The Nashville Business Journal welcomes Chris McIntyre to his new position as director of product management at change:healthcare.

Check out the full article by downloading the PDF here.

An individual in our office (their name shall remain anonymous) received a letter from a gentlemen who used to perform “blue collar” work (spraying for pests) on their house and property. The letter was a plea for “some kind of donation,” help may be a better word, because his heart condition has recently rendered him disabled. He has applied for SSDI and medical, but is having a hard time making ends meet during the waiting period.

What do you do in a situation like this?

Well the answer to that question is personal.  However, in reading the letter, I wondered how many people know where to turn for help when they become newly disabled.  How do we make these services more prominent?

My first thought was “why hasn’t his healthcare provider helped him?” and by helped I mean referred him to resources that may be available through his medical center.  Most larger health institutions have assistance programs to help individuals pay for healthcare costs.  Though you must qualify for this type of program, it seems in his situation he would.

Second, what not-for-profit serving heart conditions could direct him to assistance programs in his area?  I know some organizations offer premium and co-payment assistance programs to help constituents pay for care. This would be especially helpful if he is on COBRA.

Third, why are there not resources listed on the web or provided in print when individuals enroll in SSDI and medical. The program has a waiting period – five months.  Doesn’t it seem logical that some (if not a lot of) individuals enrolling in these programs would have a hard time making ends meet during this time, with no pay and potentially no health insurance coverage.  I am confused as to why resources are not suggested to these indivdiuals when they enroll in the programs. (Now I know that SSDI back pays for the waiting period, but that does not mean that individuals do not struggle during those months).

What kinds of programs are out there, and how do you best help someone experiencing a new medical disability during such tough economic times?

Chris McIntyre has been named director of product management for change:healthcare, it was announced today by company Co-Founders Christopher Parks and Robert Hendrick.  McIntyre’s role will be to develop and manage the healthcare technology firm’s growing list of current and future products.

“We’re pleased to bring in Chris and his deep experience to lead the change:healthcare team in our product development and management efforts,”  Parks said in making the appointment.  “Chris understands how to build and replicate web-based products and services that are intuitive, collaborative and support millions of users.  Those skills will become invaluable as we continue our efforts to develop products that truly help consumers make smarter healthcare decisions, and companies control their healthcare benefit expenditures more tightly.”

McIntyre comes to change:healthcare from the Founder/CEO position of Podcast Alley, a San Francisco-based internet company that indexes and distributes consumer podcasts of all genres.  He was also a founder and senior product manger at broadband entertainment network Mevio (formerly known as PodShow), founder and CEO of Anrovia Design, a Chicago boutique agency that develops online and offline marketing campaigns, print collateral and websites for the bioscience and gourmet housewares industries, and founder and CEO of Shirts By Mail, an online textile printing company.

He holds degrees from Purdue University in Computer Graphic Technology and Computer Programming Technology.

To download the full PDF click here.

On January 9th, the Wall Street Journal published an interesting and especially note worthy article titled ‘Alternative’ Medicine Is Mainstream. The article summarizes and outlines simple evidence that diet and exercise are the best “cure” for our most common ailments.

‘Alternative’ medicine, as the authors of this article title it, is what most of us commonly think of as ‘Preventative’ medicine. The way in which we live our daily lives that will help to stave off America’s most common chronic conditions, such as obesity, heart disease, hypertension… I believe, though many of us choose to reject this line of thinking or simply just ignore it, that most of us know this to be true.

The most compelling aspect of the article comes quite a ways into the piece. Studies have shown that America spent more than $100 BILLION in 2006 on coronary bypass and coronary angioplasty procedures. The article continues, “Despite these costs, a randomized controlled trial published in April 2007 in The New England Journal of Medicine found that angioplasties and stents do not prolong life or even prevent heart attacks in stable patients (i.e., 95% of those who receive them).”  They have only been shown to prolong life in less than 3% of the cases. Further to this point, a study followed 30,000 men and women on six continents and found that lifestyle changes could prevent at least 90% of all heart disease.

So what’s the point you ask?  Well the point is that our healthcare system is set up to service and receive payment for disease treatment.  Sickness treatment – that’s it!!  Our government and private insurance companies are currently paying billions of dollars for procedures that are clinically proven to not extend life.  Why have we not begun incentivizing people to be healthy and the system for keeping them healthy?  Why have we not started spending insurance premiums on health and wellness, and as the article mentioned, finding out what “wellness” or “alternative medicine” works best for each individual?

Lifestyle changes are difficult.  I know!! I hit the snooze button this morning instead of getting up and going on the run I planned. I myself am guilty on not making 100% effort. If it were easy, everyone would be fit right?

But this is not the take away.  No more excuses – that’s the take away.  It’s time we start getting healthy.  It’s time to put down all those pills and pick up a gym membership.  The odds are that the gym membership costs less.  Heck, if you are taking a bunch of brand name drugs, you could probably even get a personal trainer, or a life coach, for that price. It’s time we start trying to change the healthcare system and the most tangible way for everyone to contribute is to make a little effort… let’s start getting healthy!

In an article posted by the Wall Street Journal on January 5th – IBM Chief: IT Investment Will Create Jobs -  IBM CEO Samuel Palmisano presented a report to the Obama transition team stating that a $30 billion  investment in computerizing health-care records, expanding broadband access, and improving the electrical grid could create more than 900,000 U.S. jobs. Considering we spent $2.2 trillion on healthcare in 2007, $30 billion almost seems like small change.

So what are the issues here??

Well first and foremost, IT investments are usually intended to reduce the number of employees and increase internal efficiency.  Will those jobs be short-lived once the IT practices become routine?

Second, the article states that there are very little metrics available (basically none) that site how IT  investments affect job creation. So the report is potentially more speculative than factual?

The good news: the breakdown of the government investment highlights that $10 billion invested specifically in electronic health records could create 212,000 jobs. Not bad.

Dr. Stanley Feld, “Top Health Blogger” by Wellsphere, claims that the healthcare reform agenda has already been set by Obama and Daschle.  You can read his post here.  He has some good points regarding reform and the need to involve physicians in the process.  However, his post struck a chord with me when he wrote about everyone believing that doctors are at fault, and that the government is out to change the way that doctors practice medicine.

I feel that most people agree that the quality of care in our system needs to improve.  Some might agree that reimbursement patterns must shift to reward high quality healthcare and wellness.  Few might agree that doctors are going to have to change the way they practice medicine, whether its integrating information technology and electronic medical records, or estabilishing stronger doctor patient relationships.  I would like to hear your opinions…

In the meantime, I wrote a response to Dr. Felds opinion piece.  It is available below:

“Dr. Feld,

I respect your opinion on the involvement of patients AND physicians in healthcare reform and policy. But without reading the by-line, about half way through your piece, I could tell you were an MD incapable of writing an unbiased piece on healthcare reform.

Problem: Unfortunately, not all doctors are out to service the best interests of their patients and some are most concerned with the thickness of their wallets. When I go to the doctor, why can’t he tell me about how much the services will cost?

Problem: We pay doctors only when patients are sick. You don’t make money if you keep me healthy, now do you?

Problem: The average patient does not understand medicine or the CONFUSING healthcare system.

The worst part of it all – is that I would argue that most MDs do not understand the system either. While I agree with you that “Socializing” healthcare is not the appropriate answer to our problem, I whole-heartedly disagree that the government is trying to “FORCE DOCTORS TO CHANGE THE WAY THEY PRACTICE MEDICINE.”

Let’s not equate “changing the way doctors practice medicine” with “changing incentives and reimbursement.” This is about keeping more people healthy and increasing the quality of care delivered. This is about rewarding physicians for delivering high quality care and keeping their patients healthy. This is about asking doctors to do their job efficiently and accurately. If to do this doctors have to change the way they “practice medicine,” then I might argue that they entered medicine for the wrong reason to begin with.
Transparency. Accountability. Competition. – Its time to make some changes in healthcare!”

In the news recently there have been a couple of articles citing some large companies moving their entire workforce to a high deductible health plan (HDHP), as a means of saving money and/or preserving health benefits. The New York Times article “Employers Offering Workers Fewer Health Plans” mentions Nissan – who is moving their entire 15,000 employee North American workforce to a HDHP – and Delta Airlines. If you take a look at the article, both Nissan and Delta Airlines provide their reasons for moving their workforces to HDHPs. Very interesting…

In addition to reasoning, the article also notes that the deductible for an individual will be at least $1,100 and much more than that for family coverage. Nissan’s will be $2,500 per family member, for which the company will deposit up to $1,600 in the family’s HSA.

AHHHHH $1,100 for an individual and $2,500 or more for a family!!!

High deductible health plans, aaccompanied by a health savings accounts (HSAs), are not something to be scared of.  Even though the deductible seems daunting at first, the coverage is typically 100% after the deductible is met.  Your employer should be funding part of the HSA and you can (read: should) contribute pre-tax dollars as well.

Things to think about when moving to a high deductible health plan:

1. If you do not think you will meet your deductible for the year, then you must begin to think about your healthcare differently. Healthcare costs vary between providers.  Pharmacies charge different prices.  Do your research!
2. The way your health expenses impact your pocketbook will certainly change from that of a traditional health plan. Your initial costs will be much higher, but you will still receive an “insurance discount” on care.
3. There are benefits to HDHPs such as preventative care, including immunizations for children, certain cancer screenings and well care for the whole family.

Remember, the most important thing you can do is read your policy. It should simply and specifically outline things that are covered at 100% even before your deductible is met.

And there are websites available, such as www.changehealthcare.com, that help you estimate your healthcare costs before seeing the doctor and even help you track you HSA spending.

I have argued the value of transparency in healthcare many times (note: scroll past Robert’s entries to view mine below)! But I have yet to argue the value of transparency in relation to other aspects of healthcare beyond just cost.

Shame on me!!

A recent article in BusinessWeek highlights Health 2.0 – the emergence of “patients as partners.”  Featured is PatientsLikeMe an online social network with communities specifically for patients with neurological, neuroendocrine, mood, and autoimmune conditions such as MS (multiple sclerosis), ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), and HIV/AIDS. The site provides comprehensive tools which allow patients to track and document everything from their symptoms and lifestyle, to current medications and other recommended treatment.

What is new and revolutionary about this site??  A lot!!  To members of “Health 2.0″ PatientsLikeMe is leading the way in engaging pateints as partners, “experts” of their care.  But to the media, the idea of patients openly discussing their health and leveraging this information to improve their own care is a “new idea.”

Business Week writes, “PatientsLikeMe and a proliferation of similar startups are building a new business predicated on the belief that the wisdom of crowds of patients will bring insights, solace, and most of all, power.

Power because, as it turns out, patients talking among themselves on a global scale with complete transparency produces all kinds of unexpected results. Drug side effects can be reported to regulators by the patients experiencing them, without waiting for the manufacturers to come forward. Pharmaceutical companies can use social networks to recruit subjects quickly for clinical trials, speeding up the pace of research. For that matter, patients can simply band together and run their own clinical trials, leaving drug companies and physicians out of the loop.”

So what is the value of transparency in relation to your healthcare and health conditions?  Wisdom of the crowds.

As it turns out, your health experiences can help someone else find out about a new drug, about the side affects of a drug they have just been prescribed, or possibly a stretching technique that relieves stress.  The possibilities are endless it seems when conceptualized on a global scale.  Our health systems may be set up differently, but the way in which an individual experiences a drug or symptoms of their condition may be beneficial to others across the globe, regardless of whether they have health insurance or not!

Three cheers to PatientsLikeMe for leading the way… And most importantly, thanks to its many members for being transparent, and recognizing the value!

For more information on patientslikeme amd ways in which they are revolutionizing healthcare visit their website at www.patientslikeme.com or watch their featured spot on CBS Evening News.

Once again, Robert has appeared on a TV show!!  This time his healthcare cost-saving tips and new book My Healthcare Is Killing Me were featured on Nashville’s very own “Talk of the Town” – a daily talk show featuring news, weather, and whatever is the current “talk of the town.”

You can view Robert’s segment with Meryll Rose below!

Great job Robert… we look forward to seeing you on TV again soon!

Wondering exactly how change:healthcare can help your company?  Well now there is a new demo to answer your questions!

Learn what change:healthcare can do for you, how c:h can save you money, and help your employees make smarter healthcare consumer decisions.

Check out the demo at http://company.changehealthcare.com/for-employers/guided-tour/