Healthcare Policy Experts/Politicians - They Really No Longer Exist and Consumers Are Too Busy Being Chased by Algorithms Anymore to Care About You Anyway…

<p>Fact of the matter is we don’t have any of these folks around anymore, maybe except in their own minds.  We can take Hillary Clinton for one and I like her but she’s old news in healthcare as it’s a much different world from when she entered the field years ago.  Right now everyone is all caught up in how money she makes anyway and there’s no talent discussed anymore and I’m not picking on her at all just one example of what we have out there today with leadership, a bunch of nothing.  There’s a lot of people with money but that doesn’t make them an expert always.  </p> <p><strong>If you have watched the resignations at HHS and CMS, there’s been a few and my guess is that the stress is wearing on them as well as the world we live in today revolves around algorithms and making money with algorithms.</strong>  We have <img align="right" height="204" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-BcES4lN-2Ro/UzCw2NjarSI/AAAAAAABJuY/GQXWw2QAyV0/image%25255B30%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="float: right; display: inline" width="294" />not seen any job efforts as everyone is busy selling data and it’s getting worse and the quality of care is going down in the US and<strong> nobody is happy, doctors or patients and even some of the most brilliant motivators from the patient side seem to be pretty quiet of late too</strong>, so I see a message there too.  The message is ugly and we see it in the news every day with everything not about humans, but about money.  <strong>We’re just one more bot in the wall you could say.</strong></p> <p><strong>Technology is eating a huge hole in healthcare too and we need it, but how much?</strong>  We certainly don’t know do we as we can’t stop to take a breath at times.  We need a certain amount but there was an article out today saying a lot of non profits are having a tough time financially and where do think that cost lies?  It’s with technology.  Actually we are having more of this with folks running for the exits.  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/06/the-quiet-and-unspoken-consumer.html">The Quiet and Unspoken Consumer Movement to Stay Off the Radar - Contrary To All You Read About Sensors, Apps and Wearables, More Folks Are Running for the Exit Doors… </a></h5> <p>It’s a very scary world out there right now and a new set of algorithms, no matter what direction they come from, upset the apple cart in some fashion almost every day so how we can have “real experts”?  We can’t.  As consumers we’re too busy sitting around filling out forms online for this and then for that.  That’s what they have us doing anymore for anything we want and then we can’t even have any real peace to go out and shop as we have algorithms following us there too and more on the way from Google. </p> <p>This is the life that the US has cut out for it’s citizens and sure there are breakthroughs and good things happening too but they get out shadowed by the other side of just putting a target on our head for a dollar amount assigned to the data we can offer, not for the value of what we can offer as a person anymore.  It’s sad.  </p> <p>Big business has decided that we just need to be scored right and left all the time to find out more about us and of course we don’t like it as they turn around sell what ever score they create about us and nobody’s even checking for accuracy anymore, if we have data, the companies or banks are going to sell it and it makes no difference if it’s accurate or not as bad data sells as good as good data anymore.<img align="right" alt="image" border="0" height="150" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-yqQaDFYWlxc/U7I-APmGW9I/AAAAAAABKt4/BJCgtvolJoE/image%25255B3%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; float: right; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px; border-top-width: 0px" title="image" width="155" />  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/06/the-true-dangers-with-corporate.html">The True Dangers With Corporate Obsessive Algorithmic Scoring of US Consumers - It Creates More Flawed Data For Sale And Makes Banks and Companies Wealthier As the Pace of Inequality Accelerates … </a></h5> <p>So for all you self proposed experts and healthcare leaders, just save us having yet one more book to hear about as most of the time we have already lived it once, and again we’re too busy outrunning algorithms that are chasing us in every turn of life.  We’re not excited anymore about new technologies, unless it is something fun like a game but even those are starting to wear a bit thin too, we don’t have time, we have algorithms chasing us and more wanting data entered on a computer.  Here’s a book that offers some advice from a real straight shooter from NYU.</p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/06/virtual-unreality-maybe-good-read-after.html">“Virtual Unreality” - Maybe A Good Read After the Fake Facebook “Science” Report To Help You Figure Out What’s A Virtual Value and What’s A Real Value Out There </a></h5> <p>Sure there’s a need for some time in front of the computer but even the White House is just big “bot” anymore.  There’s nothing that arrives in email that touches you or means anything, it’s just another bot in the wall.  This is life for the average consumer and value as described by <strong>physicist Sean Gourley</strong>…take note and see what’s really going on for the consumers out there if you are an expert reading this.  The first part talks about markets and then he graduates into the web and social networks.  He says we have to determine what our relationship is going to be with the bots…well humans are still writing algorithms and those are the ones in control of our little worlds.  </p> <p><iframe style="height: 283px; width: 504px" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/TFfAMFLJXyk" frameborder="0" width="560" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p> <p><strong>So again in closing this rant, don’t bother us with saying we have “healthcare experts” as we don’t.</strong>  The only healthcare folks we really relate to are the doctors and nurses that care for us and that’s it, as the rest of the system is turning into dead weight as far as value for consumers.  Just please spare us the “expert” connotation if you would in the future as we know you are just store front for all those algorithms we are running from or on occasion interacting with when we have to.  Like I say, I base what I write here on feedback from real people and not what I read on the web as that’s what matters, the real world and not the virtual world painted on my computer screen.  BD</p>

Healthcare Policy Experts/Politicians - They Really No Longer Exist and Consumers Are Too Busy Being Chased by Algorithms Anymore to Care About You Anyway…

Fact of the matter is we don’t have any of these folks around anymore, maybe except in their own minds.  We can take Hillary Clinton for one...

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CEO of Insurance Company Commits Suicide With Nail Gun After Draining Employee Retirement Accounts

<p>Is is any wonder no matter where you work that retirement funds are something employees<img align="right" alt="image" border="0" height="166" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-9nssZsasICI/U7IDOjeUHWI/AAAAAAABKto/pLI2Qx2h07Q/image%25255B2%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: right; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px" title="image" width="187" /> worry about.  This was a smaller company and half of what was invested for the employees never got there and we have a lawsuit now as the company went bankrupt.  There was a false front on the company looking like they were growing and thriving, but not so, books cooked.  BD</p> <p> <hr />The U.S. Department of Labor says the title insurance company CEO who committed suicide by nail gun misappropriated more than $62,000 from employee retirement accounts, according to a federal lawsuit.</p> <p>Richard Talley of American Title Services Company in Greenwood Village allegedly deducted more than $111,000 from employee paychecks for company-sponsored retirement accounts, but more than half of it never got there.</p> <p>The misappropriation had gone on since 2008, the labor department said in its lawsuit filed Friday in U.S. District Court in Denver. It is unclear how many employees are affected.</p> <p>That company, Title Resource Guaranty Corp., says American Title's books were doctored to cover up the shortfall, and has sued Talley, his widow, Cheryl, and others to recoup the funds.</p> <p>Cheryl Talley, American Title's co-founder, has not been reachable and has sold the family's Aurora home. She has denied in court records any knowledge of the company's financial troubles or the alleged actions of her husband. </p> <p><a href="http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_26063651/labor-nail-gun-suicide-ceo-took-62k-from?source=rss">http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_26063651/labor-nail-gun-suicide-ceo-took-62k-from?source=rss</a></p>

CEO of Insurance Company Commits Suicide With Nail Gun After Draining Employee Retirement Accounts

Is is any wonder no matter where you work that retirement funds are something employees worry about.  This was a smaller company and half o...

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“Virtual Unreality” - Maybe A Good Read After the Fake Facebook “Science” Report To Help You Figure Out What’s A Virtual Value and What’s A Real Value Out There

<p>With all the fuss over the fake Facebook Science, maybe time to recommend a book and I have not read it yet but it’s on my list as <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Virtual-Unreality-Just-Because-Internet/dp/0670026085"><img align="right" alt="image" border="0" height="314" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-dRIYslmorNY/U7HwRi_mdMI/AAAAAAABKtY/8kABlLp-1xI/image%25255B4%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; float: right; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px; border-top-width: 0px" title="image" width="203" /></a>it just came out and I read his prior book “Proofiness” which I wrote about a couple years ago.  Here’s a link to a short interview as what’s done with all new books when they come out.<strong>  I think in the same line and thus I felt this might be a good post today as I see this nonsense all over the place myself.</strong>  Yesterday morning I got  on the computer and there was this mass of tweet and links all about this Facebook study done two years ago and of course Facebook is smart and knows their marketing and wanted some attention, they do that as do other marketing folks out there.  Secondly I thought perhaps the data scientist was maybe a little full of himself as it’s a very competitive field and these folks are almost known as wizards by some due to the type of work they do with modeling and finding solution for financial savings as well as efficiencies and both focuses are there and sometime the solution is both.  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2011/01/numbers-dont-lie-but-people-do.html">“Numbers Don’t Lie, But People Do”–Radio Interview from Charles Siefe–Journalists Take Note, He Addresses How Marketing And Bogus Statistics Are Sources of Problems That Mislead the Public & Government</a></h5> <p><strong>Myself being a former coder and developer I just try to add some common sense here as the perception someone not in technology will have will be different from mine.</strong>  I experienced that with doctors years ago in writing a medical record system as “they guess” and “I know” however, their input in what ever form it takes is important as of course you need the user input to make software work well and it’s hard.  There’s a lot of going back and forth by all means.  Once I sat a doctor down and let him walk through Visual Studio, the tool from Microsoft used to write software and he had an entirely different view of what I did after that and it was a good thing as I would get to see what he did, but he really didn’t understand without a visual of what takes place on the other side to create what he desired, etc. and what restrictions I had to work with.  </p> <p><a href="http://www.wpr.org/listen/605661">Here’s the link to the short interview with Charlie Siefe about the book</a> and you can scroll down to the footer of my blog and watch his video presentation given at Google in New York a couple years ago or visit the <a href="http://www.ducknet.net/attack-of-the-killer-algorithms/">Killer Algorithm page</a> to watch it as video #1 over there, where there’s more from folks smarter than me that are taking time to describe and help the layman understand what really goes on.  Again I do my best and sometimes just sit there and shake my head at the perceptions I hear from folks at times and try to lead them in the right direction.  You have marketing out there that takes advantage of this too and that’s a big part of the problem too and<strong> I try to point that out or direct people to a book like this or other videos that can do it better than me.  </strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Virtual-Unreality-Just-Because-Internet/dp/0670026085">Amazon link for book.</a>  In government this perception issue has been so public with some and it’s still out there with government executives and Congress I started calling it <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/04/secretary-sebelius-at-hhs-resigns-wrong.html">“The Sebelius Syndrome”</a> as her off perceptions were just in your face all the time and so out of sorts with her own self perceptions too.  It hasn’t been above the White House to get caught in junk science too <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/06/junk-science-appearing-everywhere-even.html">as this post will tell you.</a>  </p> <p><strong>Everyone wants to sell you something today and the pressure is like we have</strong><a href="http://www.gofundme.com/auyxd0"><strong><img align="right" border="0" height="155" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-pDkERQGCavs/U7CCFhJ-lRI/AAAAAAABKtI/kXyumQqvSoM/Privacy_GoFundMe%25255B3%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; float: right; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px; border-top-width: 0px" width="200" /></strong></a><strong> never seen, but we also want some privacy as nothing is for free and your data is sold left and right and you have no clue.</strong>  <a href="http://www.gofundme.com/auyxd0">Take a look at my campaign to the left</a> if you like as I’m trying to do something about that and at least get data sellers <strong>licensed as step one toward privacy</strong> along with consumers having a look up point to where they can research what kind of data is sold and who they sell it to.  I have already been working on this for a couple years and need a little help if I can get it as it will help all of us.  I just got tired of all the “privacy experts” not knowing any data mechanics and not knowing how to go about it and have some success.  <strong>It’s not their fault but they were missing an element and it’s been missing for years in many places with a model and not creating some magical algorithm that will do the job.</strong>  Nobody has been approaching “real privacy” regulation of any sort with a model.  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/04/world-privacy-forum-report-scoring-of.html">World Privacy Forum Report - The Scoring of America: How Secret Consumer Scores Threaten Your Privacy and Your Future - One Big Element that Fuels the Continued Attack of Killer Algorithms & Demise of the Middle Class Creating Profiteering And/Or Denial of Access </a></h5> <p><strong>I’m right in tune with what Charlie says and ironically have written about the same in a few posts and the link below being one and <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/03/virtual-worlds-real-world-we-have.html">I call it “The Grays</a>” and like he says, people can’t tell the difference anymore and that’s scary.</strong>  Mine is just a blog post but I have a few of them on this topic.  It’s odd but the media is very powerful as I’ll have people argue with me about how things occur on the web that are not in technology with their perceptions and<strong> you just shake your head at the power of marketing when folks are so stuck in”virtual” mode and are “going to be right”. </strong>I learned a long time ago there’s more important things in life than being right all the time and it’s more important “to do the right thing” and not everyone does that as <strong>you get “code hosed” at times on the web</strong>.  Check out all the videos in the footer here when you have time, Charlie is #1 and they are all good.  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/06/the-true-dangers-with-corporate.html">The True Dangers With Corporate Obsessive Algorithmic Scoring of US Consumers - It Creates More Flawed Data For Sale And Makes Banks and Companies Wealthier As the Pace of Inequality Accelerates … </a></h5> <p>We want honesty and truth out there and we are not always getting it and I call it folks looking for “algo fairies” and granted we do have some really top technology being developed that is very smart so when some of the psychological stuff gets mixed in, well people think everything is possible and in fact it’s not and even <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/02/larry-ellison-ceo-oracle-hcm.html">veteran technologists like Larry Ellison</a> are aware of this the bring their message forward as well.  </p> <p>So far again too if you find that some technologies are upsetting you and that you really don’t need them, then turn them off.  I do that all the time and I have my little addictions too, like Twitter and try to harness myself a times too.  There are folks a lot smarter than me out there and that’s why I made the <a href="http://www.ducknet.net/attack-of-the-killer-algorithms/">Killer Algorithm page</a> as their videos too will help you make sense of some of this as we all get fooled at some point no matter what your education level is.  Now the advertisers doing a little bit of code hosing are not going to like that page or like having you get smarter of course but hey it is what it is if you choose to learn more about how it all works:)  BD  </p> <p><a href="http://www.wpr.org/listen/605661">http://www.wpr.org/listen/605661</a></p>

“Virtual Unreality” - Maybe A Good Read After the Fake Facebook “Science” Report To Help You Figure Out What’s A Virtual Value and What’s A Real Value Out There

With all the fuss over the fake Facebook Science, maybe time to recommend a book and I have not read it yet but it’s on my list as it just c...

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Orion Health Technologies to Build HIE For Sutter Hospitals in California Costing Tens of Millions of Dollars…

<p>I haven’t heard Orion mentioned in a while but here’s a couple back links below to where they first of all bought the former Microsoft Amalga HIE technologies a few years ago.  In addition, Caradigm company was created with join<img align="right" alt="image" border="0" height="225" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-CQNGzNBf1OQ/U69Xaj1ZivI/AAAAAAABKs4/axUFGiAxlZE/image%25255B3%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: right; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px" title="image" width="242" />t efforts of both Microsoft and GE and it would make sense they are affiliated with Orion as well.  </p> <p>For the first time in years Sutter posted a loss for the year 2013  and formed a new HMO signature plan that is run by a former Optum Executive, and <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2009/05/sutter-hospitals-and-ingenix-working.html">Sutter has been a long time user of Ingenix (now Optum Insights)business intelligence software.</a>   I guess the ACA might be having some effect here as well.  <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/03/hospital-inequality-yet-one-more.html">Hospital inequality</a> today is something few care to discuss it seems but Sutter has always been at the top as far as quality and expense for patients as well.  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2013/04/orion-health-and-caradigm-to-expand.html">Orion Health and Caradigm to Expand Upon Orion EHR, Business Intelligence & Apps,–Some of the Technologies Formerly Known as Amalga HIS</a></h5> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2011/10/orion-health-to-acquire-microsoft-his.html">Orion Health to Acquire Microsoft HIS and RIS/PACS Assets–Focus on Asia Pacific Hospital Market For Medical Records and Collaboration with Amalga UIS</a></h5> <p>Data sharing is always good news as we know it means better care when more information and records are available to doctors so they can see the big picture.  Tens of millions of dollars is to be spent for this project and Sutter is using an Epic system in their hospitals.  There’s no way of course to put a specific cost number on the project as there’s always incidentals that arise anymore with large projects as we have seen with insurance exchanges in the recent past.  In addition the system will connect with the CIE network for even more connectivity.  You do wonder at times how sustainable systems synchronizing records will be down the road as it’s not cheap at all.  </p> <p>Currently 17 hospitals are connected with some physician’s offices and I would assume they are also using an Epic medical records system.  It’s going to be interesting as new HIE models have recently become available that are legacy Ok and connect any type of hospital system to another and also the doctors on staff such as the one at the link below.  Everyone talks about HIE and the cost so time will tell.  The Zoeticx (link below)  system works off of system APIs and doesn’t require a constant connection and there’s no warehousing, so again this will be interesting to see how the Orion project moves along and the main thing of course is to just the records connected.  BD  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/06/zoeticx-patient-clarity-server-hie-for.html">Zoeticx Patient Clarity Server -HIE For Next Generation of Healthcare Applications -Agnostic To Current EMR Deployments, Works With Any Electronic Medical Records System From the Cloud With A Common User Interface</a></h5> <p> <hr />Sutter Health, the Sacramento-based nonprofit system that runs many of the Bay Area's biggest hospitals, plans to spend "tens of millions of dollars" to create a health care data platform to share information between Sutter clinicians and unaffiliated health care providers in Northern California.</p> <p>Sutter will work with Australia's Orion Health to build and deploy the so-called "HIE" or health information exchange by May 2015, officials say.</p> <p>Work on the new system will begin this summer.</p> <p>Sy Nielson, a Sutter spokesman, said Sutter would spend tens of millions of dollars on the new technology, but wouldn't specify an exact number.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bizjournals.com/profiles/company/us/ga/roswell/orion_healthcorp_inc/1175640">http://www.bizjournals.com/profiles/company/us/ga/roswell/orion_healthcorp_inc/1175640</a></p>

Orion Health Technologies to Build HIE For Sutter Hospitals in California Costing Tens of Millions of Dollars…

I haven’t heard Orion mentioned in a while but here’s a couple back links below to where they first of all bought the former Microsoft Amalg...

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FDA Approved ReWalk System For Patient Use Outside of Rehabilitation Centers

<p>Well I see some new fundraisers coming up as the ReWalk product is not cheap at $69,000 and the<img align="right" alt="image" border="0" height="282" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-f3p89_UO-5E/U69Oq-brmzI/AAAAAAABKss/lkACLOiwcoI/image%25255B3%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: right; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px" title="image" width="207"> product will be available immediately.  Below is the prior FDA approval.  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2011/01/fda-approves-rewalk-device-that-enables.html">FDA Approves “ ReWalk ” Device That Enables Paralyzed Individuals to Walk</a></h5> <p>Of course when we think of devices like this we think of wounded vets as well.  Now patients will be able to use the device at home.  The specific approvals are for paraplegics who have injuries between the 7th and fifth lumbar.  When used in a rehab agency it can also assist people with injuries between the 4th and sixth vertebra.  The manufacturer, Argo already has over 50 ReWalk centers and so far around 400 people are using the device.  BD  </p> <p> <hr> A device designed by a quadriplegic Israeli entrepreneur to increase his own mobility, and in use already to get wounded U.S. military personnel up and walking again, has won clearance from the Food and Drug Administration for broad marketing in the United States.<br>A stimulating advance<br>Patients who used to be paralyzed demonstrate their ability to use their legs with the help of a spinal cord stimulator.</p> <p>The ReWalk system is sometimes called an "exoskeleton" for those whose legs will no longer move at the command of signals from the brain. It consists of a fitted metal brace that supports the legs and part of the upper body. Its motors supply movement at the hips, knees, and ankles, and its computer and power supply are housed in a backpack worn by the user.</p> <p>A version of the system is widely used already in rehabilitation centers across the United States. But the ReWalk system cleared by the FDA on Thursday is for use by individuals outside of a rehab setting -- in their homes and communities. Its manufacturer said the system will be available immediately, with a price tag of $69,500.</p> <p>A version of the system is widely used already in rehabilitation centers across the United States. But the ReWalk system cleared by the FDA on Thursday is for use by individuals outside of a rehab setting -- in their homes and communities. Its manufacturer said the system will be available immediately, with a price tag of $69,500.</p> <p><a href="http://www.latimes.com/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-fda-device-paraplegics-walk-20140626-story.html">http://www.latimes.com/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-fda-device-paraplegics-walk-20140626-story.html</a></p>

FDA Approved ReWalk System For Patient Use Outside of Rehabilitation Centers

Well I see some new fundraisers coming up as the ReWalk product is not cheap at $69,000 and the product will be available immediately.  Bel...

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Health Plans and Claim Clearinghouses With Virtual Credit Cards-Racking Up Additional Fees From Doctors

<p>Ok so we are looking at money streams once again, same thing we always talk about with electronic transactions and now it appears from reading this article that physician are being marketed to use Virtual Credit Cards to be reimbursed. <img align="right" alt="image" border="0" height="221" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-zGrX1D0-cuE/U68OO9W7IjI/AAAAAAABKsc/FuRtxqBJLow/image%25255B3%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; float: right; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px; border-top-width: 0px" title="image" width="279" /> The rub here is the fee and as the article states on a small bill, it’s not a big deal but when thousand of dollars are involved it begins to add up.  When using a credit card the transaction is processed like any other credit card transaction and the fees can be as high as 5 percent so that adds up.</p> <p>Insurers pay very low fees to the banks so there’s some add on revenue streams here with what the clearinghouse or insurer can cash in on with adding more to the fee and it sounds like this is the crux of the matter here.  Important, read the next paragraph as it has to do with HIPAA.  </p> <p><em>"Federal regulations do allow the industry to use other, non-[Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act-]mandated payment options such as virtual cards," CAQH CORE added. "However, should payers and providers decide to use virtual cards, they would not benefit from the many advantages driven by the <a href="http://www.caqh.org/pdf/COREFAQsPartD.pdf">CAQH CORE Operating Rules, such as electronically matched ERA and EFT."</a></em></p> <p>MGMA has sent a letter to CMS regarding “virtual credit cards” addressing the unnecessary fees  attached to electronic fund transfers and states that clearinghouses and some health plans are not complying with the true intent of EFT standards and operating rules as set forth by the Affordable Care Act and taking unfair advantage of practices.  The article makes an example of the <a href="http://www.emdeon.com/resourcepdfs/EMDA1010402.pdf">brochure used by Emdeon</a> .  </p> <p>We are seeing more and more transactions wanting to be linked to credit cards today and one thing to think about as well is that we have a lot of data selling going on today and would this fall right in there?  I mention this as we had this story to to where a hospital was buying up patient Master Card records.  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/06/oh-crap-now-hospitals-are-now-buying.html">Oh Crap, Now Hospitals Are Now Buying Data From Acxiom - Data Selling Epidemic Continues to Evade on Personal Privacy As “Algo Duped-Stat Rat” People Try to Implement Virtual Models That Won’t Work…</a></h5> <p>Using a virtual credit card would certainly stand to make it easy to create a data base for sale and inside the healthcare industry there’s no secret as far as what a doctor is billing and getting paid; however does this make a market for selling this additional information to other outside industries or data brokers?  It’s just something to think about if you will.  In addition by using Virtual Credit Cards, is that the practice loses the ability to use “trace number” that can be used for automated payment posting.   BD </p> <hr />Some health plans and claims clearinghouses are improperly using "virtual" credit cards to pay physician practices or are charging excessive fees for electronic funds transfer (EFT), the Medical Group Management Association (MGMA) said in a recent letter to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). <p>According to MGMA, both activities run counter to the intent of the Affordable Care Act, which aims to encourage the use of EFT and other electronic transactions to reduce the administrative costs of healthcare.</p> <p>In a list of frequently asked questions accompanying its regulations on standard operating rules for EFT, MGMA noted in its letter, CMS states "the health plan also cannot incentivize a provider to use an alternate payment method other than the adopted standard or adversely affect the provider for using the standard transaction (i.e., charging excessive fees)."</p> <p><strong>Virtual credit card numbers, which are linked to but do not reveal actual credit card numbers, are typically used with a single vendor, such as a physician's practice. When the practice receives a virtual proxy card number for a particular payment, a staff member keys in the number on a point-of-service terminal and the payment is deposited in the practice's bank account.</strong></p> <p>Although this approach seems innocuous on the surface, it can cost practices a lot of money, said Robert Tennant, senior policy advisor to MGMA, in an interview with Medscape Medical News. The reason is that the health plan is making a credit card payment that carries the same kind of bank charge to the payee as any other credit card payment. For physician practices, that fee can be as high as 5% of the payment, Tennant noted.</p> <p>"If it's only a $45 payment, like a copay, that's no big deal," he said. "But if the payment is hundreds or thousands of dollars, 3% to 5% on $20,000 to $30,000 is a large amount of money."</p> <p><strong>In contrast, he observed, insurers pay very low fees to banks when they transfer money directly into practices' bank accounts. The MGMA letter said these fees range from 13 to 34 cents per transaction, regardless of how big the payment is.</strong></p> <p>MGMA does not believe practices should pay any fees to have their money transferred to them, said Tennant, but if a fee is charged, it should not be more than the payers' actual cost.</p> <p>The leading health insurers and clearinghouses are promoting virtual credit cards, Tennant said, and MGMA has received many complaints about this from its members this year. Some practices have adamantly refused to accept the virtual card numbers, telling plans they must either use traditional EFT or cut paper checks.</p> <p><a href="http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/827500">http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/827500</a></p>

Health Plans and Claim Clearinghouses With Virtual Credit Cards-Racking Up Additional Fees From Doctors

Ok so we are looking at money streams once again, same thing we always talk about with electronic transactions and now it appears from readi...

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Something Froze Over Today As the FDA Approved Afrezza Inhalable Insulin

<p>This has been one long haul for MannKind Corporation as it got close once before but the commitment (and the money) has been there to keep it going.  It has been approved for either diabetes type one or type two.  The first product similar to this was one from Pfizer that looked like a bong but this product does not.   Here’s a back link from around a year ago below.<img align="right" alt="image" border="0" height="143" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-nITz1UZs1PU/U65FUeMG7-I/AAAAAAABKsM/sS7kJZTQQFQ/image%25255B2%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: right; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px" title="image" width="187" /></p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2011/01/mannkind-corp-waiting-for-fda-approval.html">MannKind Corp Waiting for FDA Approval of Inhaled Insulin–Afrezza-An Army of Inhaler Manufacturers Awaits With Products for Consumer Compliance Monitoring</a> </h5> <p>As I understand one takes a “puff” before a meal but again the long term use of inhaling insulin is still not known.  The company has lost over 2 billion developing this drug.  BD  </p> <p> <hr />The Food and Drug Administration on Friday approved a form of insulin that is inhaled rather than injected, providing a new option for millions of Americans with diabetes.</p> <p>The approval of the drug, Afrezza, is a milestone in a long and expensive journey for its developer, MannKind Corporation, and for its chief executive, Alfred E. Mann, an 88-year-old billionaire who spent a big part of his fortune sustaining the company through various setbacks.</p> <p>“Today’s F.D.A. action validates the years of clinical research and commitment that powered the development of this unique therapy,” Mr. Mann said in a statement Friday.</p> <p>The company, based in Valencia, Calif., has lost more than $2.3 billion since its inception. The inhaled insulin was rejected twice by the F.D.A., forcing MannKind to conduct new clinical trials.</p> <p><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/28/business/afrezza-a-new-inhaled-insulin-is-approved-by-fda.html">http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/28/business/afrezza-a-new-inhaled-insulin-is-approved-by-fda.html</a></p>

Something Froze Over Today As the FDA Approved Afrezza Inhalable Insulin

This has been one long haul for MannKind Corporation as it got close once before but the commitment (and the money) has been there to keep i...

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“We Are Not Ready For Healthcare Data Mining” - Guest Post

<p>Today, here’s guest post from Cathy O’Neil at the blog <a href="http://mathbabe.org/2014/06/27/we-are-not-ready-for-health-data-mining/#comments">“Mathbabe”</a> with many of the same references you have heard from me of late relative to medical data.  You can also view video #3 in the footer of my blog to listen to a lecture<img align="right" alt="image" border="0" height="237" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-FXEGyEhRSk8/U614j51gJoI/AAAAAAABKr0/oFC4pIILflo/image%25255B13%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: right; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px" title="image" width="312" /> she gave a while back.  It’s there along with 3 other videos I consider important and material that reflects what’s happening in “the real world” as we get caught up on a lot of rhetoric on the web that is maybe how we would “like” the world to be but again we have both virtual and real world values competing with each other today, as I call it <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/03/virtual-worlds-real-world-we-have.html">“The Grays”</a> in another post.  <strong>Inequality is the focus now and we can put our guns down with “transparency” and all that rhetoric as it’s happening anyway so less of that irrelative buzzword is also welcome today.</strong>  </p> <p>Her background is “not” healthcare but rather she works as a Quant and her work and efforts support much of the Occupy movement, and she spent time working at a Hedge Fund years back and found out it was not what she felt where she wanted to be; however, what she learned there as far as behaviors, how modeling is done in finance, etc. is pretty valuable as we get an inside look at how that works or did work on Wall Street.  Right to the point, she’s pretty much addressing<strong> “it’s not working”</strong> when it comes to privacy and how data ends up being used against people.  We are not getting smarter in that respect and the lack of ethics is becoming more profound all the time with the chase for more data.  </p> <p>Again having someone outside  of the healthcare business who works with models and coding share her viewpoint is healthy too as we get observances outside of what is spoken in the industry.  </p> <p> <hr /></p> <p>There have been two articles very recently about how great health data mining could be if we could only link up all the data sets. <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/26/technology/personaltech/a-reach-too-far-by-google.html?action=click&contentCollection=Technology&region=Footer&module=MoreInSection&pgtype=Blogs">Larry Page from Google thinks so</a>, which doesn’t surprise anyone, and separately we are seeing that the consequence<a href="http://mathbabe.org/2014/06/27/we-are-not-ready-for-health-data-mining/#comments"><img align="right" alt="image" border="0" height="99" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-cd8vtbK120Q/U614kkDwRXI/AAAAAAABKr4/kC1gFZyFNDg/image%25255B8%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: right; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px" title="image" width="104" /></a> of the new medical payment system through the ACA is giving medical systems incentives to <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-06-26/hospitals-soon-see-donuts-to-cigarette-charges-for-health.html">keep tabs on you through data providers</a> and find out if you’re smoking or if you need to fill up on asthma medication.</p> <p>And although many would consider this creepy stalking, that’s not actually my problem with it. I think Larry Page is right – we might be able to save lots of lives if we could mine this data which is currently siloed through various privacy laws. On the other hand, there are reasons those privacy laws exist. Let’s think about that for a second.</p> <p><strong>Now that we have the ACA, insurers are not allowed to deny Americans medical insurance coverage because of a pre-existing condition, nor are they allowed to charge more, as of 2014. That’s good news on the health insurance front. But what about other aspects of our lives?</strong></p> <p>For example, it does not generalize to employers. In other words, a large employer like Wal-Mart might take into account your current health and your current behaviors and possibly even your DNA to predict future behaviors, and they might decide not to give jobs to anyone at risk of diabetes, say. Even if medical insurance casts were taken out of the picture, which they haven’t been, they’d have incentives not to hire unhealthy people.</p> <p>Mind you, there are laws that prevent employers from looking into HIPAA-protected health data, but not Acxiom data, which is entirely unregulated. And if we “opened up all the data” then the laws would be entirely moot. It would be a world where, to get a job, the employer got to see everything about you, including your future health profile. To some extent this is already happening.</p> <p>Perhaps not everyone thinks of this as bad. After all, many people think smokers should pay more for insurance, why not also work harder to get a job? However, lots of the information gleaned from this data – even behaviors – have much more to do with poverty levels than circumstance than with conscious choice. In other words, it’s another stratification of society along the lucky/unlucky birth lottery spectrum. And if we aren’t careful, we will make it even harder for poor people to eke out a living.</p> <p><strong>I’m all for saving lives but let’s wait for the laws to catch up with the good intentions. Although to be honest, it’s not even clear how the law should be written, since it’s not clear what “medical” data is nowadays nor how we could gather evidence that a private employer is using it against someone improperly.</strong></p> <p><a href="http://mathbabe.org/2014/06/27/we-are-not-ready-for-health-data-mining/#comments">Originally posted on mathbabe</a> <hr /></p> <p>Now on a secondary note here it was interesting yesterday after this post, that Acxiom decided to reach out on Twitter with me yesterday and below you can see a copy and paste of how it went.  I don’t if it will have any impact at all but my case in point made is that their data is flawed along with other data out there floating around about me, and people are confused and don’t know how to work with “flawed data” and use it to pass judgment on others, and thus so what Cathy said above<em> “it is making it harder for poor people to eke out a living”.</em>  I keep saying as well we have a very weak government that can’t or won’t tune in to this as well and thus so the rate of inequality is accelerating every day, while many are under the auspice that they are making fair decisions when in fact that is not so.  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/06/oh-crap-now-hospitals-are-now-buying.html">Oh Crap, Now Hospitals Are Now Buying Data From Acxiom - Data Selling Epidemic Continues to Evade on Personal Privacy As “Algo Duped-Stat Rat” People Try to Implement Virtual Models That Won’t Work…</a></h5> <p>Here’s the tweets so I gave it my best shot…with trying to express what happens in “the real world” with data and perhaps even Acxiom themselves and others who sell data or not even aware of the entire picture their data is creating.  </p> <p><strong><a href="http://twitter.com/Acxiom"><font size="2">Acxiom</font></a></strong><font size="2"> </font><a href="https://twitter.com/MedicalQuack"><font size="2">@MedicalQuack</font></a><font size="2"> We believe in ethical use of data & giving consumers transparency/choice – learn more about our stance: </font><a href="http://t.co/ooWpuGmRX3"><font size="2">bit.ly/PMf0ka</font></a></p> <p><strong><a href="http://twitter.com/Acxiom"><font size="2">Acxiom</font></a></strong><font size="2"> </font><a href="https://twitter.com/MedicalQuack"><font size="2">@MedicalQuack</font></a><font size="2"> Hi Barbara, important to note this type of data from Acxiom is used for marketing outreach only & NOT for medical purposes</font></p> <p> </p> <p><strong><a href="http://twitter.com/MedicalQuack"><font size="2">MedicalQuack</font></a></strong><font size="2"> </font><a href="https://twitter.com/Acxiom"><font size="2">@Acxiom</font></a><font size="2"> I understand it's not medical, I'm a former EMR developer myself and former query monster as I called myself</font></p> <p><strong><a href="http://twitter.com/MedicalQuack"><font size="2">MedicalQuack</font></a></strong><font size="2"> </font><a href="https://twitter.com/Acxiom"><font size="2">@Acxiom</font></a><font size="2"> I took the same stance as most others on the web, not enough to just look up data on file for self </font><a href="http://t.co/JPY3XqCVw6"><font size="2">bit.ly/11X2LAN</font></a></p> <p><strong><a href="http://twitter.com/MedicalQuack"><font size="2">MedicalQuack</font></a></strong><font size="2"> </font><a href="https://twitter.com/Acxiom"><font size="2">@Acxiom</font></a><font size="2"> I understand it's the hospital with their determination that there's value but too many flaws and people won't get that</font></p> <p><strong><a href="http://twitter.com/MedicalQuack"><font size="2">MedicalQuack</font></a></strong><font size="2"> </font><a href="https://twitter.com/Acxiom"><font size="2">@Acxiom</font></a><font size="2"> This video says it better than anything "Context is Everything"-there's the danger </font><a href="http://t.co/hjKq53C7mt"><font size="2">bit.ly/wEAK4R</font></a></p> <p><strong><a href="http://twitter.com/MedicalQuack"><font size="2">MedicalQuack</font></a></strong><font size="2"> </font><a href="https://twitter.com/Acxiom"><font size="2">@Acxiom</font></a><font size="2"> The data files on myself with your company and others is flawed, but people take that as the gospel for decision making</font></p> <p><strong><a href="http://twitter.com/MedicalQuack"><font size="2">MedicalQuack</font></a></strong><font size="2"> </font><a href="https://twitter.com/Acxiom"><font size="2">@Acxiom</font></a><font size="2"> It's problem everywhere-Google even told me my "real name" was machine compliant-algorithm suspended me </font><a href="http://t.co/VdOUa2N0ch"><font size="2">bit.ly/TJT73y</font></a></p> <p><strong><a href="http://twitter.com/MedicalQuack"><font size="2">MedicalQuack</font></a></strong><font size="2"> </font><a href="https://twitter.com/Acxiom"><font size="2">@Acxiom</font></a><font size="2"> When my data is bought and sold and requeried so many times I have no clue to the orgins of the errors and can't fix it</font></p> <p><strong><a href="http://twitter.com/MedicalQuack"><font size="2">MedicalQuack</font></a></strong><font size="2"> </font><a href="https://twitter.com/Acxiom"><font size="2">@Acxiom</font></a><font size="2"> You're not the only data seller out there, banks, companies you name it and data bases get requeried and sold a lot</font></p> <p><strong><a href="http://twitter.com/MedicalQuack"><font size="2">MedicalQuack</font></a></strong><font size="2"> </font><a href="https://twitter.com/Acxiom"><font size="2">@Acxiom</font></a><font size="2"> When a consumer is "scored" based on data analytics-there's a new piece of data to sell about that consumer </font><a href="http://t.co/nm4dqShkEP"><font size="2">bit.ly/SWbIMq</font></a></p> <p><strong><a href="http://twitter.com/MedicalQuack"><font size="2">MedicalQuack</font></a></strong><font size="2"> </font><a href="https://twitter.com/Acxiom"><font size="2">@Acxiom</font></a><font size="2"> With doctors, look at the flawed data that is on the web about them, Healthgrades/Vitals-same thing </font><a href="http://t.co/ntBjH8Uc3W"><font size="2">bit.ly/1kaY2nb</font></a></p> <hr /> <p>As always, take visit over to the <a href="http://www.ducknet.net/attack-of-the-killer-algorithms/">Killer Algorithm page</a> and you can catch a couple more videos from Cathy along with other videos which I consider important, as I’m just the curator putting together what I consider “meaningful” material to help folks catch up on what’s really going on today with modeling and intelligence that can fool you<strong>.  Sure we like transparency of data too, but don’t let that side track you from the real issue of inequality.  We see it in the press all the time about transparency and we have moved beyond that focus and inequality has taken it’s place. BD</strong> </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/06/data-selling-and-direct-correlation-to.html">Data Selling and the Direct Correlation To Accelerated Inequality - Epidemic Spreading Like A Virus Moving Money Keeping Corporations Cash Rich and Consumers Cash Poor</a></h5>

“We Are Not Ready For Healthcare Data Mining” - Guest Post

Today, here’s guest post from Cathy O’Neil at the blog “Mathbabe” with many of the same references you have heard from me of late relative ...

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Oh Crap, Now Hospitals Are Now Buying Data From Acxiom - Data Selling Epidemic Continues to Evade on Personal Privacy As “Algo Duped-Stat Rat” People Try to Implement Virtual Models That Won’t Work…

<p>Heck Acxiom and LexisNexis will do anything to make a buck and just make our lives miserable.  So now it sounds like they have hospitals convinced they need this data as well.  It’s bad enough with insurers for goodness sakes with all their data analytics and you know what, it has not done a single thing to improve things and healthcare is more expensive than ever, you can thank data<img align="right" alt="image" border="0" height="167" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-RPm70qwRRdc/U6u-EXD_NDI/AAAAAAABKrY/Ngjpv9IKks0/image%25255B7%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: right; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px" title="image" width="238" /> selling for some of that.  I said made this post yesterday and now has impact over here too as people will run from all of this as data gets used out of context and it’s becoming more flawed every day,<strong> so to the exit doors we go and maybe that might be the whole idea to keep costs down after all, you think?</strong>  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/06/the-quiet-and-unspoken-consumer.html">The Quiet and Unspoken Consumer Movement to Stay Off the Radar - Contrary To All You Read About Sensors, Apps and Wearables, More Folks Are Running for the Exit Doors…</a></h5> <p><strong>So it was just your insurance company now the hospital is going to be scrolling through your Visa and MasterCard records</strong> to see if you bought that Hershey bar or to check and see what size clothes you are buying.  Blue Cross admitted to that as their reason for buying credit card expenditure records and you can’t make that up.  Of course we know that’s pretty weak and they are analyzing every other tidbit of information in those records they can find.  Here’s the story on that one with insurers.  Some hospitals are becoming insurers too so they are up for all the data they can get and learn from insurers how to play with risk numbers to save money, but maybe cost lives.  I’m in the OC in southern California and Memorial Care and United as everyone says here the two are sleeping together and are tied at the hip.  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2013/03/insurance-companies-are-buying-up.html">Insurance Companies Are Buying Up Consumer Spending Data-Time is Here to License and Tax the Data Sellers-As Insurers Sell Tons of Data, Gets Flawed Data When Data Buyers Uses Out of context Too</a></h5> <p>So are hospitals going to start recording our voices like the call centers with insurers do too so they can analyze and score (and sell) something to the behavior analytic folks to analyze and come up with some <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/05/spurious-correlations-per-capita.html">spurious correlation</a> to score you again!   You wonder why healthcare is so expensive at times, well all of this costs money.</p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/05/this-call-may-be-recorded-for-quality.html">“This Call May Be recorded for Quality Purposes”..Heck Not, Millions of Algorithms Have Been Turned Loose to Listen To and Analyze Your Voice When You Talk To Your Insurance Company As Algorithms Continue To Take Over the World…</a></h5> <p>And then we have the FICO medication scoring that brags they have scored over 3 million people and all they need is your name and address to score you from 0 to 500 on whether or not you will be a good little patient and take your pills.  This is crap as there’s no science to it and it’s all proprietary and can’t be replicated so BS like this score had to be credible?  I don’t think so and you don’t even know you have been scored. </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/06/fico-medication-adherence-scoring.html">FICO Medication Adherence Scoring Should Be Banned As It’s Quantitated Justifications for Profit That Hurts US Consumers Using Proprietary Algorithms That Cannot Be Replicated For Accuracy or Audited</a></h5> <p>If you want to find a doctor or hospital though, well you get stuck with data, dead doctors, fake listings, etc. from Healthgrades and Vitals (link below)  and that’s as good as it gets for consumers, just throw any old data at us as they want the ad revenue from your clicks, but insures and hospitals now want everything they can get their hands on, flawed or not, nobody checks, just query and sell that data.  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/06/top-doctor-for-miami-va-healthcare.html">Top Doctor For Miami VA Healthcare System Lost Medical License in New York, Had Issues With Florida Board of Medicine, But On the Internet He Still Works and Takes New Patients in New York With Plenty of Insurers…</a></h5> <p>But wait there’s good news while all this crap is going on, there’s some new crap app out of Silicon Valley to kee<a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/04/world-privacy-forum-report-scoring-of.html"><img align="right" border="0" height="149" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-_5jUKdqb0qY/U4oPz2lwnqI/AAAAAAABKdU/dnS27d9QvJo/image%25255B3%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: right; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px" width="246" /></a>p you entertained with apps that capture more of your data.   <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/04/world-privacy-forum-report-scoring-of.html">Unnecessary scoring as the World Privacy Forum</a> wrote about and do read the report, it’s a good one as the rest of the world is watching this nonsense and hurting of consumers that’s taking place in the US.  Read the clip below, they have lost their minds.  The next plan is to send the doctors and nurses out to chase you.  </p> <p><strong>Well I think the Healthcare provider and patients need to unite here as they don’t have time to o chase us and we don’t want them to as well.  I’m not talking about a hospital quality follow up programs, which are a good thing with the human element in it and done right they work.    </strong></p> <p><strong>This is something else and then guess what, the doctors and nurses will get scored on how well they chase you down and will have the providers rummaging through all your data.</strong>  I see the quantitated bull shit rising and a lot of algo duped folks here that again are living in virtual worlds.  </p> <p><em>“Carolinas HealthCare System operates the largest group of medical centers in North Carolina and South Carolina, with more than 900 care centers, including hospitals, nursing homes, doctors’ offices and surgical centers. The health system is placing its data, which include purchases a patient has made using a credit card or store loyalty card, into predictive models that give a risk score to patients.</em> “</p> <p>I have said this many times of late that people are so wrapped up in “virtual” values that they can’t see the real world values and that goes all the way up to the <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/06/junk-science-appearing-everywhere-even.html">White House as now I get “junk science” figures sent by their email bot</a>.  It used to be good from the White House but now it’s just another bot in the wall. </p> <p><strong>Education is always the best and you don’t have to keep score on every incidental as again, the real deal here is that it creates more data for sale and you can bet the hospital will find an avenue to sell it too as that’s the way the chain goes</strong>, it’s like having cash in your pocket to burn.  <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/05/boston-scientific-joins-optum-united.html">You see it with Mayo and Optum Labs as Mayo get some money from the revenue made by charging companies like Boston Scientific to rummage</a> through and see what’s in there about their products in the medical records, and oh yes, this cost money to de-identify the data and that’s not a cheap bill.  Why do you think with the new Apple Mayo app that you can’t get your data back out to keep?  <strong>It has to go over to Optum</strong> so it can be used for companies to rummage though and find information on drugs and medical devices, so is this data selling for the good or the good money?  Hospitals are doing this stuff as they are looking for money too as Mayo sees declining revenues on the horizon.  </p> <p>I’m sorry but we’re F&#@ed up here as <a href="ttp://ducknetweb.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/people-dont-work-that-way-world-of.html">people don’t work that way</a>…and we don’t function like algorithms either.  A healthcare data selling company is getting bigger all the time and just went public a few days ago..read about it below..</p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.co.uk/2014/06/ims-health-buys-cegedim-information.html">IMS Health Buys Cegedim Information Systems to Include CRM and Intelligence Software - Data Selling Business Gets Healthier and Wealthier But Can’t Say the Same for the Health of US Citizens - It’s All About Making Money Selling Data, The Epidemic</a></h5> <p>Watch video #1 in the footer, “It’s all about context” and you’ll understand how we have <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2013/12/quantitated-justification-for-believing.html">quantitated justifications (for money)</a> for things that are not true and models that will not work.  If you like that video, then cruse on over to the <a href="http://www.ducknet.net/attack-of-the-killer-algorithms/">Killer Algorithm Page and</a> see how you get fooled with math and quantitated statistics and you’ll see how really stupid these people are with this program, and again it’s all about the money, not you getting better at all.  <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.co.uk/2014/06/ims-health-buys-cegedim-information.html"><img align="right" alt="image" border="0" height="146" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-4R2NewXiHMo/U6u-FQFOm1I/AAAAAAABKrg/vfUmGMqfzBI/image%25255B3%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: right; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px" title="image" width="217" /></a></p> <p>So Let’s head for the exits when we can I guess as this is dangerous with all these folks living in virtual worlds that think they are doing it for “your good” as the folks behind it that want to make the money will do their best to convince you that this will work.  Those doing the convincing are so damn Algo Duped, it’s not funny.  Come on over and spend some time getting educated on how to see through some of this which I call <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/03/virtual-worlds-real-world-we-have.html">“The Grays”</a> <a href="http://www.ducknet.net/attack-of-the-killer-algorithms/">at the Killer Algorithm page.</a>  </p> <p>Book mark the <a href="http://www.ducknet.net/attack-of-the-killer-algorithms/">Killer Algorithm</a> page and come back and watch some videos from folks smarter than me when you have time and learn up so you don’t get duped and know when to be a skeptic.  </p> <p><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/04/one-really-good-reason-to-license-and.html">It’s time to enact my 3 year campaign and start at step one and begin licensing and excise taxing ALL Data Sellers</a> now as these lost screwballs are going to make it absolutely miserable with trying to work and make us convert to broken models and behave like Algorithms.  BD</p> <p> <hr />You may soon get a call from your doctor if you’ve let your gym membership lapse, made a habit of picking up candy bars at the check-out counter or begin shopping at plus-sized stores.</p> <p>That’s because some hospitals are starting to use detailed consumer data to create profiles on current and potential patients to identify those most likely to get sick, so the hospitals can intervene before they do.</p> <p>Information compiled by data brokers from public records and credit card transactions can reveal where a person shops, the food they buy, and whether they smoke. The largest hospital chain in the Carolinas is plugging data for 2 million people into algorithms designed to identify high-risk patients, while Pennsylvania’s biggest system uses household and demographic data. Patients and their advocates, meanwhile, say they’re concerned that big data’s expansion into medical care will hurt the doctor-patient relationship and threaten privacy. </p> <p><a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-06-26/hospitals-soon-see-donuts-to-cigarette-charges-for-health.html">http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-06-26/hospitals-soon-see-donuts-to-cigarette-charges-for-health.html</a></p>

Oh Crap, Now Hospitals Are Now Buying Data From Acxiom - Data Selling Epidemic Continues to Evade on Personal Privacy As “Algo Duped-Stat Rat” People Try to Implement Virtual Models That Won’t Work…

Heck Acxiom and LexisNexis will do anything to make a buck and just make our lives miserable.  So now it sounds like they have hospitals con...

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SydaSoft Medical Billing Software And Practice Management - Become A Billing Expert With ClaimTek Systems…

<p><td align="center" width="180" valign="top"></p> <p>SydaSoft Practice Management software is a sponsor at the Medical Quack.  SydaSoft also offers billing services if you would rather not handle in house.  You can find their full <a href="http://www.sydasoft.com/medicalsoftware-pgSF.asp">product list here</a> and compare to see which might be the best fit for your practice.  </p> <p><em>“If you are an established billing service, SydaMED can help expand your business and enhance your<img align="right" alt="image" border="0" height="150" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-uSalHiJlsws/U6ubdyZyR9I/AAAAAAABKrI/wXT1B-oUOHo/image%25255B3%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: right; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px" title="image" width="208" /> profitability. As a billing service, you need to have greater flexibility in order to maximize the potential of your business. You need to bill for many types of specialties. For example, you most likely need software the can handle general medical, chiropractic, UB-92, DME, and so on.</em> <br /><em>If you are a <a href="http://www.sydasoft.com/medicalsoftware-pgBS.asp">start-up billing service</a> in need of comprehensive training on software and billing daily operations, we recommend getting full-scale training from ClaimTek Systems. ClaimTek can provide you with a comprehensive package that includes software, training, marketing and support program. ClaimTek programs teach you how to perform medical billing, market to medical providers, and get support on every step of setting up your business. For more information, visit <a href="http://www.claimtek.com/">www.claimtek.com.</a></em> “</p> <p>Claim Tek can also teach you everything you need to know about medical billing and set up your own business.  Below is a recent testimonial with a client that is billing and managing 18 providers and received her training and instructions from Claim Tek Systems.  As always I ask readers to spend some time and take a look at the products my valued sponsors and advertisers have listed.  </p> <p><iframe height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/5pYjxu2h32I" frameborder="0" width="420" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p> <p><a href="http://www.sydasoft.com/">SydaSoft Medical Billing and Practice Management Software</a></p> <p>Again the <a href="http://www.sydasoft.com/billingsoftware-pgSF-optmSM-smpgMD.asp">flagship product</a>, SydaMED  has many add on modules to include integrating with Quick Books, Outlook and so on.  </p> <p align="left"><embed src="http://ducknet.net/public_html/SydaSoft/files/book.swf" quality="high" name="fb" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" wmode="transparent" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="420" height="200"> </embed></p> <p>Be sure to look at the numerous state-of-the-art features, such as image scanning (insurance cards, picture IDs, x-rays, etc.), fast "jump-to" screens that let you go from one type of work to another quickly and effortlessly, and emailing from within the program. BD  </p>

SydaSoft Medical Billing Software And Practice Management - Become A Billing Expert With ClaimTek Systems…

SydaSoft Practice Management software is a sponsor at the Medical Quack.  SydaSoft also offers billing services if you would rather not ha...

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Law Firm Investigating UnitedHealthCare Claim Payments in New York Stating Under-Reimbursement By Manipulating Algorithmic Benefit Calculations…

<p>I don’t know if this is in network or out of network and the reason I mention this is that it sound similar to the old Ingenix out of network algorithms that were used and then declared low-balled and led to the <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2009/12/ama-announced-settlement-of-class.html">AMA lawsuit</a> against the company for short paying doctors for 15 years.  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2011/01/new-fair-data-base-slated-to-be.html">New Fair Data Base Slated to Be Available Later this Year To Replace the Corrupted Data Base Used by Ingenix to Calculate Out of Network Insurance Charges</a></h5> <p>At any rate the basis sounds the same with some “killer algorithms” here miscalculating what the patients owed and were over charged from both Optum Health and Oxford.  If you remember back it was Oxford that for years fought a court case and it ended up in the Supreme court to make the final decision that doctors could group to litigate with insurers.   <img align="right" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-nyFsMPDDLgk/UDEQa31432I/AAAAAAAA86o/sscFDo2n0LE/image%25255B21%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="float: right; display: inline" /></p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2013/06/us-supreme-court-rules-physicians-can.html">US Supreme Court Rules Physicians Can Work As A Group To Fight Unfair Business Practices of Health Insurers–Victory Over United Healthcare (Oxford Subsidiary)–Context Once Again With Contracts</a></h5> <p>We have this going on and then yet this woman was paid by United to the sound of $175,000 to fix a hammer toe so we have odd calculating algorithms models here it sounds like that could use some checking for accuracy.   BD</p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/03/17509880-to-fix-hammer-toe-billed-by.html">$175,098.80 To Fix A Hammer Toe Billed by New York Podiatrist And the Insurer Paid It, Well Sort Of As They Sent the Check to the Patient By Accident, A New Investigation For “Out of Network” Charges Has Resulted</a></h5> <p> <hr />BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, USA, June 23, 2014 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The Maul Firm, P.C. is investigating claims on behalf of health insurance participants relating to UnitedHealthCare’s coordination of benefits with Medicare. Participants with potential claims are advised to contact Anthony F. Maul, Esq. at afmaul@maulfirm.com or (646) 263-5780.</p> <p>The investigation concerns allegations that UnitedHealthCare systematically under-reimburses its Medicare-eligible members by manipulating insurance benefit calculations. Potential claimants include Medicare-eligible patients who were insured by UnitedHealthCare (including by subsidiaries Oxford or OptumHealth), and who made out-of-pocket co-payments for health care services.</p> <p><a href="http://world.einnews.com/pr_news/210711116/maul-firm-investigates-claims-relating-to-unitedhealthcare-s-coordination-of-benefits-with-medicare">http://world.einnews.com/pr_news/210711116/maul-firm-investigates-claims-relating-to-unitedhealthcare-s-coordination-of-benefits-with-medicare</a></p>

Law Firm Investigating UnitedHealthCare Claim Payments in New York Stating Under-Reimbursement By Manipulating Algorithmic Benefit Calculations…

I don’t know if this is in network or out of network and the reason I mention this is that it sound similar to the old Ingenix out of networ...

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IMS Health Buys Cegedim Information Systems to Include CRM and Intelligence Software - Data Selling Business Gets Healthier and Wealthier But Can’t Say the Same for the Health of US Citizens - It’s All About Making Money Selling Data, The Epidemic

<p>This company just had it’s IPO and became public not too long ago and as you can read they hold data on 85% of the world’s prescriptions which means of course they sell a lot of data too.  </p> <p>When you look at the IMS executives, very little in clinical backgrounds compared to capital<img align="right" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-1YC6-dPS8aE/UtCIbpXlZBI/AAAAAAABJEI/tTpJJLsxCxk/image%25255B4%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="float: right; display: inline" /> and other related backgrounds.  The last couple of years they have bought up other companies to include a CRM company and software as a service and social network analytics company to engage consumers.  IMS Health sells data and reports to all the top 100 worldwide global pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, as well as consulting firms, advertising agencies, government bodies and financial firms.   IMS said it processes data from more 45 billion healthcare transactions annually (more than six for each human on earth on average) and collects information from more than 780,000 different streams of data worldwide.</p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/01/need-any-more-proof-that-data-selling.html">Need Any More Proof That Data Selling is An Epidemic Out of Control IMS Health Files for an IPO And Holds 85% of the World’s Prescription Data</a></h5> <p>In addition they company has approximately 400 million comprehensive, longitudinal, anonymous patient records and the main geographic area for storage is located in New Jersey.  Now that such companies are growing by leaps and bounds, we really need laws to license all of them so we know who they are and what kind of data they sell and to who, as there’s no transparency here at all.  When your data becomes flawed and you have to do all the legwork to fix it while big corporations make billions selling you data, it would be nice to have “some” reference for consumers and that would be establishing a license as it’s like the wild west out there.  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2013/06/ims-health-data-mining-company-acquires.html">IMS Health, Data Mining Company Acquires Yet Another Company<img align="right" border="0" height="141" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-_5jUKdqb0qY/U4oPz2lwnqI/AAAAAAABKdU/dnS27d9QvJo/image%25255B3%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: right; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px" width="233" /></a></h5> <p>Having all this data leads to one other side effect other than research and that’s money, big money and much of time when data is sold, you get scored on something.  This is out of hand in the US as it’s all about money and not making you healthier.  We have watched that over the last few years and companies are getting richer under “scoring” and sometimes used flawed data to score and evaluate you.  Insurers love that portion of their business intelligence with their risk assessments.  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/06/the-true-dangers-with-corporate.html">The True Dangers With Corporate Obsessive Algorithmic Scoring of US Consumers - It Creates More Flawed Data For Sale And Makes Banks and Companies Wealthier As the Pace of Inequality Accelerates …</a></h5> <p>What we are asking for a consumers as a trail to search back and find who’s selling our data and what kind is not unreasonable but until there are laws nobody will do a thing.  So here this data and let’s say an insurer queries it with your Visa and MasterCard data that they buy?  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2013/03/insurance-companies-are-buying-up.html">Insurance Companies Are Buying Up Consumer Spending Data-Time is Here to License and Tax the Data Sellers-As Insurers Sell Tons of Data, Gets Flawed Data When Data Buyers Uses Out of context Too</a></h5> <p>Now after reading this does anyone wonder why inequality is now growing at an accelerated pace?  The wealthy don’t have to deal with this so they are pretty much untouched.  <strong>The US spends more on “healthcare and data selling” than any other country and I think data selling is getting healthier as we can’t say the same for us.  </strong></p> <p>This is the reality for the rest of us, run and hide as anyone can take data and analytics and create any kind of story they want with any type of context and we all know that so again as these big data warehouses get bigger and bigger something better be done to regulate.  In 60 Minutes story on data sellers the FTC just sat up and said “we’ve lost control” so how does that make you feel, probably not too good. </p> <h5> <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/06/the-quiet-and-unspoken-consumer.html">The Quiet and Unspoken Consumer Movement to Stay Off the Radar - Contrary To All You Read About Sensors, Apps and Wearables, More Folks Are Running for the Exit Doors…</a></h5> <hr /> <p>DANBURY, Conn., Jun 24, 2014 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- IMS Health IMS -3.01% , a leading global provider of information and technology services to the healthcare and life sciences industries, today announced its intention to acquire certain Cegedim information solutions and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) businesses for €385 million (approximately $520 million) in cash. </p> <p>Cegedim is a global technology and services company specializing in healthcare. The proposed transaction includes Cegedim’s CRM solutions that help life sciences clients in 80 countries drive sales effectiveness, optimize marketing programs across multiple channels and mitigate regulatory compliance risks; OneKey Reference Database that provides insights on 13.7 million healthcare professionals across the globe; and information solutions that use primary market research. In 2013, these businesses collectively generated revenue of €424 million (approximately $573 million) and adjusted EBITDA of €64 million (approximately $86 million).<strong> The acquired businesses will bring to IMS Health a team of more than 4,500 talented professionals with deep information and technology skills in areas that include software development, data warehousing, mobile applications and business intelligence tools, as well as analytics and implementation services</strong>. </p> <p>IMS Health expects to finance this acquisition through a mix of cash on hand and existing credit facilities, with no material impact on its leverage ratio. </p> <p><strong>Customers include pharmaceutical, consumer health and medical device manufacturers and distributors, providers, payers, government agencies, policymakers, researchers and the financial community.</strong> </p> <p>As a global leader in protecting individual patient privacy, IMS Health uses anonymous healthcare data to deliver critical, real-world disease and treatment insights. These insights help biotech and pharmaceutical companies, medical researchers, government agencies, payers and other healthcare stakeholders to identify unmet treatment needs and understand the effectiveness and value of pharmaceutical products in improving overall health outcomes.</p> <p><a href="http://www.marketwatch.com/story/ims-health-to-acquire-cegedims-information-solutions-and-crm-businesses-2014-06-24">http://www.marketwatch.com/story/ims-health-to-acquire-cegedims-information-solutions-and-crm-businesses-2014-06-24</a></p>

IMS Health Buys Cegedim Information Systems to Include CRM and Intelligence Software - Data Selling Business Gets Healthier and Wealthier But Can’t Say the Same for the Health of US Citizens - It’s All About Making Money Selling Data, The Epidemic

This company just had it’s IPO and became public not too long ago and as you can read they hold data on 85% of the world’s prescriptions whi...

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MMRGlobal-A Day Federal Court Along With Quest Diagnostics, Jardogs, Allscripts and WebMD - Patent Testimony Information

<p>From reading the press release today this was a day in which both sides made their presentations relative to patent violations claimed by MMRGlobal, aka MyMedicalRecord.com.  MMR Global has already settled with Walgreens and <img align="right" alt="image" border="0" height="92" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-9yCf3KN2jd0/U6kV3pra8RI/AAAAAAABKqw/N6h_24lTwW0/image%25255B7%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: right; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px" title="image" width="236" />you can read at the link below about the new PHR in a box to be sold on Drugstore.com and I believe in retail stores.  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/04/phr-in-box-from-mymedicalrecords.html">PHR in A Box From MyMedicalRecords - Starter Kit Soon Available Via Major Retailers and Etailers</a></h5> <p>Below are the back links relative to the patent settlements with both Walgreens and Cerner.  Quest, Jardogs, Allscripts and WebMD (two divisions) are still being litigated and today’s court appearance was for just that, each side making their case.  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/03/mmr-global-and-cerner-reach-patent.html">MMR Global and Cerner Reach Patent Agreement</a></h5> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/03/walgreens-and-mymedicalrecords-reach.html">Walgreens and MyMedicalRecords Reach Settlement Agreement Related to Patent Infringements</a></h5> <p>It mentioned Bob Lorsch, CEO of MMRGlobal talking about his own use of their company PHR, which goes back a few months and I just happened to have covered back then at the link below.  Nothing like having the CEO use his own products by all means.  In addition, Lorsch also talked about being a cancer survivor in 2005 and that was his motivation to created the PHR, MyMedicalRecords.com.   Some of the patent dates I know from what I have written before do go back to 2007 I know and perhaps even earlier, I’m not exactly sure.  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2013/11/ceo-bob-lorsch-of-mymedicalrecordscom.html">CEO Bob Lorsch of MyMedicalRecords.Com Uses His Company PHR Software With Stored Records And Communication Capabilities To Avoid Surgery And In Turn Gets The Proper Treatment At Hospital…</a></h5> <p>Recently the website for MyMedicalRecords.com has been updated to accommodate recent changes and expansion as the PHR in a box program begins.  </p> <p><em> “The most recent NOA represents MMR's first Clinical Trials patent and includes 18 claims directed to methods and systems that provide for self-reporting being used to create Electronic Health Records for purposes including Clinical Trials. Additionally, MMR has received issued patents and has pending applications in 11 other countries or regional authorities of commercial interest including Australia, Canada, Singapore, New Zealand, Mexico, Hong Kong, China, Japan, South Korea, Israel, and Europe”</em></p> <p>The case continues on August 19th before the judge unless of course all perhaps settle before that, but stay tuned.  BD</p> <p> <hr />LOS ANGELES, CA--(Marketwired - Jun 23, 2014) - MMRGlobal, Inc. (OTCQB: MMRF), through its wholly owned subsidiary MyMedicalRecords, Inc. (collectively, "MMR"), appeared Wednesday, June 18 in the United States District Court, Central District of California, where plaintiff MyMedicalRecords, Inc., and defendant(s) Quest Diagnostics, Inc., Empty Jar, LLC f/k/a Jardogs, LLC, Allscripts Healthcare Solutions, Inc., WebMD Health Corp. and WebMD Health Services Group, appeared before the Honorable Otis D. Wright<img align="right" alt="image" border="0" height="141" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-qyogEaPtJ1Y/U6kV4RxUr3I/AAAAAAABKq4/tecHWHrqC9o/image%25255B3%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: right; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px" title="image" width="240" />, II to provide both the plaintiff's and the defendants' tutorial of the technology at issue in the cases. MMR focused its technology tutorial on the invention including a demonstration of the technology as available on MyMedicalRecords.com. The tutorials were designed to assist the Court in understanding the nature and operation of the invention covered by the two MMR Personal Health Record patents at issue in the litigation, specifically, U.S. Patent Nos. 8,301,466 and 8,498,883. The tutorials were part of the Markman proceedings designed to interpret disputes in patent claim language. The Markman process also includes the filing of opening, opposition and reply claim construction briefs which will be the subject of a scheduled August 19th, 2014 Markman hearing before Judge Wright. </p> <p>Attorneys for MMR made the presentation with MMR Chief Executive Officer and patent inventor Robert H. Lorsch. During the presentation, MMR showed the Court samples of its new MyMedicalRecords Personal Health Record Kit which was created for sale at retail following the signing of patent license and retail sales agreements with retailers representing more than 40 million customers starting this summer. The Company also plans on announcing licensing and settlement agreements with PHR and EMR vendors prior to an upcoming new business trip to Australia next week. </p> <p><a href="http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=178404&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1941713&highlight=">http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=178404&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1941713&highlight=</a></p>

MMRGlobal-A Day Federal Court Along With Quest Diagnostics, Jardogs, Allscripts and WebMD - Patent Testimony Information

From reading the press release today this was a day in which both sides made their presentations relative to patent violations claimed by MM...

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The Quiet and Unspoken Consumer Movement to Stay Off the Radar - Contrary To All You Read About Sensors, Apps and Wearables, More Folks Are Running for the Exit Doors…

<p>You may not hear about this a lot but it’s a big move as consumers are getting tired of being marketed and sold.  I spent many years in sales and also time as a developer and of course I have respect for both but today <strong>the methodologies of “chasing” consumers down is growing old.  We don’t want to be chased and “scored”</strong> so we end up with more data errors to fix, it makes work for us. <img align="right" alt="image" border="0" height="187" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-plWlwjvBCt0/U6kBronT5FI/AAAAAAABKqg/d6g94Sk0OII/image%25255B7%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: right; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px" title="image" width="238" /> We don’t like it anymore.  I have no problem with ads that show items relative to something I am reading as that’s been going on forever and that’s smart selling and a sale is much better when the functionality uses “attraction” rather than what we have today, massive data hunts to find potential customers.  </p> <p><strong>I have a phone that rings with automated computer messages that doesn’t quit.</strong>  There’s not a day that goes by without at least a couple of these and the no call list doesn’t work work anymore.  The origins of where the calls originate is deceitful as well as you can’t tell what the call is about until you answer the phone.  As soon as you respond the algorithm kicks in and starts hammering you.  This is obnoxious and most now have had these and they get ignored so why keep doing it?  The calls are either random dials or from a data base someone purchased.  If you are talking to your insurance company call center, then you get a bunch of <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/05/this-call-may-be-recorded-for-quality.html">algorithms analyzing your voice to sell to some behavioral analytics organization.</a>  </p> <p><strong>I have an inbox that’s full of junk solicitations and even when I used the unsubscribe, it doesn’t work on some of them.</strong>  I realize that we all live with junk mail and being a blogger I’m going to get more of it than perhaps the average consumer as well, but the volume definitely has kicked up and again I do the same thing with my spam filter as best I can.  It’s getting old.  I have done marketing and there are some who do it right out there and send an email allowing one to “subscribe” if they want and that’s ok as I can ignore it or choose to be added without being forced fed.  </p> <p><u>We suffer from a government that fails to recognize a lot of this and thus so it just keeps rolling.</u>  As a matter of fact, the White House communication bot is starting to resemble this and people realize any more they don’t get any action or responses and fewer are taking time to add themselves to a list as almost email you get anymore from the White House wants you to type in your name, etc. to support something and I’m sure it goes to create a new data base the White House can use to help determine what people are thinking, it’s the same process we see all over the web it’s not different at all and when nothing is done, people quit and move on as they realize this is just another site taking in data.  As a matter of fact, the site has <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/06/junk-science-appearing-everywhere-even.html">even used what I call “junk science” numbers</a> when trying to support climate control and put numbers out there without science just as a way to keep people to join in, and when you can see right through this it will end up hurting the campaign when one feels their intelligence is being insulted.  We’re not that stupid.  So again when no results or attention is given, people wise up and figure out that this is yet one more site gathering information about us in some form or another.  </p> <p><strong>Our Consumer Financial Protection Agency is being run by what I call a loose cannon</strong> as well as he’s functioning the same way that other executives do in the fact that they think they need to run out and create a data base..getting it..same stuff again.  I’m beginning to think that all want to be an under achiever version of the NSA (grin).  So far the agency has done a few things but so far it’s all been low hanging fruit that does not require understanding or use of much technology which is better than nothing but very limited indeed when you look to the futures as he will be obsessed with collection of data and not know what direction he will even go with it…<a href="http://www.ducknet.net/attack-of-the-killer-algorithms/">a good time to check out some of the videos at the Killer Algorithm page for more clarification on how some of this works.</a> </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/05/richard-cordray-yet-one-more-algo-duped.html">Richard Cordray Yet One More “Algo Duped” Government Executive Sucked In To Virtual Values and Unable to Locate the “Real World” Now Creating Huge Data Base Of All US Consumer Credit Information…</a></h5> <p>I do like technology and software as I would not have been a developer myself and when I get “true” efficiencies and it<img align="right" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-4yKeXZOGJWY/U2hj_S1gpvI/AAAAAAABKL4/8L1D77wzoQY/image%25255B20%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="float: right; display: inline" />ems that help me with life and doing my work, I like it, but sadly that’s not what’s out there as a whole today.  Sure we still have good stuff coming out but there’s also the bottom feeder elements that just want to buy and sell data for easy money.  This is where I get off the boat and try to inform others as to what to look for and when to be a skeptic for sure.  </p> <p><strong>As bad as the data selling has become, it’s affecting all parts of the economy and consumers with consumers getting the worse end of it</strong>.  It’s funny as I read the marketing news articles all the time saying apps and wearables are going to take over.  Well they won’t until there’s some trust developed here and that’s the problem.  If people are continuously scored and that data is sold, then we don’t trust and especially more so when we don’t know who’s doing the scoring or what data and type of query they are using.  I thought some of the early monitoring apps and devices were interesting until I saw what was going on and <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2013/01/the-computer-is-in-your-sockssensors_2007.html">there are still some devices and apps that are good that don’t eat up your data for sale too.</a>   Actually I try to give those who don’t sell data coverage as best I can here.  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/06/the-true-dangers-with-corporate.html">The True Dangers With Corporate Obsessive Algorithmic Scoring of US Consumers - It Creates More Flawed Data For Sale And Makes Banks and Companies Wealthier As the Pace of Inequality Accelerates …</a></h5> <p><strong>I try to balance myself with both of what I read on the web and I realize there’ some hype mixed in there and then I go out and talk to folks in the real world and surprisingly  enough, there’s a big difference most of the time</strong>.  I’m not finding people falling all over themselves to monitor their activity and using mobile apps, just the opposite, they are running from it.  I have people asking me all the time about “staying under the radar” and what’s the best way to do it.  Of course that’s a broad question but many ask about specific apps and services, and I tell the truths as best I know it as that’s what I should do.  </p> <p>Anyway, marketers for consumer apps and devices should maybe give this some thought, and not only from the marketing side but also the design as all models and a proof of concept don’t work, as people don’t work that way, <strong>we are not algorithms.</strong>  I can see folks when they get their heads buried in their concept and wanting to sell software and make money being a bit over taking with their thoughts and that happens, but go talk to the guy on the street once in a while and that helps bring you back to earth as the last thing most consumers want is something else they have to worry about with privacy and then also making sure they have time to interact with the data.  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/05/people-dont-work-that-way-world-of.html">“People Don’t Work That Way” A World of Broken Software Models That Don’t Align To the Human Side,Too Much Push At Times With Only A Proof of Concept That Fails in the Real World..</a></h5> <p><strong>We end up in many circles coming down to the reality that this is all about money as a consumer should not have to behave like an algorithm or function like a “proof of concept” model that some developer has in their head, but that’s where we are at a lot of the time.</strong>  When the pressure is on from wellness coaches and employers with either penalties or money to participate we run as we know the real reason is all about money.  WebMD with their portal and Penn State tried that one out and it didn’t work. <strong> </strong></p> <p><strong>It wasn’t the fact that they had to force everyone to get healthy but it was more about having an adequate amount of data to sell.</strong>  It would have never played out the way it did if that were not the behind the scenes goal.  <strong>I saw right through it as I’m an old query monster </strong>and I get every bit of it as I visualize data trails and queries, still, even though I don’t developer anymore and that will probably never go away.   </p> <p>Now WebMD has a platform out there to collect data…hmmmm…well you are on your own there as I don’t trust it anymore than the <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/05/boston-scientific-joins-optum-united.html">Mayo Apple app that takes your information in but it can’t come out</a>, like the old roach motel slang, “data checks in but it can’t check out”.  Of course we know that Mayo supplies Optum Labs all kinds of medical reco<img align="right" height="180" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-LQW10PmQgbU/UjXmalb5vyI/AAAAAAABHwk/mjyegiDK_5I/image%25255B3%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="float: right; display: inline" width="330" />rd data to scour through and then charge device and drug companies fees to dig through it to see if they find information relative to the products they produce.  Mayo is doing this as <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2013/11/mayo-clinic-receives-67-million-dollar.html">they need the money</a> looking as fast declining revenue streams and a drop in philanthropy efforts.  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2013/09/penn-state-wellness-program-causing.html">Penn State Wellness Program Causing Issues With Implementation, A Look At Various Insurance Subsidiary Entities Along With Merger and & Acquisition Impact - Subsidiary Watch</a></h5> <p><em><font size="2">“The plan requires nonunion employees, like professors and clerical staff members, to visit their doctors for a checkup, undergo several biometric tests and submit to an extensive online health risk questionnaire that asks, among other questions, whether they have recently had problems with a co-worker, a supervisor or a divorce. If they don’t fill out the form, $100 a month will be deducted from their pay for noncompliance. Employees who do participate will receive detailed feedback on how to address their health issues.</font></em></p> <p><em><font size="2">What’s more, they argued, the online questionnaire required them to give intimate information about their medical history, finances, marital status and job-related stress to an outside company, WebMD Health Services, a health management firm that operates separately from the popular consumer site, WebMD.com.”</font></em></p> <p><strong>So like it or not that’s the truth on what’s going with more running for the exits</strong> than going for the wearables and devices recording data and it will stay that way <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/06/the-true-dangers-with-corporate.html">until something is done to pass a law to require all data sellers to buy a license</a> and keep an updated page on a Federal site on what kind of data they sell and to who as well as pay an excise tax on it.  </p> <p><strong>When it comes to running for the exits, I’m right there with everyone else</strong>, and I like good intelligent data and how it can help with decisions and makes me smarter so when you have a data person like me running to the exits, well maybe it’s time for a reality check here and work on developing trust as nothing will change until this is done. <strong> Again, being I’m an old query monster that visualizes data and it’s use in business easily</strong> I’m probably at the front of the line as I can see in my head what’s going on so my fear is probably even greater as it’s crystal clear for me to see.  Some people are just born with that knack and when I learned to code it accelerated that knack in my brain and thus<strong> I speak  from a viewpoint of honest and extreme logic and that’s what you get a the Medical Quack.</strong>  BD</p>

The Quiet and Unspoken Consumer Movement to Stay Off the Radar - Contrary To All You Read About Sensors, Apps and Wearables, More Folks Are Running for the Exit Doors…

You may not hear about this a lot but it’s a big move as consumers are getting tired of being marketed and sold.  I spent many years in sale...

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So What Avenue Will Walgreens Take, A Tax Inversion and Move to the UK or Reduction in Costs, Which Means Lay Offs And/Or Closures To Bolster the Value of The Stock?

<p>Remember HP and their big 50k person layoff announcement?  Well that’s an option here.  Sure companies do lay off and restructure but when you look at stock buy back programs in the masses as we have done primarily to bolster up the stock price, you can’t help<img align="right" alt="image" border="0" height="193" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-gLoyVXJgZPs/U6jvSRC0PTI/AAAAAAABKqQ/1mFEpV_bwHA/image%25255B5%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; float: right; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px" title="image" width="229" /> but see that’s an issue here and what number of people, facilities, etc. of course is not known.   Who knows they could choose both the tax inversion and cuts costs too, and we won’t know until it is announced.  Of course if cost cutting is done, there go some jobs. </p> <p>The projections from Walgreens are not high enough to satisfy investors as they are a couple billion a year below what the original projection was so again dangerous to rely on models too heavily.   Banks are  getting out of the commodities business as transactions in that side of trading are getting to be a bit scary as actual mining facilities have been closed by some trades, and so this is where things out of the virtual world come and hurt the real world out there and with this Walgreens discussion we are looking something similar.  Maybe they will have to sell more data as they already make between 1 and 2 billion a year, just selling data.  Now that’s huge and why I always talk about excise taxing data sellers, as add in banks, other businesses and you have one hell of a pot of gold to tax.  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/04/influential-group-of-walgreens.html">Influential Group of Walgreens Shareholders To Include Goldman Sachs Urging Walgreens To Move To Europe As Largest Tax Inversion Ever Attempted - The “Goldman Honey Badger Don’t Care”…</a></h5> <p>Cashing in big with data…and here’s yet one more area with data selling with <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2013/09/allscripts-joins-walgreens-in-providing.html">medical record data for research.</a>  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2013/10/walgreens-cashing-in-big-in-data.html">Walgreens Cashing in Big In the Data Selling Epidemic Arena–Incentives Connected to Apps and Devices That Sell, Re-Query and Re-Sell Our Data And Data Profiles</a></h5> <p>We don’t of course know the amount but there was also a recent settlement relative to software with <a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/03/walgreens-and-mymedicalrecords-reach.html">MMRGlobal and Walgreens.</a>  Who knows maybe Walgreens is going to make some money from suing other drugs stores too, like CVS and RiteAid, more at the link below on that topic.</p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2014/03/walgreens-suing-cvs-rite-aid-wants.html">Walgreens Suing CVS, Rite Aid, Wants License and IP Damage Reimbursement, Patent Violations, Software Used For Refilling Prescriptions Via Mobile Phone Scanners…Not Getting Enough Data to Sell?</a></h5> <p>But never mind all of this, it’s all about patient care (grin), not the shareholders?  I know and understand share holder interests very well but this is getting a bit out of hand as we saw what HP did  and who’s next besides Walgreens?  Again with using the in store clinics, as I looked at recently, you can see the open routes there for collecting and selling our data too. </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2013/11/walgreens-walk-in-clinics-add.html">Walgreens Walk In Clinics Add Analytics–Looks Like More Data For Sale After Reading the Privacy Statement Along With Promoting Research Access for Sale…</a></h5> <p>Walgreens already did some cost cutting a while back in moving their employees over to a private insurance exchange managed by a risk assessment/investor relations firm.  </p> <h5><a href="http://ducknetweb.blogspot.com/2013/09/walgreens-plans-to-move-180000.html">Walgreens Plans to Move 180,000 Employees Over to Insurance Exchange Managed By AON Consultants, Risk Management, Re-Insurance, Kidnap and Ransom Coverage…And So On</a></h5> <p>Personally I don’t trust any of their software as I know too much from writing this blog that they will figure out any way to make a buck with it so no Walgreens PHR either and of course the phone is “off” whenever I visit one of their stores, which is not very often at all.   So there you have it, pressure on the CEO to bring that money in for the shareholders, and well if they have to make drastic cuts and people lose jobs, well it’s the middle class folks as big profit methodologies are calling.  It’s not what I want to hear.  BD</p> <p>Here’s the report from Barclays if you want to read it…just hit the full screen button at the bottom…</p> <p style="font: 14px helvetica,arial,sans-serif; margin: 12px auto 6px; display: block; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; -x-system-font: none"><a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/230470187" style="text-decoration: underline" title="View Barclays on Walgreen - Investors in the Driver's Seat; Upgrading to Overweight on Scribd">Barclays on Walgreen - Investors in the Driver's Seat; Upgrading to Overweight</a></p> <iframe id="doc_62244" class="scribd_iframe_embed" height="600" src="//www.scribd.com/embeds/230470187/content?start_page=1&view_mode=scroll&show_recommendations=true" frameborder="0" width="100%" scrolling="no" data-aspect-ratio="undefined" data-auto-height="false"></iframe> <hr />With their jobs on the line, Walgreen Co. CEO Greg Wasson and his lieutenants are considering drastic moves to boost investor returns at the Deerfield-based drugstore chain. <p>A report last week by influential Wall Street analyst Meredith Adler of Barclays Capital Inc. says the possibilities include, but go well beyond, the controversial proposal to cut Walgreen's tax bill by reincorporating abroad, a move management initially dismissed but has recently indicated a willingness to consider. Also on the table, Ms. Adler says, are deep cost cuts and heavy borrowing to finance share buybacks. </p> <p>In her long, detailed report (scroll down to see it), Ms. Adler says Walgreen brass faces a potential revolt by dissatisfied shareholders. And she illuminates rising tensions over who will control Walgreen as it transforms from a U.S. chain into a vertically integrated global player through the acquisition of European drug retailer and wholesaler Alliance Boots GmbH. According to Ms. Adler, many investors question the ability of current Walgreen management to run such an operation and believe Alliance Boots leaders would do better. </p> <p>Ms. Adler prescribes painful treatment for a century-old company steeped in paternalistic traditions—I don't see how Walgreen can reduce overhead by $750 million without significant job cuts. But I interpret her report as a set of non-negotiable demands from investors. </p> <p><a href="http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/20140621/ISSUE10/306219988/big-changes-in-store-at-walgreen">http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/20140621/ISSUE10/306219988/big-changes-in-store-at-walgreen</a></p>

So What Avenue Will Walgreens Take, A Tax Inversion and Move to the UK or Reduction in Costs, Which Means Lay Offs And/Or Closures To Bolster the Value of The Stock?

Remember HP and their big 50k person layoff announcement?  Well that’s an option here.  Sure companies do lay off and restructure but when y...

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