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Hickey Partially Paralyzes Woman in New Zealand

1/22/2011 12:16:00 PM  ,  

Well so much for an over passionate partner being able to show affection with this method.  This is an odd case though at the ER room  and the only item they could imagefind was the hickey with a clot in the artery underneath where the hickey was, so bad timing and bad place for a hickey too.  The odds of this happening I am guessing is pretty rare but when it is your issue, rare makes no difference. 

She was given blood thinners and the clot went away in about a week.  It she had not been treated quickly she could have suffered more strokes as a result of the blood clot.  BD 

A Christchurch doctor had to treat a woman after she was partially paralyzed by a love bite from her amorous partner.

Dr Teddy Wu, who is currently working in the neurology department at Christchurch Hospital, said he believed it was the first time someone had been hospitalized by a "hickey".

An article on the case has appeared in the New Zealand Medical Journal.

Wu said he saw the woman over a year ago while he was working in Middlemore Hospital in Auckland.

The 44-year-old Maori woman went to the emergency department after experiencing loss of movement in her left arm.

It happened while she was sitting watching television.

The only injury was a love bite on the right of her neck near an artery.

Lovebite partially paralyses woman | Stuff.co.nz

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Toxic Fumes at Baxter Pharma Plant In Los Angeles Leaves 1 Man Dead and 2 in Critical Condition

1/22/2011 09:53:00 AM  , ,  

Two men were cleaning the inside of a 4 foot tank that is used to hold blood plasma and were overcome by ethanol.  Ethanol is used to separate extract blood imageplasma.  The man who did called 911 when he found the other 2 men unconscious the fire department stated.  This is a case for an OSHA investigation for sure. 

This is a pretty big tank if 2 men were lying inside it.  The fire department upon arrival recognized the fume danger and took appropriate action so they were not exposed.  The facility is the world’s largest and most advanced plasma fractionation plant and has been open for over 50 years.  BD

A man died Friday after being overcome by fumes while trying to help two co-workers who lost consciousness inside a tank they were cleaning at a pharmaceutical plant north of Atwater Village, authorities said.

When firefighters arrived at the Baxter Healthcare Corp. facility at 4501 W. Colorado Blvd. about 4 a.m., one of the men had no heart rate and was not breathing, but paramedics were able to restore his pulse, said Erik Scott of the Los Angeles Fire Department.

All three were taken to hospitals, where one of the men died. His name was withheld pending notification of relatives.

The men had been cleaning the inside of a 4-foot-tall cylindrical tank with a 5-foot diameter, said the LAFD's Brian Humphrey. The tank has a 24-inch diameter opening at the top, through which workers enter to clean it.

1 Dead, 2 Critically Injured in Atwater Village Industrial Accident | NBC Los Angeles

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HHS Announces Healthy Living Challenge Contest for Innovation-Why Not See Which Programs Could Best Collaborate For Awards

1/21/2011 04:29:00 PM  ,  

As I read here these are efforts that have are currently working and in effect and are working to help educate and fight the war on obesity and chronic disease so why not see how the entrants can collaborate with each other and bring a imagelittle bit more under one roof instead of each program just have a single focus?  If something is working well in one area, could it be combined with other programs in effect to bring things together to make it easier for consumers?  We talk about working together and collaborating all the time so just me thinking out loud here on see who could work together with a multi focus program to perhaps reach out and be a little less fragmented.  On the software side of things with Health IT we have no shortage of Innovation, but nobody collaborates and it seems to be a lifeless “buzz” word floating around out there with everyone working separately to build a better mouse trap too.

Innovation Without Collaboration Is Fouling Up The US Healthcare IT System–We Need Both As We Can’t Stand on Innovation Alone

From the website:

“To nominate an innovation for the Healthy Living Innovation Awards, please first review the eligibility requirements and criteria for selection, outlined in the "Rules" section and the "Judging" section. To download detailed instructions on how to submit a nomination through this website, click here.  (You may wish to print this document before you begin.)To review and post the nomination form, click here.”

Innovation kind of takes care of itself as there’s certainly no shortage of talent in the US but the real challenges today are collaborating to make things simpler and easier to get on board, and at the same time make choices easier for consumers too.  From rummaging around the internet and with today’s marketing constantly in your face, it seems that awards, unless someone has done something totally ground breaking we just don’t have the same emphasis like it used to, and that’s just a sign of the times we live in today with the fast and busy pace we all keep.  I know doing this blog I get emails every day with someone getting some award or someone being the #1 in some field and after a while they just all run together as awards for whatever the cause seem to catch that over marketed effect too.  BD  

Healthy Living Innovation

As part of a nationwide effort to promote health and wellness to Americans, Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius has announced a new HHS challenge contest, Healthy Living Innovation Awards.

Sebelius asks citizens to submit innovative projects that help the fight against obesity and chronic disease and have an impact on communities across the nation. Projects must have been created within the last three years and increase awareness and/or encourage Americans to maintain or improve health and wellness practices.

Organizations that participate in the challenge must have projects that fall under one of three categories: increasing physical activity, inspiring nutrition or promoting healthy weight. The projects must reflect the possibility of sustainability and providing results.

HHS Announces Healthy Living Challenge | FedScoop

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Liver Transplant Patients Receive Experimental Drug to Prevent Hepatitis C Infection-Arizona Should Take Notice

1/21/2011 03:57:00 PM  , ,  

Perhaps if folks knew about this new drug with liver transplants they would have not enacted the budget cuts that deprived one man of his liver transplant who had hepatitis C and was denied coverage on that basis.  With going into phase 2 they are hoping that once the transplant is done that hepatitis C does not return.   In many cases the new liver may end up being re-infected in time and this new therapy is designed to hopefully prevent the return. 

Arizona’s Medicaid Cuts On Transplants Is A Classic Example of Decisions Not Based on Medical Needs But Rather Budget Only

This drug is given between one to four hours before surgery and then a second dose during the phase when the diseased liver is removed.  If the drug is successful, Arizona will have to look for a new qualifier for budget cuts.    In reality, they need to do that anyway, but it may not be happening any time soon with the Governor signing a bill seeking a Medicaid waiver today to temporarily remove nearly 300,000 people from its Medicaid rolls.  BD

The first patients were enrolled in the study in December. The primary goal of this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study is to test if the monoclonal antibody, designated MBL-HCV1, prevents re-infection of patients chronically infected with HCV who are undergoing liver transplantation.

MassBiologics plans to enroll 16 patients in the first part of the study. "We are hopeful that positive results from this study will meet an important public health need, and we could not take this important step without the willing and thoughtful participation of these volunteers," said Donna Ambrosino, MD, executive director of MassBiologics and a professor of pediatrics at the Medical School.

A Phase 1 study in 31 healthy volunteers completed in 2009 showed the antibody was well tolerated, with no serious side effects. The Phase 1 study also measured the levels of the antibody in the bloodstream and its ability to bind and inactivate the virus, thereby helping to establish the dosage and protocol for the Phase 2 study now under way.

First liver transplant patients receive experimental drug to prevent hepatitis C infection

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FDA Approves Viibryd to Treat Major Depression

1/21/2011 03:38:00 PM  ,  

Vilazodone is a modulator of serotonin neurotransmission to be used for treatment of Major Depression Disorders.  Now there’s one more choice for depression, it’s amazing if you look how many of these are out there.  BD  image

From the website:

“Nearly 2,900 patients have been exposed to vilazodone in the clinical development program. The efficacy of vilazodone in the treatment of MDD was shown to be superior to placebo in two randomized, double-blind, Phase III clinical trials. Results of an uncontrolled long-term safety study were consistent with the findings of the placebo-controlled studies. Discontinuation rates due to adverse events were low. The most common adverse events associated with vilazodone treatment were diarrhea, nausea and insomnia and considered mild to moderate in intensity. In addition, vilazodone’s impact on sexual function was shown to be similar to placebo when measured by quantitative, validated scales.”

SILVER SPRING, Md., Jan. 21, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Viibryd tablets (vilazodone hydrochloride) to treat major depressive disorder in adults. 

Major depressive disorder, also called major depression, is characterized by symptoms that interfere with a person's ability to work, sleep, study, eat, and enjoy once-pleasurable activities. Episodes of major depression often recur throughout a person's lifetime, although some may experience only a single occurrence.

Signs and symptoms of major depression include: depressed mood, loss of interest in usual activities, significant change in weight or appetite, insomnia or excessive sleeping (hypersomnia), restlessness/pacing (psychomotor agitation), increased fatigue, feelings of guilt or worthlessness, slowed thinking or impaired concentration, and suicide attempts or thoughts of suicide. All people with major depression do not experience the same symptoms.

FDA Approves Viibryd to Treat Major Depressive Disorder -- SILVER SPRING, Md., Jan. 21, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --

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Kaiser Permanente to Install Bloom Box Fuel Cells at California Facilities

1/21/2011 03:03:00 PM  ,  

If you have not heard of “fuel cells” EBay and Google are also using them to power their buildings in northern California.  Not too long ago 60 minutes did a story imagecovering the “Bloom Boxes” and how they work.  They are really not that big compared to the power they can provide.  California is certainly in a good place with going green in all industries.  In the picture at the right you can see the grey boxes and these are what supplies the power. 

California Leading The Way With Hydrogen Power – Gov. Arnold Asks Everyone to Involve the US Government

Below is the 60 Minute segment that tells all about the fuel cells so we’ll be seeing them rolled out at the Kaiser Permanente facilities soon.  By installing the Bloom Boxes it will reduce Kaiser Permanente's use of fossil fuels for electricity by 34 percent at the locations where they are installed.  BD 

OAKLAND, Calif., Jan. 20, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Committed to improving the health of the communities it serves, Kaiser Permanente will deploy four megawatts of solid oxide fuel-cell generated power in a deal that will put fuel-cell generators at seven facilities in California by the end of this year. The agreement with Bloom Energy, which makes fuel cell energy servers, expands Kaiser Permanente's commitment to using sustainable energy sources.image

Installing these "Bloom Boxes" at Kaiser Permanente buildings is part of a larger plan to use onsite renewable energy sources to power Kaiser Permanente's buildings nationwide. A focus on renewable energy is just one aspect of the organization's industry-leading work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, reduce the use of harmful chemicals, and promote sustainable food choices.

"Kaiser Permanente recognizes the health of the environment directly affects individual and community health," says Kathy Gerwig, vice president and environmental stewardship officer at Kaiser Permanente.  "By expanding the use of cleaner energy technologies such as fuel cells, we're demonstrating our commitment to greening our energy portfolio and reducing our carbon footprint."

Kaiser Permanente to Power California Facilities With Fuel Cells -- OAKLAND, Calif., Jan. 20, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --

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Ingenix (Subsidiary of United Health Group) Sells i3 Clinical Trials And Creates Life Sciences Group-Subsidiary Watch

1/21/2011 01:15:00 PM  ,  

In case you missed the news, record profits again were maintained by United for imagethe year and the 4th quarter.  The Ingenix division is the group that runs all the business intelligence analysis programs and creates software, in other words they write  the algorithms. 

UnitedHealth Group Reports Record Profits for 2010 of $1.80 Billion-Algorithm Revenues Up with Subsidiary Groups Too

In addition Ingenix is creating a Life Sciences operation, with more analytical business intelligence analysis systems to include the company purchased in China in 2010.  The divisions being sold represent around $400 Million a year in revenue. 

UnitedHealth subsidiary (Ingenix Subsidiary I3) Acquires ChinaGate – Working to Sell Chinese Products Globally

From the InVentiv website:image

“InVentiv Health brings clarity to the intricate issues facing the healthcare industry and provides the tools and talent that you need to succeed. An unmatched depth and breadth of expertise in clinical development, launch, and commercialization gives us a big picture perspective. Using this insight, we develop and deploy innovative, multidisciplinary solutions to help brands make their mark.”

Earlier this year Ingenix bought another analytics company who’s goal is to identify future risks. It looks as though they are swapping out one set of business intelligence for another and of course going in the direction of the money.  Here’s a few more past links from 2010.  Back in August of 2010 was when the consulting group was originally announced.   

Ingenix (Subsidiary of United Health Care) Buys QualityMetric – More Algorithmic Formulas To Choose From To Identify Future Risk and Costimage

Every so often more software is released too for medical records, analytics , etc. and the links below talks about some of those areas, again from last year.  Many times too when companies are sold in the software business, the company doing the selling becomes either a client or supplier so in many instances it may be business as usual for the end user along with new software upgrades that may appear with combining data system, but that’s not true the time as it depends on what data is there to work with and furthermore how much additional profit can be generated by doing so.

Ingenix Consulting Adds New Consulting Gig–Strategic Technology Solutions–Focus on Health IT Executives On How to Invest and Implement Algorithmic Performance Strategies

With reorganization and so many subsidiaries and then their subsidiaries, it makes it a bit of a challenge to find the parent company sometimes and thus so the SEC and other regulation agencies of the government may find it like chasing a run away train at times.  Gordon Brown, former prime minister of the UK made a statement that made me just about fall out of my chair in the fact that he said “he had no idea that the banks we so connected with technology” and I use this a prime example as we have tons of those “IT illiterates” here in the US too. 

Ingenix (UnitedHealthCare Subsidiary) Creates Desktop Software for Employers to Analyze Employee Benefit Use To Help Cut Costs – More Analytics and Algorithms To Save That Buck

Back on course here,I am certainly guessing that their analytics and behavior related analysis business intelligence was responsible for guiding some of the mergers and acquisitions as well as I’m sure they eat some of their own “internal dog food” too.   Both bankers and insurance companies have some of the most extensive uses of business intelligence software around and they invest heavily all the way around as data is their money and profits.  You can read more a the link below on how some of these same financial methodologies are working their way into healthcare.  BD

High Frequency Trading on Wall Street Creates and Complicates “High Frequency Healthcare”–Those Algorithms

Ingenix is moving out of the Phase II–III trials support arena through the imagesale of its i3 businesses to InVentiv Health, another provider of outsourced clinical development services. Ingenix’ decision to sell off its clinical development operations coincides with the firm’s announcement that it is setting up a new division, Ingenix Life Sciences, which will focus on offering nonclinical and consultancy services.

InVentiv’s acquisition will include the Ingenix businesses i3Research, i3 Statprobe, and i3 Pharma Resourcing, which together generate about $400 million in annual gross revenues. The firm said the i3 brand name will be retained, and aligned with InVentiv’s existing clinical development offerings.

Ingenix’ new life sciences operation, meanwhile, will focus on providing global services and consultancy for product commercialization, safety, imageregulatory, and late-phase activities. The new division will incorporate a number of Ingenix’ current business units, including Innovus, Quality Metric, Pharma Informatics, Drug Safety/Epidemiology, along with the canReg and ChinaGate Regulatory Consulting businesses.

Ingenix Sells i3 Clinical Trials Businesses and Sets Up Life Science Unit

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Larynx Transplant A Success In California With Woman Being Able to Talk Again

1/21/2011 12:57:00 AM  ,  

This is one lucky woman to be able to talk again, and she already has 2 other transplanted organs and was taking anti rejection drugs after a kidney-pancreas transplant in 2006.  This is only the second successful voice box transplant in the US.  18 hours and 2 days of surgery is a long time too.  image

According to the article her voice box was damaged while she was sedated a few years ago and keep pulling a breathing tube out and damaged her voice box.  Insurance nor the government cover such procedures yet and the article indicated that the time was donated by the surgeons and expenses were paid by the hospital.  BD

SACRAMENTO -- A 52-year-old woman whose natural voice could have been silenced forever because of vocal cord damage has been able to speak again after undergoing a rare voice box transplant, doctors said Thursday.

Brenda Charett Jensen, 52, reunited with the international team of surgeons who performed the transplant last October. Thursday's appearance was her first in public since having the surgery last October. image

Doctors say Jensen is only the second recipient of a successful larynx transplant in the United States.

Jensen damaged her vocal cords more than a decade ago after she repeatedly pulled out her breathing tube while under sedation in the hospital.

Before the transplant, the Modesto woman "talked" with the help of a hand-held device that sounds like an electronic voice, but always yearned to speak with her natural voice.

The operation lasted 18 hours over two days. Doctors replaced her voice box, windpipe and thyroid gland with that of a donor who died in an accident. The surgery was led by doctors at the University of California-Davis Medical Center and included experts from England and Sweden.

California woman can speak again after voice box transplant - Inside Bay Area

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Confidential HMO Document In Minnesota Reveals Proposed Big Public Healthcare Cuts Based On Formulas and Algorithms

1/20/2011 03:19:00 PM  ,  

This sounds a little bit like Jan Brewer in Arizona except this time it’s the HMO’s with their proposal to save money and you can link to the video and see what the imagenews station uncovered in this confidential document.  It’s not nice and it’s budget algorithms cuts.  Let me tell you, if you don’t learn anything else at this blog, learn that one word “algorithm” as this is what is being used to make decisions and the bean counters are forgetting there are people attached to those numbers. 

In this report you can see where the document shows the state’s biggest HMO carriers working together on costs and cutting efforts.  In the embarrassment of this document appearing those concerned told the news station this is only a preliminary working document, whatever that means.  The station showed it to quite a few people and it would deny care to seniors, the disabled and more.  They want to immediately cut 400 jobs too in the process. 

REPORTS ARE RUN AND CREATED ON ALGORITHMIC FORMULAS.

Nobody knew anything about the plant until it was shown around and the cut is around $170 million in cuts.  They showed the plan to a local legislature and he was floored. 

image

This is one of the reason why it may not always be the best of interest to have insurance companies run managing or any regulating part of healthcare, i.e. we have insurance companies running Medicare (aka known as contractors) as this is what happens, so the state of Minnesota was not happy to see the HMOs stepping up to flat out cut costs to managing the plans.  Again even if this is a preliminary document and it shows that they can administer the plan and cut state jobs, is this a good idea to even put this in a document?  The state of Minnesota according to this video has not been audited either.  BD 

The document is called "Advancing Minnesota's Health System." It is a preliminary draft put together by seven big Health Maintenance Organizations that collectively administer Minnesota's public health care.

Among the changes the HMOs are considering as budget saving proposals for the legislature are: cuts in certain services to the developmentally disabled and the elderly. The draft report also calls for the elimination of 30 percent of the public union employees who help administer Medicaid and other public programs. And, it also includes the possibility of raising Minnesota's "sin taxes" by about $1.2-billion. Those taxes would include sales on tobacco, liquor and sugar sweetened soft drinks. 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS shared the document's outlines with union leaders, the Minnesota Nurses Association, lawmakers and advocates for the disabled. Each group expressed concern about the plan and criticized the HMOs for trying to help balance the state's budget on the backs of the disabled, poor and elderly.

Confidential HMO Doc. Reveals Big Public Health Care Changes | KSTP TV - Minneapolis and St. Paul

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United States and China Create New Public-Private Partnership on Healthcare

1/20/2011 01:56:00 PM  , ,  

I’m not exactly sure what this exactly means since the businesses listed are getting a formal agreement to collaborate as they all do business in China anyway.   A imageHealthcare Professional Personnel Exchange Program will be sending professionals from China to visit the United States to learn what we have going on here and vice versa.  Let’s not show them how we integrate medical records though <grin>.  They might hold that part against us.

What I read from here this is a formal consensus of both governments to spend time and collaborate and learn from each other.  When you look at the companies named they are primarily technology and pharma firms listed.  Since I’m being a little warped today we don’t want J and J showing them how to handle a recall either >grin>.

This comes hand in hand with recent regulations where China will allow foreign capital into medical organizations which was in the news of late.  An office for the organization in China will be established  at AmCham-China’s Beijing office.  There are items to be learned from both sides and a couple years ago when I attended a medical tourism conference in Los Angeles it was interesting to hear about where they were and how far ahead in some area with stem cells as an example.  A lot of technology we use here in the US came from China too, such as the Tablet PC, which was from the Microsoft office I believe in Taiwan and today China can’t seem to manufacture them fast enough for our consumption in the US.  BD

Press Release:

Washington, D.C. -- Today, on the occasion of the State Visit of President Hu Jintao to the United States, the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA), the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) joined with China’s Ministries of Health (MoH) and Commerce (MOFCOM) to announce their support for the establishment a new public-private partnership in the healthcare sector.

Initially, twelve U.S. companies and six supporting organizations will participate in this partnership, alongside the supporting U.S. and Chinese Government agencies. The partnership will be organized around U.S. healthcare industry strengths and government capabilities in order to foster long-term cooperation with China in the areas of research, training, regulation and the adoption of an environment that will increase accessibility to healthcare services in China.

Participating U.S. companies initially include 3M, Abbott, Chindex, Cisco, General Electric, IBM, Intel, Johnson & Johnson, Medtronic, Microsoft, Motorola, and Pfizer. Supporting organizations include AdvaMed, the Alliance for Healthcare Competitiveness, the American Chamber of Commerce in China, the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, PhRMA and the U.S.-China Business Council.

“The economic and social development of any nation depends on the health and productivity of its people,” said HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. “This partnership builds on a strong foundation of bilateral cooperation in this critical sector of our economies.”

USTDA Director Leocadia Zak stated, “This public-private partnership provides China an important private sector resource to draw from to help with key development issues, while also identifying for U.S. companies projects that have been designated priority development projects by China.”

Through programs supported by the initiative, Chinese participants will gain greater access to U.S. private sector expertise and ingenuity and better awareness of new technologies and results-oriented regulatory processes. Initially, these goals will be advanced through a USTDA-funded Healthcare Professional Personnel Exchange Program that will include a series of visits by Chinese healthcare officials to the United States to share best practices and witness new and innovative technologies that will be important to long-term healthcare delivery.

“The partnership will draw its strength from U.S. companies strategically working together to help China achieve its development goals that will open new export markets for U.S. goods and services,” noted Commerce Secretary Gary Locke.

Over time, the partnership will enhance cooperation in areas such as rural healthcare, emergency response, personnel training, medical information technology, and management systems; while also exploring ways to support other fields such as integrative and traditional Chinese medicine. These programs will enhance both sides’ knowledge of best practices, management, technological developments, and other healthcare-related topics

The U.S. Trade and Development Agency helps companies create U.S. jobs through the export of U.S. goods and services for priority development projects in emerging economies. USTDA links U.S. businesses to export opportunities by funding project planning activities, pilot projects, and reverse trade missions while creating sustainable infrastructure and economic growth in partner countries.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is the United States government’s principal agency for protecting the health of all Americans and providing essential human services, especially for those who are least able to help themselves.

The U.S. Department of Commerce has a broad mandate to advance economic growth and jobs and opportunities for the American people. It has cross-cutting responsibilities in the areas of trade, technology, entrepreneurship, economic development, environmental stewardship and statistical research and analysis. The Department also leads the President’s National Export Initiative, which aims to double U.S. exports by 2015 in support of several million American jobs.

United States and China Launch Public-Private Partnership on Healthcare

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UnitedHealth Group Reports Record Profits for 2010 of $1.80 Billion-Algorithm Revenues Up with Subsidiary Groups Too

1/20/2011 11:59:00 AM  , ,  

Below are some of the highlights from the press release you can read in it’s entirety imageat the link at the bottom of the post.  Profits were up from last year which came in at $1.58 Billion and basically people were not going to the doctor was one of the reasons cited for additional income this year.  We all know how healthcare reform has been nothing so far profits for carriers no matter how loud they complain.    Premium dollars grew with additional policies and less could afford to do to the doctor. 

image

“Algo Profits Were Up”

The “algorithm” side of their business, Ingenix and subsidiaries increased 10% and if you watched the news this year there were more then plenty acquisitions made at the tech level of the company, subsidiary watch.  When you look at the sector of business below on the chart, prescription and health revenue units were down but the algorithm revenue was up!  There’s money in those Algos.

Ingenix (algorithm) revenue increased to $2.3 billion, 28% over the year.  These services are sold as technology and some use their services for anti fraud auditing, but least we forget the 15 year Ingenix case of over charging and the refunds issued to doctors and patients, so again it’s always good to know where the mathematical formulas point these days.  Ingenix got out of the property casualty medical business this year with the sale of one of their subsidiaries. 

image

Here’s an example of a United/Ingenix contract via acquisition earlier this year with the VA now doing business with a United subsidiary.

VA Awards Contract to Picis, Subsidiary of Ingenix for Anesthesia Record Keeping Software

It may be too soon also to see how the China investment is moving along as it also falls under the algorithm part of the business.  You have to go 3 layers down the daisy chain of subsidiaries to find this one.  It does get confusing today with all the mergers and acquisitions to really put your thumb on who is doing what, when and how at times as when data gets merged for accelerated data intelligence, waters get cloudy.  I3, a company owned by Minnetonka-based UnitedHealth's technology arm.

UnitedHealth subsidiary (Ingenix Subsidiary I3) Acquires ChinaGate – Working to Sell Chinese Products Globally

From the website:

“We are familiar with the Chinese regulatory system and are well connected with most of the top urban class A  hospitals and clinical trial centers that are GCP certified by the China State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA). Moreover, since we worked many years in multi-national pharmaceutical companies ,we are well versed in ICH, European and United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requirements on Good Clinical Practice (GCP). “

With combing data and reaching out for business there were also expenditures for programs created like putting pharmacists on pay for performance at Walgreens to sign individuals up for various programs and some of the data for this mining exercise was to be created via the Ingenix data end of United to programmatically predict who was going to be a patient with selected chronic conditions. 

UnitedHealthCare To Use Data Mining Algorithms On Claim Data To Look For Those At “Risk” of Developing Diabetes – Walgreens Pharmacists To Earn P4P for Enrollments

You can read more about Ingenix MedPoint here.There’s also a flash presentation where you can view the process here.  Here’s a little more detail on how the costing algorithms work by doing a risk assessment based on getting information on your medications from drugs stores and pharmacy benefit managers. 

image

“By increasing understanding of potential disease conditions and relative risk, MedPoint enables underwriters to more accurately project future claims costs on a case-by-case basis.”

The company also made a splash at CES this year in joining in as a platinum sponsor which shows a somewhat varied business plan for marketing than what we have seen in the past. 

Going to CES This Year? Healthcare Represented With Mobile Devices and Insurance Companies-United Healthcare A Sponsor This Year

In addition United owns a bank with over a billion on deposit for health savings accounts under its Optum Health group and if you read the news this year loans were made to many healthcare agencies through the Optum Financial Services. division.

UnitedHealth Group Owns a Bank With Deposits Surpassing a Billion – OptumHealth Bank FDIC Insured

Long and short of it is that mergers and acquisition of technology divisions make it possible to run the rest of their business through the creation and modification of business models using algorithms and code to predict and project business intelligence and profit directions.  In addition, with all the mergers and acquisitions occurring, we don’t know what next levels of data will be collected and analyzed yet for the next areas of profit making to be explored.  That takes time and some of the acquisitions are still fairly new so it may take the algorithm folks at Ingenix a while to figure out a plan as to how to approach and maximize the data to achieve even higher levels of profits next time around. 

In the meantime, as citizens we are basically left with having to take a knife to a gun battle when it comes to getting our care and battling claims as years of data has been collected, and all of it is not always correct, but it is held against the consumer in so many ways with a data rap sheet that is dumped on the consumer to prove incorrect if needed. 

Companies in the health insurance business crank up the Algos and create a report in a minute and consumers spend months and years to correct data that we had nothing to do with the input and profits for such algorithms continue to make for huge profits on Wall Street.  Sadly to say the very same methodologies are graduating in format to healthcare too.

High Frequency Electronic Trading Methodologies And Algorithms Work Their Way Into Healthcare With Human Bodies Losing Liquidity With the “Data Game”

“It is a technological arms race in financial markets and the regulators are a bit caught unaware of how quickly the technology has evolved”

Full Year Revenues of $94.2 Billion Increased 8% Year-Over-Year, and Include a 10% Increase in Fourth Quarter Revenues to $24 Billion

Health Services Revenues Reached $25 Billion in 2010, up 15% Year-Over-Year

Health Benefits Businesses Served 1.2 Million More People in 2010, Including Growth of 230,000 People in Fourth Quarter

MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) today reported fourth quarter and full year 2010 financial results, including strong revenue growth from both its Health Benefits and Health Services business platforms. Full year and fourth quarter 2010 net earnings were $4.10 per share and $0.94 per share, respectively.

Stephen J. Hemsley, president and chief executive officer of UnitedHealth Group, said, “Our strong advances in serving customers across key performance measures over the past two years have come from a consistent focus on fundamental execution. That focus is driving growth and favorable business results. We are positive about the future and our potential to address evolving market needs. We believe our two primary platforms – Health Benefits and Health Services – will be effective vehicles for deploying our assets and resources to help address the broad needs of customers and key participants in the health system and health care marketplace.”

Management anticipates UnitedHealth Group’s 2011 revenues will approximate $100 billion, based on strong customer retention and new growth across its businesses, as well as contributions from recent acquisitions. The Company affirmed its outlook for 2011 net earnings in the range of $3.50 to $3.70 per share.

UnitedHealthcare Community & State, Ingenix and Prescription Solutions – increased revenues by more than 10 percent year-over-year in both the full year and the fourth quarter

UnitedHealth Group Reports 2010 Results, Highlighted by Strong Growth | Business Wire

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2011 eHealth Award Recipient Public Sector–California Deputy Secretary of Health Information Technology With No Staff

1/20/2011 09:23:00 AM  ,  

Normally I don’t bother with a lot of award postings on the Medical Quack as if you read the news every day they are numerous and everyone seems to be getting some kind of an award every where you look; however this one is worth a mention in the world of Health IT and medical records.  image

Notice the last paragraph in this award notice, “with no staff” and “a few student consultants”, that is big news.  What this says to me is that this is one of the unique valuable individuals in the world of Health IT that has “hands on” experience. 

Bill Gates speaks at UC Berkeley Global Health, Education and Thoughts on Philanthropy

Bill Gates at Berkeley last year in his talk to students said these are going to be and are the most valuable folks in the world of IT infrastructure as they can see more than just one focus and that businesses, government and all else concerned will want these folks.  Good work for the California public IT sector and also the work on getting the grants and funds to make this possible.  Come to think of it, President Obama is following the same advice I believe with his new choice of Chief of Staff too, searching out the valuable “hybrids” walking the face of the earth.  The folks over at the Hill could take heed here too perhaps.  BD 

President Obama Names a New “Hybrid” Chief of Staff That Can Bring Some “Algo Men” to the White House and Washington

Jonah Frolich was the Deputy Secretary of Health Information Technology at the California Health and Human Service Agency where he lead the Schwarzenegger Administration’s efforts to achieve statewide electronic health data exchange, uniform interoperability standards, and adoption of health information technologies. He also worked as a senior program officer at the California HealthCare Foundation where he managed the development of national and statewide data exchange standards to support electronic health information exchange, as well as the development of chronic disease management registries.

His leadership brought California the maximum funding possible for health information exchange, three Regional Extension Centers, a Beacon community, workforce grants, broadband funds among other funds for health IT initiatives, which otherwise would have struggled to exist.

With no staff and a few student consultants, Jonah lead a process that allowed hundreds of Californians to directly participate in developing the state's eHealth Plan.

2011 eHealth Award Recipients | eHealth Initiative

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Humana Health Insurance Closing up in the UK–Very Little MD Interest With Complicated Contracts To Involve Private Sectors

1/20/2011 07:48:00 AM  ,  

If you have read the news of late, the NHS is going through the motions of reorganizing their efforts over in the UK.  Insurers seem to be trying to figure out the imagemarket in the UK and determine if in fact there is a market over there. Last year I did a post about insurance brokers in Germany with a poll published showing that an insurance broker was the absolute “bottom feeder” job over there and a friend in the UK told it the feelings were just about the same in the UK too. 

Health Insurers In Germany Claiming Over Charges from Hospitals - Insurance Agents Just Happen to be the #1 Least Desired Profession

The British Medical Association also voiced big fears of American insurance companies getting any kind of a stronghold on their medical system as well.  Over n Europe in some areas they have a different situation with others outside of insurance companies owning so much of the Health IT technology too which makes a difference as here they own and control so much of it with huge government contracts as we have 8 years of an administration that didn’t see much value with IT services and thus now the US is playing catch up all over the place, which was purely evidenced in 2008 when even the White House had many computers still running Windows 98 when the Obama administration moved in, so again, a lot of IT work to catch up on.  BD

Humana, the giant US health insurer, is pulling out of the UK, unconvinced that the coalition’s healthcare shake-up will open up a lucrative market in helping GPs buy NHS care.

Its decision comes as other providers of commissioning support – for example Bupa, Tribal and the US-owned Aetna and United Health – also appear to be making cautious assessments of the opportunities it will yield.

Andrew Lansley on Wednesday publishes the bill that will hand over the commissioning of £70bn or more of NHS care to family doctors by 2013, with the health service unions, including the British Medical Association, voicing fears over large scale private involvement, or even a takeover, of commissioning by big US health companies and others.

Humana made a significant investment in the UK in 2006, offering innovative ways of improving care for patients with long-term conditions and support for primary care trusts in the commissioning of NHS care.  However, few PCTs took advantage of a cumbersome framework contract drawn up by the Department of Health that was intended to ease the acquisition of private sector expertise.

“The market for private sector commissioning support is unlikely to develop dramatically in the next year or so,” he said. Humana is looking to sell off its limited UK business – it employs 70 staff – and is likely to close its operations within six months.

FT.com / Health - US health insurer pulls out of UK

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Philadelphia Doctor Charged With Murder in Running a Shop of Horrors Abortion Clinic

1/19/2011 05:14:00 PM  ,  

This is not your normal abortion clinic story by any means as this doctor was imageperforming late state abortions and killing the babies by severing their spinal cords, so not really an abortion.  He made millions doing so and he also has a murder charge now from the death of a mother who died with an overdose of anesthetics. 

The story said the Health Department has been advised of violation since 1996 but failed to respond and it was a year ago in February of 2010 the clinic was raided.  All workers were arrested too with 4 charged with murder and 5 with drug violations.  The doctor performed abortions for low income and immigrants mostly. In addition they found all kinds of awful stuff in the clinic, including jars of feet and baby bodies all over the place.  He was in practice for over 30 years and is now 69 years old.  Drug charges were what finally got authorities to investigate.  This story is one that makes anyone sick. 

Abortion Clinic

(Reuters) - Prosecutors charged a Philadelphia abortion doctor with murder on Wednesday, claiming he killed viable babies by cutting their spinal cords with scissors after removing them from mothers late in their pregnancies.image

Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams charged Dr. Kermit Gosnell and nine associates with seven counts of murder involving babies, but said hundreds of others likely died in the squalid clinic that Gosnell ran from 1979 to 2010.

The defendants face first-degree murder in the cases of seven babies for which there is substantial evidence, Williams said. The babies were born alive and viable, he said.

Corrected: Philadelphia abortion doctor charged with murder | Reuters

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Two More Insurers Cigna and Humana Agree To Cover NuVasive Spinal Procedures

1/19/2011 05:01:00 PM  ,  

Cigna and Humana now have joined with Aetna and United Healthcare to provide coverage for the spinal procedure.  You can read a related article from last year to where NuVasive was the aggressor in working with carriers to come to an agreement on pricing.  BD

NuVasive Takes Health Insurers to Task and Gets Approval for Procedure and Moved Out of the “Investigational” Procedure Category – Less Invasive Back Surgery

image

Two major health insurers agreed to cover a spinal decompression and stabilization procedure that uses devices made by NuVasive, the San Diego medical device company said.

Cigna and Humana said they will begin paying for the extreme lateral interbody fusion procedure, joining Aetna, United Healthcare and other insurers.

NuVasive developed the procedure and provides tools and a neurological monitoring system used in the surgery.

Big insurers to cover spine procedure using NuVasive devices - SignOnSanDiego.com

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Dying Financier Slams Wall Street-Gordon Murray-Nobody Was There to Monitor Those Algorithms For Profit (Video)

1/19/2011 11:29:00 AM  , ,  

We can hide debt and Mr. Murray feels that one’s “word” has slipped away.  All the checks and balances have failed as the SEC was not there.  Why, the SEC didn’t invest in the current technologies to perform audits in real time and keep up with the algorithmic processes being used and instead we heard stories of SEC employees watching porn and other items as such in the news.

“It is a technological arms race in financial markets and the regulators are a bit caught unaware of how quickly the technology has evolved”

Basically he says nobody has been there and it all comes back to technology and those algorithms.  It has not stopped either as the “quest’ for additional business intelligence algorithms continues.  The link below will add a few more items to think about. 

Wall Street Looking to Silicon Valley For New Hires-High Frequency Trading Jobs and High Frequency Healthcare Next On the Algorithmic Ladders to Profit

Flat out it is technological war fare and the prior administration of this country sat there in denial as non participants and we still today have a Congress full of those folks, duh?  Back 2 years ago when the technology was updated at the White House there were still computers using Windows 98 and even the FDA in 2008 had some of their chief investigators writing up studies in longhand.  This is a dual issue with both non participants and those who sit in denial. 

More Congressional Testimonies About Health IT–Members of Congress Could Entertain Getting an “Algo Man” on Staff As Wall Street and Health Insurers Have Them–Don’t Leave Home Without One

I keep pitching this book and it’s a good one to tune you in and perhaps turn you into a technology participant at some point in time, hopefully sooner than later.  It’s all about those algorithms for profit. 

“Proofiness–The Dark Side of Mathematical Deception”–Created by Those Algorithms–New Book Coming Out Soon

If this has not woke you up, then one more post from the Quack to read is about how the same methodologies and algorithmic processes are working their way right down the line into healthcare.  You can complain all you want but until either new code is written to alter the processes that run 24/7 on the servers that process data and information, nothing happens as every law and rule today has an algorithmic process to back it up, banks, healthcare, everywhere so drift out of the 70s if you can.  It’s not a pretty picture. 

High Frequency Electronic Trading Methodologies And Algorithms Work Their Way Into Healthcare With Human Bodies Losing Liquidity With the “Data Game”

While Congress sits around and uses 3 ring binders and paper methodologies the server and processes keep running and those in banking absolutely have to just love making money from the ignorance of US citizens with lack or little tech literacy on how everything works today.  BD 

Author and finance guru Gordon Murray says "all the checks and balances failed."

Dying Financier Slams Wall Street - ABC News

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Badminton-Mew Choo Badminton Player Getting in Shape with Stem Cell Injection for Her Knee Injury

1/19/2011 10:42:00 AM  ,  

Stem cells are appearing almost everywhere today in regenerative medicine and a imagecouple days ago I wrote about knee implants and stem cell therapies as possibly working either together or maybe even as a replacement.  The tennis player sustained some injuries. 

There are even “spray on stem cells” to also treat and regenerate open wounds too.  BD 

Spray On Stem Cells for Treating Burns and Open Wounds–Regenerative Medicine

Jan 18 (Reuters) - Malaysia's top badminton hope Wong Mew Choo was on her way back to full fitness with one eye on the 2012 London Olympics after taking stem cell injections for her injuries.

"I have taken stem cell injection treatment for my knees. For the last three weeks, I have gone through weight training. I am physically better prepared," Mew Choo told Tuesday's Malaysian Star newspaper.

The shuttler, who started the treatment in November, said it was vital to get back in the world's top 16 from her current ranking of 24.

Badminton-Mew Choo getting fitter after stem cell injections | Reuters

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Former FDA leader von Eschenbach Named to Viamet Board of Directors

1/19/2011 10:23:00 AM  ,  

Back in September of 2010 he was also names to the Board of another technology company that deals with urology and cancer therapies.  Since his tenure at the FDA imageit sounds like von Eschenbach is returning to his roots with using his expertise in the clinical area of healthcare.  BD

Former FDA Commissioner, Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach Finds a Home on the Board of HistoSonics

Viamet Pharmaceuticals has landed a healthcare heavyweight in naming prostate cancer expert and former U.S. Food and Drug Administration commissioner Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach to the company’s board of directors.

Durham, North Carolina-based Viamet has a proprietary technology that identifies and blocks certain enzyme targets. The technology can be used to develop new drugs and Viamet last year signed a licensing agreement with Novartis (NYSE:NVS) that could be worth more than $200 million if Viamet is able to develop certain enzyme inhibitors for the Swiss drug company.

Cancer expert and former FDA leader von Eschenbach named to Viamet board

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Extormity EHR Testimony at Health IT Hearing (Spoof-Video)

1/19/2011 09:31:00 AM  ,  

The Extormity folks have outdone themselves this time!  We actually have live video imagecontent here….we have to laugh, as the trail to establishing electronic medical records has been one of many faces….and no matter what side of the fence you are on, there’ stuff here that relates!  Where else can a medical record program be “Seedie” certified.  This is a healthy discussion with testimony from the EHR vendor and some physicians using EHR systems…tough vendor here. 

You want a PHR…I’m entitled to one…my existence profits from stock options says Jack…I have that luxury….we use words like implementation fees, custom integration, software licensing as a way of defending our cost structure….I’d rather you just wrote me a check and went on your way (EMR Vendor speaking)…Jack has spoken.

I suggest you pick up a keyboard and start writing code <grin> (love that one).  BD

Extormity Testifies!
Extormity senior executive Frederick “the colonel” Youngblood recently testified in front of a panel investigating the software implementation practices of electronic health record vendors. Jackson’s comments were televised via webcast, and his forceful approach underscores Extormity’s “intimidate, bully and bill” approach to managing client relationships.

Below you can check out some of their past outstanding efforts…

Extormity EHR Launches Medicare Fraud Module (Humor) Up Coding Made Simple

Extormity Introduces A Death Panel Module For the Algorithmically Challenged IT Illiterate Crowd And Is “Seedie Certified” (Humor)

From the website:

“The Extormity EMR software suite requires wholesale, revolutionary workflow change that dramatically impacts practice patterns. Our slow and painful change process significantly interrupts patient volumes and revenues, and this cumbersome transformation can only be appreciated in hindsight and with the aid of prescription medication (which can be prescribed via the Extormity EMRX Upgrade Module and Pharmacy Interface Pack).”

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