The Examiner.com-NowPublic Hookup: Part Two

On September 3, 2009

The Examiner.com-NowPublic Hookup: Part Two

There are a number aspects of this week's acquisition of NowPublic by the Examiner.com that promise to put the business model of a hyper-local news network to its largest test to date. Based in Vancouver, NowPublic calls itself the largest "participatory news network in the world," which draws reports filed by 185,000 citizen journalists from 160 countries. "We don't pay them," explained CEO Leonard Brody. "They come into our network by word of mouth. NowPublic is really a forum for them to communicate with one another about the things the care about." On its home page, NowPublic adds the tag "Crowd Powered Media," and displays the most recommended stories from the past eight hours. A piece about the Blackwater security...
On September 3, 2009

Healthcare Roundup: Dems’ Public Plan Deal Falls Apart, CCHIT Moves on, ONC Unveils Extension Centers, and More

Lame Blue Dogs Leading the Blind Dems - According to the Wall Street Journal, a deal struck in July between the liberal and "Blue Dog" Democratic factions over how much to pay doctors in the proposed public plan has fallen apart. The Blue Dogs want the Department of Health and Human Services to negotiate rates with physicians, while the liberals want to stick them with Medicare rates, as the current House legislation reads. If the government did negotiate rates, with whom would it bargain? The AMA, which represents only about a third of physicians? And even if HHS and AMA struck a deal, why would physicians participate in a public plan if they thought the rates were too low? Inquiring...
On September 3, 2009

Hospital Chain’s Turnaround Raises Health Spending

Caritas Christi Health Care, a six-hospital chain based in Boston, lost $20.4 million for the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2008. For FY 2009, Caritas Christi expects to post operating income of $31.1 million. How did a not-for-profit healthcare organization that was financially impaired even before the recession began achieve this turnaround during a period when other Massachusetts hospitals were slumping? It did what any business--for-profit or not-for-profit--has to do in this situation: it cut costs and boosted revenues. On the cost side, it consolidated operations, cut jobs, and froze salaries. And to pump up income, it negotiated better rates with insurers and hired a number of specialists who perform big-ticket procedures. One urology group, for example, has performed hundreds...
On September 3, 2009

Pharmacy Benefit Managers Face Double Threat

Do WellPoint and Aetna know something about healthcare reform that others don't? WellPoint sold its pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) division recently to Express Scripts, and Aetna has put its PBM on the block, with Medco reported to be the leading bidder. Meanwhile, one of the reform bills would require PBMs to reveal how much they're getting back from pharmaceutical companies on particular drugs. If they spill their competitive secrets, the Wall Street Journal speculates, they might not be able to continue raking in billions by obtaining drug rebates on behalf of their employer and health plan clients. In that case, it will be said that WellPoint and Aetna made some very prescient moves. Another sign of the times: Caterpillar has...
On September 3, 2009

Why So Many Insured People Have Big Medical Debts

One in seven adult Californians who are less than 65 years old are paying off medical debts in excess of $2,000. Remarkably, two-thirds of those debtors are insured, according to a study by the UCLA Center for Policy Research. Among the 2.2 million people who were paying off big medical bills, 17 percent had debts ranging from $2,000 to $4,000; 9.4 percent owed between $4,000 and $8,000, and 8.7 percent owed $8,000 or more. One reason why insurance may not cover very much is that 7.2 percent of Californians are in high-deductible plans, including 38 percent of those who purchase their own insurance. For purposes of the survey, these plans were defined as having deductibles of $1,000 or more for...
On September 3, 2009

Altarock Halts Drilling at First Geothermal Well

Altarock Energy can't catch a break. After running into local opposition earlier in the summer, after the New York Times published a story suggesting the geothermal energy company could cause earthquakes, it has now run into a tough rock formation at its first site, forcing it to stop drilling and move on. The company is the darling of the geothermal industry, which is split between other startups and older, larger companies like Raser Technologies. Altarock, along with some other small companies, is pursuing enhanced geothermal, which involves deep drilling, often several miles beneath the surface, to reach a layer of hot rock that can produce steam. It's not clear exactly what stopped Altarock's drilling, which began in an old well...
On September 3, 2009

Management Lessons from Obama’s Health-Care Reform

In attempting to reform our nation's health-care, Obama has faced the same issues I've often confronted in corporate change and turnaround situations. Not to minimize the complexity of health-care overhaul, but the leadership and management lessons are strikingly similar to strategic corporate change.
On September 3, 2009

This Event was One of those “Life-Changing Moments”

By zoe.tennesenPublished on September 03, 2009At the risk of sounding melodramatic, this event was one of those life-changing moment kinds of things. Their office was abuzz with excitement and spilling over with people, mostly in suits, laughing and en...
On September 3, 2009

Use First Impressions as Sales Tools

This week we're discussing opening remarks.  (CLICK here to vote on your favorite!) Amazingly, many people still believe that it's best to start a sales presentation exactly like every other business presentation -- with a personal introduction, a summary of the presentation, or a funny story. I think that's nuts. Regular business presentations take place among people who generally know each other and either have worked together for years or will be working together for years.  The purpose of such presentations is generally to provide information, come to agreement on operational issues, etc.  As such, it makes perfect sense to use the standard "here's why we're here" or "hi, I'm Joe from accounting" openings. Sales presentations are DIFFERENT.  A sales...
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