009
Healthcare spending in the U.S. grew last year despite a
contracting economy, amounting to 17.3% of the gross domestic
product, according to estimates from CMS. The healthcare
sector's share of the economy grew 1.1% in 2009 compared with
2008, the largest one-year increase since at least 1960.
Spending growth by federal, state and local governments was
8.7% last year, nearly three times the rate for employers,
insurance companies and individuals – 3%. By the end of this
decade, in 2019, healthcare spending will be $2 trillion
higher than it is now, it will represent 19.3% of the economy,
and the government will pay 52% of it, according to the CMS
report. (Washington Post, 2/4/10)
Funding for Community Health Centers
Drives Expanded Service, Jobs
A $500,000 increase in funding for community health
centers would allow for treatment for an additional 540
uninsured patients, according to
University of Illinois-Chicago
researchers, who noted that roughly 25% of the nation's 3.4
million low-income uninsured children receive care at such a
center. The study also found that each additional $1 million
increase in federal grant support resulted in the hiring of
about eight more full-time employees, five of whom were
medical care providers. In addition, every $1 million in state
grants led to about five more full-time employees, while
private grants of $1 million produced nine new employees.
(Reuters, 2/2/10)
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