Brentwood-based NaviHealth, Nashville-based Medalogix shape up amid health reform

 

A sharper focus on keeping people out of the hospital or from returning within a month after discharge means business opportunities for Nashville’s health sector and companies with the right technology to aid patients.

Brentwood-based NaviHealth and Nashville-based Medalogix are among companies riding a wave of helping hospitals and other providers take care of patients at the right time with the right care in the right setting.

Business models of both companies involve using analytical tools to help predict the future. Their work is considered important as Medicare plans to change how it pays for care starting this October. It’s moving toward penalizing those hospitals that have higher-than-average rates of patient readmissions.

“Hospitals are beginning to seek out relationships with nursing homes, home health agencies and other post-acute providers that are doing a great job of keeping those patients from coming back to the hospital within that 30-day window,” said Dan Hogan, Medalogix’s CEO.

Medalogix’s analytical tool is used by 14 home health-care agencies, and the company plans to work with nursing homes and then hospital systems.

Its software analyzes patients’ medication records and other clinical information to predict who’s most at risk of being sent to the hospital within 60 days.

Medalogix recently netted $100,000 in financing from angel investors to bolster its operations.

 

NaviHealth weighs in on quality, costs

 

NaviHealth works mostly with commercial and private Medicare Advantage health plans. The company helps determine the right setting for patients, the type of care needed, and it manages the transition from acute-care to the patient’s home to prevent unnecessary hospital readmissions.

“For us it’s preventing readmissions, but also as they move through the post-acute phase, driving higher quality at lower costs,” said Clay Richards, NaviHealth’s president.

While most of NaviHealth’s growth is from managed care plans, Richards sees long-term growth opportunities in working with accountable care organizations and hospitals.

The company’s pitch involves taking on some of the post-acute risks as hospitals move more to a value-based model, shouldering responsibilities for cost and quality of care and helping patients as they progress. Its goal is to prevent unnecessary readmissions by using proprietary technology to better understand risk factors and come up with a plan to deal with any physical limitations a patient might have.

Jason Dinger, CEO of MissionPoint Health Partners, sees opportunities for innovative companies. MissionPoint is part of the Saint Thomas Health hospital system with which NaviHealth works. He says the push to contain costs and boost quality is still evolving as federal health reform plays out.

“The wider discussion is what (are) the historical gaps in care in our health system, and how is the post-reform movement filling those gaps,” he said.

Getahn Ward covers the business of health care. Reach him at 615-726-5968 or at gward@tennessean.com. Follow him on Twitter @Getahn.

 

NIH supports critical life-saving programs

 

THE TENNESSEAN:  By: Jeff Balser

 

As our nation’s economy continues to struggle, the congressional supercommittee’s failure to reach agreement last fall will trigger $1.2 trillion in mandatory reductions in government spending with half of the reductions mandated to come from funding for domestic programs, potentially those including science and engineering research.

 

Without intervention, this will include medical research supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Negotiations for specifically which programs will be cut, or by how much, are under way in Washington.

 

Serious reductions to NIH funding will have immediate and negative consequences for the health of Tennesseans and also for our state’s economy.

 

Not including the incalculable impact from saved lives and improved quality of life resulting from research discoveries and advancements in health-care delivery, support from the NIH to our nation’s medical schools and teaching hospitals added close to $45 billion to the U.S. economy in 2009, according to an economic impact report recently produced by Tripp Umbach, a highly respected national economic consulting firm. The return from $28.5 billion in federal investment, nearly two to one in direct economic terms, is even greater when cast in terms of the long-term impact on our nation’s health.

 

Our nation’s academic medical centers — collaborative incubators where physicians and scientists partner to provide innovative care for patients and conduct essential research, while also training the nation’s next generation of doctors and biomedical researchers — are changing reality for patients with cancers and other life-threatening diseases almost daily. Today, patients at Vanderbilt are receiving DNA-guided therapies that are achieving remission rates in melanoma and lung cancer that were unthinkable even a year ago. At the same time, for every dollar invested in research at medical schools and teaching hospitals, a resulting $2.60 worth of economic activity occurs, advancing the economic health of our community as we improve the health of our people.

 

According to Tripp Umbach, in 2009 Tennessee’s medical schools and teaching hospitals generated $987 million in total direct economic impact — and by circulating throughout Tennessee’s economy through job creation and support services relating to research, created an additional $607 million in indirect economic impact. At Vanderbilt alone, the nation’s investment in biomedical research is responsible for more than 5,000 jobs.

 

At Vanderbilt, due to the creativity and national competiveness of our faculty, we have been able to maintain our status as leaders among the nation’s academic institutions in terms of research funding, despite flat NIH budgets over the past several years. Research funds coming to Vanderbilt faculty have continued to rise, to $587 million in the most recent year. Of this funding, $370 million comes directly from the NIH.

 

An immediate cut in NIH support would have a crippling effect — by disabling research programs making the urgent progress necessary to stop heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and myriad other diseases from cruelly taking our loved ones from us far too early — and also by taking away jobs in an economic sector that is, even in these times, actually growing and providing both Tennessee and our local community a continuous and vital source of economic stability.

 

As policymakers make the tough decisions regarding the fiscal health of our nation, I urge them to recognize the critical long-term impact investments in science, particularly biomedical research, will have on our nation. We can ill afford to make drastic, irrational cuts to one of our finest economic catalysts — an engine of innovation that is unique and priceless, providing high-quality jobs for our citizens while saving lives at home and around the world.

 

Jeff Balser, M.D. Ph.D., is vice chancellor for health affairs, Vanderbilt University and dean of the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine.

 

OneC1TY deal is in an early stage, but holds promise to jump-start tech growth

The Tennessean:  By Ryan Underwood

 

When Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen realized several years ago that a vast stretch of post-industrial real estate sat rotting, literally, in the geographic center of an otherwise booming Seattle, he did what any shrewd billionaire would do: He bought it.

 

But this was no mere land grab. Allen laid out a vision for a new biotechnology hub that would emerge as a world-class, sustainably built destination for new shops, restaurants, condos and, most importantly, companies intent on building the future.

 

In the span of less than a decade, the neighborhood, South Lake Union, has flourished, attracting more than $2 billion in private investment since 2003. Over the next five years, the area is on track to double its workforce population to 30,000, and when South Lake Union is fully built out, companies there are expected to generate about $900 million in annual tax revenue. As if to hurry that timetable along, Amazon opened the first of an 11-building campus there in 2010.

 

“This is what the new urban creative economy looks like,” Richard Florida, author of the influential book The Rise of the Creative Class, said about South Lake Union in a recent interview during which he was asked to identify up-and-coming neighborhoods across North America.

 

Clustering technical, entrepreneurial and university talent in close proximity is hardly a new idea, but it clearly works, as places such as Research Triangle Park in North Carolina and MIT’s University Park in Cambridge, Mass., have shown.

 

Now, a group of developers is interested in doing something similar in Nashville along Charlotte Avenue, near the soon-to-be-open 28th Avenue Connector, an area that nestles up to HCA’s and Baptist’s back doors. (Plus, Swett’s is a stone’s throw in the opposite direction — what’s not to love?)

 

The proposed development, called One C1ty, would seek to attract companies working in health-care technology. Plans for the 19-acre site call for an eight-building campus encompassing 3 million square feet of mixed office and lab space, according to Keith Gregg, chairman of Brentwood-based JRG Ventures, a lead developer on the project.

 

While no tenants have formally been announced, Gregg said the firm is in advanced discussions with several companies, including one well-known international company.

 

“The profile of the companies expressing interest include life science, academic, analytics, IT infrastructure, wellness, specialty medical practices, clinical trial, diagnostic, pharmaceutical, and data transport,” Gregg said in an email exchange.

 

(Of course, development plans like this should always be taken with a grain or two of salt, as the proposed Signature Tower and Intercontinental Hotel and Condo, neither of which ever made it off the drawing board, can attest.)

 

The one thing that’s abundantly clear, however, is that health-care technology is growing and probably will for a long time to come.

 

I attended a panel discussion earlier this week led by North Highland Affiliate Lou Anne Barnhouse on new international standards for disease classification, which in the U.S., also will be used for billing purposes. Experts estimate that hospitals and academic health centers will need to budget $10 million to $50 million just to meet the new standards, while individual physician practices will need to budget about $500,000. In addition, there are ample opportunities in the IT space for companies specializing in warehousing sensitive medical data, as well as developing computer-assisted coding systems.

 

And that’s just in one narrow slice of an enormous — and enormously complex — industry.

 

Whether it’s the One C1ty project, or another one like it that comes along, the potential opportunity to breathe new life into an abandoned industrial strip while helping seal Nashville’s reputation as a destination for health-care innovation seems too good to pass up.

 

Ryan Underwood is an editor at Vanderbilt University’s Owen Graduate School of Management. His column, which appears every other Thursday, covers the startup culture in Nashville.

 

Ryan Doyle and Keith Gregg of oneC1TY will lead Team runC1TY at Mayor Dean’s 5K this Sunday, Nov. 13. The 5K is the latest initiative in a continuing effort by the mayor’s office to promote healthy living and an active lifestyle.

When the Walk 100 Miles with the Mayor campaign ended in July, Mayor Dean challenged Nashvillians to begin preparing for the 5K on Nov. 13, in order to build on the momentum created by the program that saw more than 4,000 Nashvillians walk more than 100,000 miles in four months.

 

“The mayor’s initiative to create a healthier city overlaps with oneC1TY’s mission, so we felt that it was important for us to have a team at the 5K this Sunday,” said Doyle.

 

The 5K starts at Public Square at 2 p.m. on Sunday, and is free to the public. However, the mayor’s office is encouraging participants to bring a nonperishable food item to benefit the Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee.

 

The race route will take participants through downtown and the Gulch, and more than 4,000 people have registered for the event.

For more information about the race, visit www.mayorschallenge5k.com.

 

Ryan Doyle of oneC1TY, and 11 others from Team runC1TY will participate in the Tennessee Ragnar Relay taking place November 4-5.

 

A 196-mile running event from Chattanooga to Nashville, the Ragnar Relay challenges a team of 12 to traverse the sloping hills and rolling valleys of the Tennessee countryside, all in 24 hours.

 

Founded in 2004, the Ragnar Relay now hosts 15 events throughout some of the country’s most beautiful natural scenery. Races vary in length from 150 to 200 miles; individual team members cover three legs of the total distance, each leg ranging from three to eight miles.

 

Each Ragnar Relay also donates a portion of the proceeds to a local charity. This year’s Tennessee Ragnar charity is Community Health Charities of Tennessee.

 

Doyle stated, “This event gives friends, families and corporate teams an opportunity to build stronger relationships while improving personal health and contributing to their community. Team runC1TY is excited to participate in a weekend driven by a similar mission to oneC1TY’s goal of improving community health.”

 

Other Nashville health care companies participating in the Tennessee Ragnar Relay include Healthways, Inc., and HCA, Inc. For more information about the Ragnar Relay, visit http://www.ragnarrelay.com/.

 

 

Ryan Doyle of oneC1TYand Keith Gregg, chairman and CEO of JRG Ventures, are among those in attendance this week at the BIO International Convention – the largest global event for the biotechnology industry.

 

“The oneCITY development will rely heavily on the biotech industry – an industry that is constantly evolving and doing so at a rapid pace,” said Gregg. “The BIO International Convention will allow us to stay in-tune with these industry trends, as well as network with some of its key players.”

 

The Convention, which has attracted past speakers like Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, offers key networking and partnering opportunities, and provides insights and inspiration on the major trends affecting the biotechnology industry.

 

The Convention also features the BIO Business Forum (One-on-One Partnering), discussions about policy issues and technological innovations, and the world’s largest biotechnology exhibition – the BIO Exhibition.

 

Other notable Tennessee organizations attending include Memphis Bioworks, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Vanderbilt University and University of Tennessee. For more information about the BIO International Convention, visit http://convention.bio.org/about_bio_convention.aspx.