How the Federal Government Plans to Spend $79 Billion in IT Investments in 2011 from the-Chart from General Accounting Office

We keep hearing that healthcare is eating us out of house and home, which it literally is, and here’s a good visual of where the money for IT expenditures lies.  Remember though we do not get to take advantage of any savings that cloud services may represent here as the Senate doesn’t understand this and will not fund cloud services.  Is that nice or what, duh? 

Senate Cuts Cloud Services From Budget That Would Allow for Data Center and IT Infrastructure Consolidation–Back to the 8 Track Tapes Next?

It makes as much sense as having a 91 year old head the Science and Research Committee in the house, both of the above are true statements.  No office but I won’t either be as sharp at 91 if I make it that far either, happens to all of us.  Defense as you can see is big and HHS funding is #3 on the list due to size.  We all know there’s 8 years of total IT neglect from the prior administration that we have to deal with and we can’t change that but rather have to move forward and make sure it doesn’t continue if we want to build and get jobs back.

Again, what’s up with these folks in Washington, at times?  I really want them to try and utilize some technology to make it easier for them as with using IBM Watson and speech recognition, even the lowest participant elected to office can query and find information easily. 

IBM Watson Did Get a Chance to Go To Congress-Should be a Permanent Home For Greater Intelligence for Creating Laws

They need some “Algo Men” on staff soon. 

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

Goldman is investing in what they know – ALGORITHMS.  That’s what runs their shop and they have plenty of Algo Men on board to produce all their predictive analysis of what will occur in the future.  There’s one other element of predictive behaviors and to get those, you need some behavioral analytics too and I could almost bet there’s some those algorithms rolled in there too. Somebody takes Goldman’s code, the geek goes to jail. 

I do still like to look back on this bit of 8 track technology and watch Lloyd Blankfein mess with those reams of paper that Congress gave him to look at during testimony time, do you think he looks at his information and data this way, hell no. 

Goldman-Sachs Announces Their Intentions to Enter Health IT Consulting – Pitching Those Algorithms

I’m strictly talking here about how intelligent minds who can grab all the money and pass go function and we are a far cry from it, so how do folks make laws when hanging out with 8 track tapes?  Do you have an answer?  BD

The U.S. Government Accountability Office estimates federal government IT spending for fiscal year 2011 will be $79 billion, as outlined by GAO Director of Information Technology Management Issues David A. Powner in testimony before the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government held March 17.

GAO: How the Federal Government Plans to Spend $79 Billion in IT Investments in 2011 | FedScoop

Technorati Tags: Health IT,government,GAO,budget,spending,Congress,politics,Lloyd Blankfein,Goldman Sachs,algorithms,digital illiteracy,participation

CardioHealth® Station Cleared By FDA-An Automated and Portable Cardiovascular Imaging Device for Physician’s Offices, Hospitals and Clinics-Got Plaque?

This device, the CardioHealth Station combines the Framingham Risk Score with carotid IMT and plaque assessments and allows internists and family practice physicians to provide non invasive procedures in the office.  Gee is this going to put more cardiologists out of business is one of the first questions that comes to my mind? 

A handheld ultrasound probe to scan the carotid arteries on both sides of the neck and to detect hidden plaque build up and it sounds like there will be no plaque secrets left when done.  You can watch the video below that shows how a doctor would use the device with a patient. 

CardioHealthStation

Jack and Joe

My next question that comes to mind is that will this gravitate to the drug store clinics?  I have a feeling it will in time.  Obviously my thoughts here would be the ER room as a first targeted location.  The entire idea is pre-risk assessment so soon we are going to know more about a heart and arteries than maybe we want or thought was possible.  No mention yet or at least on their website as far as medical record integration but you can bet that will more than likely follow.  BD 

Press Release:

HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--CardioNexus Corporation (www.cardionexus.com) an affiliated company of Panasonic Healthcare Co. Ltd., will introduce Panasonic CardioHealth® Station at the 2011 Annual Scientific Sessions of the American College of Cardiology. The device, which has just received clearance from the U.S. Food & Drug Administration, is an automated and portable cardiovascular imaging device which aims to complement traditional blood pressure and cholesterol measurement in physicians’ offices and to help detect the hidden risk of heart attack and stroke.

The FDA decision allows Houston-based CardioNexus to sell the CardioHealth® Station for use not only in hospitals and community clinics, but also in cardiologist, internist and family physician offices, as well as in retail healthcare clinics.

The device, which relies on Panasonic’s advanced, high-resolution, real-time, ultrasound technology, measures the thickness of the arterial wall through the skin quickly and reproducibly. It is considered a major advancement in the automation of medical technologies which enable physicians, their assistants, and nurse practitioners who are not specialized in ultrasound imaging to use the device and detect High Risk patients.

“The CardioHealth® report which combines Framingham Risk Score with carotid IMT and plaque assessment provides a more accurate assessment of a patient’s risk than measuring blood pressure and cholesterol alone,” says Dr. Morteza Naghavi, President and CEO of CardioNexus Corporation. “It takes us beyond the status quo and empowers internists and primary care physicians to use noninvasive imaging in their office.”

According to a 2010 study based on the American Heart Association’s “Get With The Guidelines” initiative, only 23% of 136,905 patients hospitalized with coronary artery disease had high LDL, or “bad cholesterol” levels while 77% were reported to have normal LDL levels and therefore would not have been identified as High Risk.

The noninvasive imaging feature of CardioHealth® Station represents a breakthrough introduction into the primary healthcare market by the collaborative effort of CardioNexus and Panasonic Healthcare since their partnership was announced last October. Other features, such as Point-of-Care genetic testing for monitoring response to drug therapies, which collectively aim at Personalized Preventive Medicine will be introduced in the future.

“We’ve already seen tremendous interest in the technology, particularly among internists and primary care physicians who up until now have not had an automated non-invasive imaging technology in their office,” says Steven Lynum, Director of Panasonic Healthcare’s Clinical Products who is also an Executive Vice President at CardioNexus. “CardioHealth® Station allows them to easily incorporate atherosclerosis imaging in their management of cardiovascular patients based on the recent guidelines.”

The CardioHealth Station includes a handheld ultrasound probe to scan the carotid arteries on both sides of the neck and to detect hidden plaque build up and increased thickness in the artery wall. Testing is performed in a matter of minutes without pain, discomfort or exposure to radiation; and the results are available immediately.

According to the American Heart Association there are over 60 million Americans at risk of a heart attack and in need of screening and preventive care.

“We are proud that Houston’s CardioNexus in partnership with the world’s largest consumer electronics manufacture, Panasonic Corporation, is introducing breakthrough medical technologies,” said Leo Womack, a well known Houston life science investor who chairs CardioNexus’ Board of Directors. “Texas needs more of these CardioNexus type initiatives.”

For details and to view a demonstration video, visit www.cardionexus.com.

About CardioNexus Corporation

CardioNexus Corporation is an affiliated company of Panasonic Healthcare dedicated to reducing cardiovascular disease through early detection and prevention. CardioNexus’ flagship product, the CardioHealth® Station, is a new multi-modality initiative to advance cardiovascular health assessment for the prevention of heart attack and stroke. The advanced, automated features of the CardioHealth® Station enable physicians, especially primary care physicians and internists, to perform atherosclerosis imaging and cardiovascular risk assessment in their offices, without need for outside referral.

About Panasonic

Based in Secaucus, NJ, Panasonic Corporation of North America provides a broad line of digital and other electronics products for consumer, business and industrial use. The company is the principal North American subsidiary of Panasonic Corporation (NYSE: PC), and the hub of Panasonic’s U.S. branding, marketing, sales, service and R&D operations. Panasonic Corporation of North America’s newly formed Healthcare Group brings together Panasonic’s expertise in a wide range of health and medical device technologies, including hearing care. For more information visit www.panasonic.com/hearing. Additional Panasonic information for journalists is available at www.panasonic.com/pressroom.

About Panasonic Healthcare Co., Ltd.

Panasonic Healthcare Co., Ltd., headquartered in Matsuyama, Japan, is an internal division company of Panasonic Corporation (NYSE: PC) that specializes in the development and manufacture of healthcare products, including blood glucose monitoring systems, ultrasound diagnostic systems and hearing instruments. Founded in 1948, the company has been developing cutting-edge technologies in in-vitro diagnostic systems, medical imaging, hearing solutions, medical instruments and hospital systems to provide value-added solutions to healthcare professionals and patients. The previous corporate name was Panasonic Shikoku Electronics Co., Ltd., which was changed to the current Panasonic Healthcare Co., Ltd. on October 1, 2010.

Breakthrough CardioHealth® Station Cleared By FDA To Take Center Stage At The Annual Scientific Sessions Of The American College Of Cardiology 2011 | Business Wire

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Former Hospital CFO Goes Back to Jail for Violating Bond Conditions-He Emailed His Probation Officer Under Wife’s Name

Ok now these folks are supposed to be the brains and money of hospitals here and this one obviously is struggling with that issue, since he has been charged with defrauding a hospital.  What’s wrong with a phone call to a probation officer? 

The problem was with using the email address was the fact that monitors had not been put in place yet so that’s the violation at hand here.  This was his second offense after the first time contacting the hospital CEO wanting to keep his job after being arrested.  He got into trouble for making out checks to a software company that he owns himself and I would say that’s a big issue right there as to when it came back to prove what services he provided, there appeared to be none from what I have read here.  Oh well in case of a crunch you can always hire a part time CFO these days too. <grin>.  This may or may not be the place for one of these.  BD

Part Time CFOs Hired By Biotech and Pharmaceutical Businesses-Virtual Executive Business Model To Work the Algorithms for Profit & Crunch Data

DANBURY -- William Roe, the former chief financial officer of Danbury Hospital who was arrested in 2010 and charged with defrauding the hospital, had his bond revoked Tuesday.

U.S. District Court Judge Vanessa L. Bryant ordered Roe's $150,000 bond to be revoked after federal authorities learned Roe had violated a condition of his bond by sending his probation officer an email using his wife's account and under his wife's name.

Thomas Carson, spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office, said in a statement Tuesday that Carson said Roe was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service and taken to jail.

After authorities told Roe not to contact any hospital officials about his arrest, Roe was charged with frantically calling and emailing Dr. John Murphy, the hospital's president and chief executive officer, trying to find a way to keep his $267,990-a-year job.   Roe was arrested for authorizing two Danbury Hospital checks -- in June 2009 and January 2010 -- to Cycle Software Solutions, a software company he owned. Each check was for $45,000.

Former Danbury Hospital CFO returned to jail - NewsTimes

Technorati Tags: CFO,hospital,email,arrest,defraud,healthcare,checks,violations,jail,US Marshalls,monitoring devices

CMS Gives Dendreon Wins Full Reimbursement of $93k for Treatment of Prostate Cancer With No Apparent Off Label Restrictions In Draft Memo

The story of Provenge and the manufacturer has been interesting for all over the last few years. I have covered some small portions here, basically the side that relates to their software technology which I still will say has a lot to do with all items considered.  The price tag yes is still a big one that nobody can dispute.  It just appears to me they must be doing things in the right order to provide both the FDA and CMS with their appropriate data, back up systems as well as auditing functionality.  This is a new class of drugs and it’s not taking a pill but rather blood is taken from the patient, send to one of their centers, treated, incubated and returned back to doctor to re-inject back to the patient, so mix ups, logistics and more have play right here. 

Dendreon Corporation Selects Pilgrim Software As a Service Solution For Risk Management and Compliance Intelligence

Several large biotech and life sciences companies are listed as customers for Pilgrim.  The use their own software for tracking and more called Intelligence which I wrote a while back, even before the FDA approval was given.  Being a big bar code fan and the fact that I visualize a lot of cures with the technology, I can’t but help but think others saw some value here too. 

Dendreon “Intellivenge” Algorithmic Software Supporting Administration of Provenge – Seeking FDA Approval by May 1st

“Intellivenge was designed to be the information resource linking the physician’s office, the apheresis center (where the patient’s cells are collected), the Dendreon manufacturing facility and all of the transportation services required to ensure that the cells received from each patient are processed within the required window of time. Using proprietary technology,  Intellivenge coordinates the timing of all the resources each patient needs for the treatment cycle and tracks where a patient’s cells are at every stage of the processing cycle.  Intellivenge also assists patients, physicians and their office staff with follow up appointment timing and scheduling.”

As stated this is the draft so there could be room for additions and changes possibly when the final document is rendered.  How important is proper logistics today with life sciences-very.  You can see where UPS is gearing up and building warehouses for fulfillment in this area too and while I don’t this is a route that Dendreon would take, especially being brand new, but other medications and vaccines have and will.  BD 

UPS Expanding Healthcare Focus With Giant Warehouses for Temperature Sensitive Drugs and Vaccines

Chalk up another victory for Seattle-based Dendreon—it has persuaded Medicare officials to provide full reimbursement to doctors who prescribe its new $93,000 prostate cancer drug.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the agency that runs the federal health insurance program for the elderly, said today in a draft memo that “the evidence is adequate” to say that Dendreon’s immune-booster, sipuleucel-T (Provenge), “improves health outcomes for Medicare beneficiaries” with prostate cancer. The draft will now be subject to public comments for three months, at which point it is expected to become formal policy of the Medicare agency.

Dendreon Wins Full Reimbursement From Medicare for $93K Prostate Cancer Drug | Xconomy

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Longtime CEO of Healthcare District of Palm Beach County Resigning to Take A Position at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida-A New Set of Managed Care Algorithms to Work With

Well here we go again, hospital systems don’t have much money and as a country with both federal and state lawmakers, they haven’t come to terms with this yet and can’t figure it out.  Well the CEO at the top of the helm at this organization in Florida figured it out and is leaving to work with Blue Cross/Blue Shield to see if they can manage with their business model and see if we can find blood in those turnips out there.  Sorry to be so blunt but when you read this stuff every day, it is what it is. 

Granted there are a few exceptions in here but the Health Care District doesn’t seem to be one of them.  I wonder at times if all hospitals should take on the Cleveland Clinic model of research and development and then spinning off a company for some money, it seems to work well there and similar models at other systems.  Perhaps one day all hospitals will be fostering spin offs?  That’s just some of of my idle talk and observations here but gee what else is working out there by comparison???

Before working at the Healthcare district, Mr Chenette ’s background was insurance.  Palm Beach is also noted as a pretty affluent area in Florida too. BD

WEST PALM BEACH — WEST PALM BEACH – The longtime CEO of the Health Care District of Palm Beach County, Dwight D. Chenette, says he will leave in May after a decade at the helm of the special taxing district and its HMO.

Chenette is resigning to become vice president of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida's nascent Medicaid insurance line. The state's largest insurer has until now avoided that market. But with the likely expansion of state Medicaid managed care, and the passage of federal health reform, it's an area the non-profit insurer is exploring, a company spokesman said.

The district is facing uncertain times, as health reform has the potential to duplicate its coverage for lower income people. The health law faces multiple challenges in court and Congress, though, and Chenette advised against shutting health care district coverage down prematurely.

Health Care District CEO Chenette leaving after 17 years

Technorati Tags: Hospitals,Florida,Palm Beach County,Blue Cross,Blue Shield,healthcare,healthcare reform,health insurance,algorithms,Medicaid,managed care

FDA Approves Wireless Handheld Blood, Cardiac and Marker Testing Device From Abbott-iSTAT System-Sends Lab Results Direct to Electronic Medical Records

Now when talking about useful wireless devices, this is one of them and we see some nice collaboration efforts here with more than one thing being done via a medical device.  If you read here often enough, I rant about that all the time with software and devices “doing one thing only”.  We surpassed that mile stone a long time ago.  Also back in July of 2010 I made a post about the FDA becoming one of the “most connected” federal agency and in my mind, this approval process somewhat reiterates that belief as we had both clinical and Health IT provisions rolled in here, and with integration to medical records, this was a multi faceted approval.

FDA and FCC To Partner on Telehealth Innovation and Implementation – FDA Stands to Become One of the “Most Connected” Federal Agencies

You can look at the device and I do have to say this is very cool, insert blood in cartridge and later have it in the medical records.  Each cartridge from what I am reading here is for a specific test.  The web site also discusses the various scenarios for use, the hospital, doctor’s office and so on.  Well this might encroach a little bit on some of the lab business but one thing for sure is that it would seem to be a winner with patients as we all hate to leave, drive across town and visit a lab and obviously the device doesn’t do all labs, but many commonly used tests seem to be on the list. 

Here’s a few more details on the integration portion of the device.  There are presently 4 interfaces that can be used:

• The Central Data Station System from Abbott Point of Care
• Abbott Diabetes Care PrecisionWeb^®
• Medical Automation Systems RALS+^™ RALS^® Plus
• Telcor Quick-Linc^®

The device of course has security controls so only those authenticated can use it and you get some data trails too. 

“Abbott Point of Care will work with your team to ensure seamless integration with your data management system.”

From the other side of the coin, the medical record vendors are looking at a new integration partner as well, so here comes the algorithms to make the connections.  BD

The FDA granted Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) 510(k) clearance for the wireless version of its i-STAT 1 point of care testing system.

Healthcare providers use the Abbot Park, Ill.-based company's handheld i-STAT 1 device to transmit diagnostic test results from the patient directly to electronic health records where doctor can access the data.

"With wireless, physicians can receive immediate test information in the electronic medical record, enabling them to act quickly when a patient's clinical status is rapidly changing," head of Abbott POC business Greg Arnsdorff said in prepared remarks.

FDA clears Abbott's wireless handheld testing system | Regulatory roundup | MassDevice - Medical Device Industry News

Technorati Tags: Abbott Labs,Point of Care,Wireless,Heatlh IT,Labs,electronic medical records,EHR,integration,FDA,medical devices,blood tests,hospital,physician,security,i-STAT

Amgen Lung Cancer Drug Fails Goals For Improving Survival

These are tough drugs to create and sad that this one did not make the grade.  What is also a bit disappointing too was that this was a joint effort with Japanese Takeda Drug so not good news for them either in light of everything else Japan is dealing with.  In other cancer news of late, Amgen made a purchase of another cancer biotech company that is doing research for treating melanoma and a few other types of cancer and are also moving into a new building in Freemont, CA.  BD

Amgen to Acquire BioVex, a Privately Held Biotechnology Company in Massachusetts

Boehringer Ingelheim Buys Amgen Fremont, California Facility

An experimental treatment for lung cancer made by Amgen Inc. and Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. failed to help patients live longer in a late-stage study needed for regulatory approval.
The drug, called motesanib, didn't meet its main goal of improving survival in a study of 1,090 patients with non- squamous non-small cell lung cancer, the companies said in a statement today. Detailed results from the study will be presented at a medical meeting, the companies said.

Amgen lung cancer drug fails in late-stage study - latimes.com

Technorati Tags: Amgen,BioVex,melinoma,cancer,biotech,vaccine,clinical trials,mergers and acquisitions,pharma,biotechnology,head cancer,stock,Takeda,motesnib

9 Patients in Alabama Hospitals Die After Being Treated with Bacteria Infected IV Feeding Bags

The serratia marcescens bacteria is one of the oldest identified around and has existed almost everywhere but when the bacteria gets into a human with an IV and perhaps the body resistance to fight back is down, well sadly we have deaths such as what occurred here in Alabama as you can read that all were critically ill before receiving the bacteria infected IV.

The product was made by one company so at least the root of the problem has been identified and no more product in in the loop hopefully.  The supplement is administered into a central line intravenously, going directly into the patients’ blood stream. Patients are monitored carefully for symptoms of septic shock.  There were a total of 6 hospitals in the state affected.  BD 

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Nine Alabama hospital patients who were treated with intravenous feeding bags contaminated with bacteria have died, and the maker has pulled the product off the market, state health officials said Tuesday.

Ten others who got the nutrient treatments that are delivered directly from the plastic bags into the bloodstream through IV tubes also were sickened by the outbreak of serratia marcescens bacteria, health officials said.

All the patients were critically ill before receiving the IVs, and officials have not definitively tied the deaths to the outbreak at six hospitals, State Health Officer Donald Williamson said.

Nation & World | 9 died after infection outbreak in Alabama hospitals | Seattle Times Newspaper

Technorati Tags: serratia marcescens,bacteria,sepsis,contamination,Alabama,IV,bloodstream,deaths,CDC,Meds IV

FDA Chemist and Son Face Charges on Inside Trading–Data Trail Algorithms On The Computer Captured The Activity-Update

Now a few more details have emerged and it appears he had help from his 25 year old son, and if nothing else besides spelling trouble it shows where young minds are at today.  In reading the content it looks like it was the old reliable key logger/screenshot software that was installed on his computer.  That’s always fun doing a network install of spying software.  I had to do it a few years back with a problem employee who didn’t have enough work to do at the time as was bordering on some privacy issues with internet activity.  It works good and gives you everything you want and packs it up and emails to it you, so you don’t even have to be there.

SEC Files Lawsuit Against FDA Chemist for Insider Trading Violations

Obviously though, anyone in IT hates to do this, I did but when vocal warnings are given and many talks fail in my instance, not much choice left but to dig in and get the information and see what was happening in the doctor’s office.  Believe me it’s the absolute last thing an IT person wants to do but when you have privacy issues and breaking the law involved, well you get the picture.  The story below further goes on to talk about the 84 year old mother’s account and I don’t know about you but my 86 year old mother is not quite that savvy. 

You have to remember on an email exchange the administrators have access to passwords and everything else you do so again, not wise to try and run such activities from work at all.  Now with newer sophisticated software it creates an entire data trail too so the investigators paths are all documented as far as what was captured, when and so on as you don’t want a double whammy and have IT folks not performing their investigation in a less than professional manner either, and than can happen, so the data trails that document and report everything are valuable for all concerned.  Moral of he story here, just don’t do it as the data trails will eventually catch you one way or another and this is the same type of regulation we are hearing discussed in the news with tracking banking transactions too, so again when problems occur, you can go back and unravel and trace each step and move that was made.  Most sophisticated hospital systems operate the same way and yet we continue to hear how folks still try to beat the system and access areas where they are not supposed to be either.  BD

DON’T TRY TO FIGHT THE AUDIT ALGORITHMS AND LEARN AS MUCH AS YOU CAN TODAY ABOUT AUTOMATED MATHEMATICAL PROCESSES TO SAVE YOURSELF SOME HUGE EMBARRASSMENTS AND PROBLEMS WITH THE LAW, DATA AND PERHAPS OTHER SITUATIONS. 

Liang has worked at the FDA since 1996 in the Office of New Drug Quality Assessment and had access to the agency's internal tracking system for new drug applications. He earned a salary of $122,744 a year, according to a court document.

He was able to monitor confidential information about whether and when the FDA was about to approve certain drug applications. He and his son used several brokerage accounts to execute trades, prosecutors said.

One account was in the name of Liang's 84-year-old mother, who lived in China, according to the SEC.

FDA chemist, son charged with insider trading | Reuters

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Window Washer Electrocuted While Washing Working at Huntington Beach Medical Office

This is close to home and know the facility well and the entire story here is very sad to say the least.  You can watch the news video for the details and they interview the doctor who’s office was right inside the building where the tragic accident happened.  The clinic is very close to Huntington Beach Hospital. 

Thank goodness the new station is not airing the home video that shows the whole thing as they stated it was too graphic and with a little bit of hope this won’t appear on the web, as some things are better left unseen I think.   Obviously he was to close the power lines for this to happen.  The doctor interviewed said his offices still smell like burnt flesh and after the event patients were directed to other exam rooms.  BD

 

HUNTINGTON BEACH (KTLA) -- A window washer was electrocuted at a Huntington Beach medical office Tuesday morning, authorities said.
It happened around 6:30 Tuesday morning on the north side of the Beach Medical building, located at Beach Boulevard and Newman Street.

Hospital Worker Electrocuted: Window Washer Dies After Being Electrocuted - ktla.com

Technorati Tags: Windows,electrocuted,healthcare,Huntington Beach,accidents,doctors,medical clinic,hospital

Had Enough Tylenol Recalls Yet? Here’s One More Voluntary Recall

What’s fun too is if the retailer doesn’t have it on the list to get your money back, be prepared for some possible delays. The good news is that Guam can kill some more Brown Tree Snakes, maybe? <grin>.  I think this all started back in 2009 and the list just keeps going.  BD 

They Found a Use for Recalled Tylenol Products–Dead Mice Packed With Acetaminophen Dropped From Helicopters To Control the Brown Tree Snake In Guam

Bar codes please…I think by now everyone’s cupboards should be cleaned out of all Tylenol with recalls, that is if you can determine your lot has been recalled.  Maybe Teva and Proctor and Gamble will do a better job with this.  BD  

Microsoft Tags on CBS Early Show – Wake Up FDA, Pharma and Medical Device Companies –Scan Those Drugs, Medical Devices and Synchronize with an FDA Tag Data Base – Recalls, Theft Tracking and More….

FORT WASHINGTON, Pa., March 29, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- McNeil Consumer Healthcare, Division of McNEIL-PPC, Inc., is recalling one product lot of TYLENOL® 8 Hour Extended Release Caplets 150 count bottles distributed in the United States.  McNeil is taking this action as part of our ongoing surveillance and monitoring efforts that identified a small number of complaints of a musty or moldy odor. The uncharacteristic odor is thought to be caused by the presence of trace amounts of chemicals called 2,4,6-tribromoanisole (TBA) and 2,4,6-trichloroanisole (TCA).  This voluntary action is being taken as a precaution and the risk of adverse medical events is remote.  The product was manufactured at the McNeil Consumer Healthcare plant in Fort Washington, PA prior to the company's voluntary closure of the facility in April 2010.

The lot number for the recalled product can be found on the side of the bottle label.

TYLENOL® 8 HOUR EXTENDED RELEASE CAPLET 150 count

ADM074

300450297181

McNeil Consumer Healthcare Announces Voluntary Recall of Certain OTC Products -- FORT WASHINGTON, Pa., March 29, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --

Technorati Tags: Recall,FDA,Johnson and Johnson,healthcare,drugs,arthritis,chemical

UNI/CARE Connects Medical Records to Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011

Years ago before there was a distinction I used to say that electronic records were the CRM of healthcare, but now you can see where the 2 can work together.

I looked back to 2008 and before anybody was doing this I wrote about the integration of medical records and CRM software.  It was perhaps ahead of it’s time then.

What does CRM have in Common with EHR/EMRs

Last year though Chris Sullivan and I talked about solutions to include CRMs and what it can offer for small practices too along with using Microsoft Office for many routine and otherwise cumbersome tasks. 

Microsoft Talks About Healthcare Provider Solutions – Interview With US Director Chris Sullivan

Last year Microsoft announced CRM capabilities for payers, which is important to help those processing claims or other work to stay on top of things. 

Microsoft Releases Health Plan Sales Solution for Microsoft Dynamics CRM – Software for the Payers To Prepare for Health Exchange Intelligence

The whole purpose of CRM software is to keep us on track and not let things fall through the cracks and there is a version of Microsoft Dynamics that is tailored for healthcare use too and you get a server version or have it hosted.  BD 

Press Release:

SARASOTA, Fla., and REDMOND, Wash. — March 29, 2011 — Microsoft Corp. and UNI/CARE Systems today announced they will work together to enhance coordinated care and information sharing in health and human services by pairing UNI/CARE’s Pro-Filer™ 2011 electronic health record (EHR) with Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011.

Pro-Filer 2011 is an ONC-Authorized Testing and Certification Bodies fully certified EHR for public and behavioral health, utilized across approximately 500 agencies in 42 states. With Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011, the combined technology platform will break down silos across agencies, departments and programs, such as behavioral health, public health, child and family services, primary care, and corrections and rehabilitation, to facilitate collaboration, coordinate services, help improve quality and outcomes, and enhance efficiencies.

Such agencies currently have little connection with one another, and as a result high-risk predictors that come to the attention of one program may not be shared with another, meaning crises can occur that may have been averted, state and local governments potentially fail to maximize federal revenue streams, costs to deliver service continue to increase, and clients could fail to receive the appropriate quality of care.

Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 will provide agencies with one common view into Pro-Filer 2011 through a familiar, easy-to-use interface. For example, social workers with child and family services could easily identify that a child in their care has also been treated by behavioral health, allowing services and treatment plans to be better coordinated, ultimately driving better outcomes and helping to prevent the child from slipping through the system.

“UNI/CARE has 30 years of proven experience providing behavioral healthcare electronic health records,” said Jack Hersey, general manager, U.S. Public Sector Health and Human Services at Microsoft. “Now, by leveraging the Microsoft Connected Health and Human Services Alliance and building solutions on top of Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011, together we can help state and local agencies enhance individuals’ and families’ health statuses and outcomes — while managing the cost of delivering care and services.”

The Microsoft Connected Health and Human Services Alliance will offer this combined solution to its network of multivendor partners. The alliance is focused on connecting disparate state and jurisdictional health and human services systems to give providers one comprehensive view into citizen and consumer needs.

“UNI/CARE’s work with Microsoft represents an innovative solution for our industry, which has been suffering from a lack of coordination among the major suppliers of healthcare services,” said Dr. May Ahdab, president and CEO of UNI/CARE. “We are extremely excited to be working with Microsoft and its Connected Health and Human Services partners to make this coordination of services possible.”

Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 provides one development platform across states and multiple agencies. Over time, states can migrate legacy systems and disparate applications such as state reporting and transaction systems onto the platform to provide one comprehensive view into citizen and consumer needs across departments.

About UNI/CARE

Founded in 1981, UNI/CARE’s mission is to offer enterprise solutions designed to create a “Connected and Coordinated System of Care” among clinicians, organizations, financial stakeholders and the individuals that they serve. UNI/CARE believes the delivery of services extends beyond one consumer, one family, one provider, one program, or one organization. Our goal is to provide our customers with a methodology and enabling tools to foster quality outcomes, collaboration and communication through the use of our enterprise level certified electronic health record and a collaborative case management platform. Visit us at www.unicaresys.com.

About Microsoft in Health

Microsoft is committed to improving health around the world through software innovation. Over the past 13 years, Microsoft has steadily increased its investments in health with a focus on addressing the challenges of health providers, health and social services organizations, payers, consumers and life sciences companies worldwide. Microsoft closely collaborates with a broad ecosystem of partners and delivers its own powerful health solutions, such as Amalga, HealthVault, and a portfolio of identity and access management technologies acquired from Sentillion Inc. in 2010. Together, Microsoft and its industry partners are working to deliver health solutions for the way people aspire to work and live.

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

 

Technorati Tags: UNI/CARE,Mircosoft,CRM,Customer Relations management,Life Sciences,Amalga,HeatlhVault,Heatlh IT,technology

SEC Files Lawsuit Against FDA Chemist for Insider Trading Violations

Insider trading issues seem to reach all levels of society and not just those working in the financial areas of business.  I guess when you stop and think if you are working as a chemist and have this type of information ahead of time, it could be tempting.  The article continues on to say that he did not use his or his wife’s account but rather seven accounts held by other individuals but eventually the money made it back to the chemist’s account.

He profited from investing ahead on 19 investments and sold other short before the negatives reached the general news.  No kickback mentioned, he just seemed to be on his own investment path here.  Darn it’s getting harder for the FDA to keep folks these days.  BD   

The Securities and Exchange Commission sued a U.S. Food and Drug Administration chemist, claiming he reaped $3.6 million from trading on confidential information related to drug-approval applications.

Cheng Yi Liang, 57, made trades involving 19 companies from as early as July 2006 in advance of at least 27 announcements of FDA decisions on drug applications, the SEC said in a lawsuit filed today at U.S. District Court in Greenbelt, Maryland.

The chemist, who worked for the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, violated his duty as a federal employee not to engage in financial transactions using nonpublic government information and not to use such information for his personal benefit, according to the SEC, which is seeking disgorgement of illegal profits and unspecified fines.

SEC Says FDA Chemist Reaped $3.6 Million From Insider Trading - Bloomberg

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Privacy-Beware of the Data Snatching Algorithms on the Web Some of This Relates to Healthcare and How You are Bought & Sold-Important Information for All (Video)

I am actually very happy they made this video to explain how this is done as over the last few years I have made tons of posts on privacy and how to safeguard and not be too gullible.  The video actually addresses information relative to “behavioral analytics” here too, used by insurance companies.  Laugh and snicker but I will say this one more time…

ONE MORE TIME IN CASE YOU HAVE MISSED IT –IT’S ALL ABOUT THOSE ALGORITHMS AND QUERIES/SQL STATEMENTS

Remember Walgreens recently said their intangible market of data is worth over $700 million and we have Ingenix, the wholly owned subsidiary of United Healthcare that has been selling data for years from medications data bases and maybe more, along with Milleman.  Last week a lawsuit was filed.  I think this is kind of funny though as we used to worry and some folk still do about pharma having access, well think twice as the web is lot worse with access and the threat of pharma is still there for using data but it has been hugely overshadowed. 

Walgreens And CVS Accused of Selling Customer Prescription Data in 2 Separate Law Suits-Sales for Marketing Data Continues and the Data Bases Gets Larger with Technology

Data Snatchers–Be Aware

This is also why I suggest when using devices that report data, such as heart rates, etc. to be sure and ask as to where the information goes, who else has access and if the information being sent is encrypted.  The best bet is to do it yourself with a PHR like HealthVault so where you are not caught up in any coupons, advertising or having to sign away any kind of hidden acknowledgements.  Watch out for those as the words can be tricky so read carefully. 

Here are 2 companies that sell prescription data and profiling information. 

“HIPAA does not give the Department of Health and Human Services the ability to directly investigate or hold accountable entities, such as pharmacy benefit managers or companies such as Ingenix and Milliman, who are not covered by HIPAA.”

Do you like those bottles that remind you to take your pills, gotcha once more with data to sell so read the disclosures on all of these types of programs and devices. 

Vitality and AT&T Selling Glow Caps Prescription Bottle on Amazon-Compliance Help and Also Creates Data for Sale

Now the company that produced the video also offers a free scan and has services to sell and that’s beyond where I will go here and my purpose is to rather bring an awareness around with letting folks know what the algorithms are collecting about you and the video is good and again I have written a ton of posts on the topic.  The website has some good free information you can read though as well with common sense advisories. 

Habits and Identities Revealed via Coupons – Facebook Fan Pages Can Make User ID Visible – Shopping Algorithms Reduce Privacy And Increase Visibility

Below is an image from the wall Street Journal that shows some of the applications that were exploiting the information in the past.  When you get a ton load of queries running with many applications without each entity having their own security strongly in place, this type of stuff appears. 

We had the story about the website Patients Like Me that was breached too by a user disguised as a forum member.

Patients Like Me Experienced Data Mining Through a Data Mining Research Firm Break In –The Nielsen Company

Behavioral analytics are big stuff today with people wanting to predict how much money things are going to cost, so much that this healthcare group has a $3 million dollar bounty out there to fine the magical algorithms that can cut their costs.  It goes without needing to be said today that all insurers want this data so they can predict and assess what you are going to cost, they all do it and pay and sell our data for big bucks.  Do think this adds on to the high price of healthcare?  Somebody has to be paid for those algorithms <grin>. 

Heritage Provider Network In California Announces $3 Million Prize-Behavioral Analytics For Predictive Algorithmic Formulas On Who Will be Admitted to the Hospital

The FTC is somewhat trying to look into this matter too with the Consumer Watchdog filing their complaint.  Blue Cross has an entire unit dedicated to studying behavioral analytics and some pilot programs going with collecting data with active participants giving permission.  Yes, you heard that right, some said this is ok and everyone can make their own decision and if money or incentives are dangled out there, it can make a difference with a decision. 

Consumer Watch Dog Group Files Complaint with the FTC Regarding Data Mining, Profiling Algorithms–Privacy With Health Information At Risk With Insurer and Employer Usage

Also worth a look is the Invasion of the DNA Snatchers too, so you can be up to date on where technology is being used.

Beware of the DNA Snatchers of the Future

One final statement before I close here and I’ll give you a link to the original post I made about 3 years ago with Warren Buffett and his words of wisdom “Beware of Geeks Bearing Formulas” and he said that, and I agreed 3 years ago and look at how and where it has progressed today.  When you have written code, there’s no doubt on what the possibilities are for people to use it for good and perhaps not so good.  It’s done all the time and you probably just don’t know it as servers work 24/7 behind the scenes where as humans we still need sleep.  BD 

“Beware of Geeks Bearing Formulas”…Warren Buffett (Classic Post Revisited)

Want to know what happens to all the information you freely divulge about yourself on the Internet? Information brokers and data scrapers voraciously harvest your data, correlate it and then sell profiles to people finder firms, insurance companies, employers and others.

Privacy Rights Clearinghouse has compiled this list of the data brokers and data scrapers,

The Journal reported that it is happening in a story about how insurers test data profiles to identify risky clients, and The New York Times has also written about data sharing in the health industry.

Video shows what happens Marketers, data brokers and online advertisers are in a race to the privacy bottom. The more personal data points they absorb online, the higher their CPMs, the higher their revenue. We can't rely on the self-policing mechanisms of these industries to protect consumers; it goes against their business goals. to data you freely divulge - USATODAY.com

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Teva And Procter & Gamble Create Over the Counter Drug Marketing and Distribution Business-Do The Consumer A Favor and Start Bar Coding for Recalls-They Will Happen

Ok here I go again and if you are a regular reader we all know that the FDA and drug companies as well as device companies absolutely do nothing for helping the consumer find recalls.  I had a long standing poll here and guess what, consumers, pharmacists and more want the ability to scan a product with a smartphone and find recalls.  Look at the huge Triad mess for one.  In this recall we really found out how many of the drug and device companies they private label manufacture for.  The FDA pages will tell you the story there. 

FDA Announces Recall of Alcohol Prep Pads, Swabs, Swabsticks From Triad–FDA and Manufacturers Should Ashamed-Campaign for Bar Codes Still Stands Stronger Than Ever!

Perhaps this might get some attention here as J and J has all the information and has done nothing and we all know about their numerous recalls.  As a matter of fact the FDA wants to know what consumers and maybe bloggers in my case communicate, well I blogged it here:

FDA Looking for Public Input on How They Communicate With the Public-In My Case They Don’t Relative to Using Bar Codes for Device, Drug and OTC Products Recalls

Perhaps Teva and Proctor and Gamble will do a better job?  It would be nice.  Yeas ago when in the logistics business when the J and J OTC was owned by Pfizer, (the old Warner Lambert business)I used to do a lot of business with them and it’s not a difficult commodity to handle for distribution purposes, but today, you need to be ready to help consumers with recalls as the number grows every day!   It would be nice to see companies offer some help and value for consumers and shoot it would even make compliance easier with a synchronized data base at the FDA, luddites can’t see this yet though. 

For the companies having bar codes is huge too when used with a heat map from Bing as they can filed the recalled product and reach the consumer quickly too if they have the product in their possession.  Teva being the aggressive innovator they are, I would expect action from their end faster than I think P and G would respond though.  BD 

Here’s more folks in the “like” neighborhood of this idea too. 

How about this, a patent on some of this technology too, so let’s get it out there and help the consumer since this is all going to be built and orchestrated.  BD  

Microsoft Receives Patent-Techniques to Create Counterfeit and Tamper Resistant Labels Using Fiber Optic Strands-Bar Codes Getting Closer for Drug/Device Recalls?

The joint venture unveiled on Thursday includes the companies' over-the-counter businesses in all markets outside North America, which combined, generated sales of more than $1 billion in 2010.

The deal gives P&G access to Teva's extensive product portfolio and gives Teva the benefit of P&G's marketing expertise. Teva has a strong presence selling drugs to pharmacies, while P&G has a strong presence in supermarkets and other retail outlets.

"Teva's goal is to use Procter's brand to increase Teva's revenue," said Gilad Alper, an analyst at Meitav Investment House. "Procter's interest is, they need Teva's manufacturing capabilities, Teva's products and Teva's international infrastructure. It's a smart way to use each other's strengths."

Teva's shares were up 2.8 percent at $50.51 on Thursday afternoon, while P&G stock was up 0.1 percent at $61.00

Teva, Procter & Gamble create OTC drug partnership | Reuters

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Aetna Sues Six Out of Network Physicians in New Jersey-One Bedside Consult was Almost 57k-Who Didn’t Scrub that Claim & What Code?

If they paid it, then I guess they can sue back but how did this make it through the algorithms that check for this stuff?  I have not met a doctor yet who could bill for such a large fee.  What code did they use?  I want to know on this one just for my own knowledge as it has made me curious. 

The insured were taken care of inside network hospitals but the MDs were out of network if I am reading this correctly.  There were some other strange billing issues here too but the one consult stands out!  As one source stated one MDs income rose from $137k in one year to $2.7 Million in 6 months of the following year.  Again, where were those algorithms that check all the transactions I wonder.  This doesn’t make the lack of IT at Medicare look so bad after all <grin>.  In reality, I’m thinking though this must have been a paper claim.  BD  

Aetna sued six out-of-network doctors in New Jersey, whose bills for care for the insurer’s patients, including one for $56,980 for a bedside consultation, were “unlawful and excessive.”

The battle between Aetna and the doctors is over out-of-network fees, an area where insurers and providers are increasingly butting heads. In each case, the patient was referred to in-network hospitals but received care from the –out-of-network provider, with whom the insurer has no contract and therefore must pay whatever rate the provider charges.

Aetna sues six N.J. doctors over ‘excessive’ out-of-network fees | Insurance & Financial Advisor I IFAwebnews.com

Technorati Tags: Aetna,lawsuit,billing,health insurance,medical claims,medical billing,healthcare,Health IT,fraud