Joe Donnelly - Are Mike Braun's employees on the hook for first $10,000 of health care?

October 11, 2018, 7:23 am

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The Truth-o-Meter says: Mostly True | Are Mike Braun's employees on the hook for first $10,000 of health care?Incumbent Sen. Joe Donnelly painted himself as a guardian of health insurance and Republican opponent Mike Braun as its main threat during their first debate. "I was the final vote to save health care," Donnelly said of his opposition to the so-called skinny repeal of the Affordable Care Act. "At (Braun’s) company, the deductible on his health care if $10,000, which is completely unaffordable. He has every time tried to take away pre-existing conditions coverage and supports the lawsuit today that would do that." Braun did not respond to the attack in the debate, but in his rebuttal he said ...

>> More Reported by PolitiFact 21 hours ago.

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College Students and Parents Take Extra Precaution This Halloween with Umergency

October 11, 2018, 9:29 am

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Concerns Over the Rise in ER Visits On October 31 Prompt College Families To Download Popular Safety App

PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. (PRWEB) October 11, 2018

Halloween has become a favorite holiday among college students. While these undergraduates take great care in planning their costumes and evening celebrations, many do not realize they could be making an unexpected trip to the emergency room.

Studies show that more than 4 million college-aged adults already visit the ER every year, and you can expect to see an upsurge in these numbers during Halloween due to increased alcohol consumption, assaults and accidents.

In today’s era of heightened concerns, thousands of college families have found solace by downloading Umergency, the all-in-one safety app that provides the tools for students and parents to navigate any emergency, health or safety situation.

“As a mom with a child in college studying across the country, I’m always worried for his safety,” said Elena Cates of Los Angeles, one of thousands of parents using the app. “Kids will always feel like nothing can happen to them, and I am particularly concerned during Halloween and want to be prepared in case of any emergency.”

Although Halloween may appear to be a light-hearted holiday, consider the following:· Alcohol consumption increases by 30 percent on Halloween.
· Of the 85 percent of students that consume alcohol during Halloween, 57 percent will drink to intoxication.
· More than 50 percent of college sexual assaults occur in the fall.
· A 2015 study revealed 30 percent more ER admissions among adults on Halloween than there were on New Year's Eve.

Umergency is growing. Downloads of the popular safety app have increased exponentially since the start of the 2018 back-to-school season:

“We built Umergency with both parents and students in mind, and now thousands of college families are using this sorely need resource to stay prepared,” said Gail Schenbaum, co-founder of Umergency whose harrowing experience when her daughter was away at college was the impetus for creating the app. “Umergency gives parents and students peace of mind, especially around holidays like Halloween when there is a rise in binge drinking and assaults on and off campuses.”

Available for download in the App Store and Google Play, Umergency provides a variety of accessible resources, including an:

· Urgent Alert beacon with the student’s GPS location that notifies parents and trusted contacts when immediate help is needed;
· “I am safe” function that alerts contacts when a student is okay;
· Digital medical consent form, granting families the ability to speak with medical professionals; and
· Insurance card upload and share function.

The app also comes pre-populated with local and on-campus emergency resource contacts customized to each college or university, including police, fire, ER, and urgent care personnel, health centers, psychological and other after-hours services hotlines. It also provides built-in access to three of the most used national crisis hotlines, such as suicide, sexual assault and poison control.

The Umergency app is currently available for free to college students in the United States, and costs $9.99 per year or $19.99 for lifetime access for parents, family members, or other non-students.

About Umergency™
Umergency is an emergency, health and safety app designed for college students and their families. The local and on-campus information comes pre-populated and is specific to each student’s campus, while the user-entered data is unique to each student and allows them to decide what to share and with whom. An Urgent Alert beacon notifies trusted contacts when immediate help is needed, along with the student’s GPS location. Additional features include the ability to upload and share a secure copy of the student’s health insurance card, and a digital medical consent form which can allow the student’s trusted friends and family to speak with medical personnel. Learn more about the app by visiting http://www.umergencyapp.com or follow on Facebook @Umergency, Twitter @Umergency and Instagram @Umergency. Reported by PRWeb 19 hours ago.

Fact check: President Trump's claims on Medicare, Democrats

October 11, 2018, 12:24 pm

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In an op-ed for USA TODAY, President Donald Trump made a series of false and misleading statements about Medicare and health insurance in general.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  Reported by Delawareonline 16 hours ago.

Cognosante Acquires J.Lodge, an Innovator in Contact Center Quality Assurance

October 11, 2018, 11:04 am

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J.Lodge serves Fortune 500 companies with a team of Americans with disabilities and Veterans

FALLS CHURCH, Va. (PRWEB) October 11, 2018

Cognosante, a leader in health information technology solutions and services, today announced the acquisition of J.Lodge, an industry leader in contact center monitoring and quality assurance.

Inspired by Jackie Lodge’s personal story—a lifelong survivor of a debilitating medical condition—J. Lodge supports alternative work environments and flexible schedules, providing remote job opportunities to an under-employed segment of the U.S. population. Cognosante’s acquisition of J.Lodge will expand meaningful career opportunities for disabled persons, Veterans, caregivers, and the spouses of servicemembers.

J.Lodge employs innovative technology and an exceptional U.S.-based workforce, combining practical experience with modern data science methods. J.Lodge uses proprietary MyQuality software and industry-leading speech analytics to deliver metrics-driven solutions that identify business improvement opportunities and measure tangible results. This acquisition allows Cognosante to offer differentiated quality monitoring services to its health-focused clients.

“We are extremely excited about joining forces with the right partner that shares the same vision and passion. This is an exciting time for us as we prepare to accelerate and grow our employee and customer bases,” said Mike Schrider, who cofounded J.Lodge with Kolleen Schrider.

“My entrepreneurial goal has long been to maintain the dual mission of doing exceptional work for our customers and doing good for society. J.Lodge is that kind of company, and it is why I am so excited to build upon the foundation Mike and Kolleen have built,” said Michele Kang, founder and CEO of Cognosante.

Reflecting its mission-focused legacy, J.Lodge will maintain its name and will operate as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cognosante. J.Lodge senior executives will continue to support the company as Cognosante employees.

About Cognosante
Cognosante provides technology solutions, business process outsourcing, and consulting services to Federal, state, and local government health agencies. The company has nearly three decades of experience working with 48 states and the Federal government, developing, managing, and executing large, complex health information programs. Its expertise includes Medicaid; Medicare; military and Veterans’ health; the health insurance marketplace; data standards and analytics; modular system development and integration; and fraud, waste, and abuse detection and prevention. Visit cognosante.com for more information.

About J.Lodge
J.Lodge, a Cognosante company, provides superior quality monitoring services and solutions for contact centers that improve customer experience and their bottom line. The company pairs the latest in speech analytics technology with top-of-the-line call, email, and chat monitoring. J.Lodge is mission-driven, and provides meaningful career opportunities for Veterans, people with disabilities, and their caregivers. Visit jlodge.com for more information.

Media Contact
Lisa Amore for J.Lodge/Cognosante
lisa@amorepr.com
206.954.8006
https://twitter.com/jlodge
https://www.facebook.com/jlodgecorp/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/j.lodge/ Reported by PRWeb 18 hours ago.

Living In A New Gilded Age – OpEd

October 11, 2018, 11:36 pm

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The Trump Justice Department has approved a $69 billion merger between CVS, the nation’s largest drugstore chain, and insurance giant Aetna. It’s the largest health insurance deal in history.

Executives say the combination will make their companies more efficient, allowing them to gain economies of scale and squeeze waste out of the system.

Rubbish. This is what big companies always say when they merge.

The real purpose is to give Aetna and CVS more bargaining power over their consumers and employees, as well as pharmaceutical companies and healthcare providers (which have also been consolidating).

The result: Higher prices. Americans already spend far more on healthcare and medications per person than do citizens in any other developed country – and our health is among the worst.

America used to have antitrust laws that permanently stopped corporations from monopolizing markets, and often broke up the biggest culprits.

But now, especially with Trump as president and lobbyists and CEOs running much of the government, giant corporations like Aetna and CVS are busily weakening antitrust enforcement and taking over the economy.

They’re also keeping down wages. Workers with less choice of whom to work for have a harder time getting a raise. So when local labor markets are dominated by a major drug chain like CVS or a big box retailer like Walmart, these firms essentially set wage rates for the area.

These massive corporations also have a lot of political clout – another reason they’re consolidating.

We see the same pattern across the economy. Wall Street’s five largest banks now account for 44 percent of America’s banking assets – up from about 10 percent thirty years ago. That means higher interest rates on loans, higher late fees, and a greater risk of another “too-big-to-fail” bailout.

But politicians don’t dare bust them up because Wall Street pays part of their campaign expenses.

Oh, and why does the United States have the highest broadband prices among advanced nations and the slowest speeds?

Because more than 80 percent of Americans have no choice but to rely on their local cable company for high capacity wired data connections to the Internet – usually Comcast, AT&T, or Verizon. And these corporations are among the most politically powerful in America. (In a rare exception to Trump’s corporate sycophancy, the Justice Department is appealing a district court’s approval of AT&T’s merger with Time Warner.)

Have you wondered why your airline ticket prices have remained so high even though the cost of jet fuel has plummeted?

Because U.S. airlines have consolidated into a handful of giant carriers that divide up routes and collude on fares. As recently as 2005 the U.S. had nine major airlines. Now we have just four. And all are politically well-connected.

Why does food cost so much? Because the four largest food companies control 82 percent of beef packing, 85 percent of soybean processing, 63 percent of pork packing, and 53 percent of chicken processing.

Monsanto alone owns the key genetic traits to more than 90 percent of the soybeans planted by farmers in the United States, and 80 percent of the corn. Big Agribusiness wants to keep it this way.

Google’s search engine is so dominant “google” has become a verb. A few years ago the staff of the Federal Trade Commission recommended suing Google for “conduct [that] has resulted – and will result – in real harm to consumers and to innovation.” But the commissioners decided against the lawsuit, perhaps because Google is also the biggest lobbyist in Washington.

The list goes on, industry after industry, across the economy. Antitrust has been ambushed by the giant companies it was designed to contain.

Under Trump and the Republicans, Congress has further squeezed the budgets of the antitrust division of the Justice Department and the Bureau of Competition of the Federal Trade Commission. Politically-powerful interests have squelched major investigations and lawsuits. Right-wing judges have stopped or shrunk the few cases that get through.

Trump and his Republican enablers rhapsodize about the “free market,” yet have no qualms about allowing big corporations to rig it to boost profits at the expense of average people. As the late Robert Pitofsky, former chairman of the Federal Trade Commission, once noted, “antitrust is a deregulatory philosophy. If you’re going to let the free market work, you’d better protect the free market.”

We’re now in a new Gilded Age of wealth and power similar to the first Gilded Age of the late nineteenth century when the nation’s antitrust laws were enacted. But unlike then, today’s biggest corporations have enough political clout to neuter antitrust.

Unless government un-rigs the market through bold antitrust action to restore competition, the hidden upward distributions from consumers and workers to corporate chieftains and major investors will grow even larger.

If Democrats ever get back in power, one of the first things they need to do is revive antitrust. Reported by Eurasia Review 5 hours ago.

DFV Deutsche Familienversicherung AG Plans Going Public (news with additional features)

October 12, 2018, 12:28 am

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DGAP-News: DFV Deutsche Familienversicherung AG / Key word(s): IPO/Capital Increase

12.10.2018 / 09:17
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
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*NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, INTO OR WITHIN THE UNITED STATES, AUSTRALIA, CANADA, JAPAN OR SOUTH AFRICA OR ANY OTHER JURISDICTION WHERE IT IS UNLAWFUL TO DISTRIBUTE THIS ANNOUNCEMENT.*
*DFV Deutsche Familienversicherung AG **Plans Going Public*

*- DFV Deutsche Familienversicherung AG plans an initial public offering on the regulated market (Prime Standard) of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange in Q4 2018.*

*-  With a scalable, in-house programmed digital IT platform, DFV Deutsche Familienversicherung AG is an insurtech firm specialised in the sales and portfolio management of supplementary health and property insurance policies.

- The use of Amazon Echo, modern payment methods and the implementation of artificial intelligence facilitate rapid and highly-efficient processes*

*- To implement the growth strategy, DFV intends to issue new no-par value bearer from a capital increase against cash contribution to be resolved by the general shareholders' meeting.
 
- The intended gross issue proceeds of around 100 million euro are planned to be used primarily for investments in further growth, the market entry in other European countries and new products.*

*Frankfurt, 12/10/2018 -* DFV Deutsche Familienversicherung AG ("DFV" or the "Company", www.deutsche-familienversicherung.de) - a rapidly growing, digital insurtech company with registered office in Frankfurt/Main - is preparing an initial public offering on the regulated market (Prime Standard) of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange in Q4 2018.

Dr Stefan M. Knoll, founder and CEO: "Deutsche Familienversicherung is an insurtech firm and an insurance company where digital transformation and digital value creation work. The complete digitalisation of our processes, covering everything from concluding policies to claims settlement, was and is a central prerequisite for succeeding in a distributed market. This and the fact that we, according to the consumer testing institute Stiftung Warentest, have the best products is the basis for our tremendous growth."

*Company-own IT platform & highly scalable processes*

Since 2014 DFV uses its proprietary IT platform which is a highly modern event & java-based portfolio management system. This platform permits the insurtech firm today already to manage the complete operational business for a portfolio of more than 420,000 active policies with just 109 employees.

Marcus Wollny, Chief Operating Officer: "We have developed a digital insurance platform that enables us to process business transactions in real time. For this purpose, we use artificial intelligence coupled with an event-based process machine and flexible interfaces. This enables us to optimally integrate our insurance app and our customer portal. This allows our customers, for example, to make changes to contracts very easily or submit claims and then receive a response directly afterwards. New products can be launched on the market within just a few weeks and it takes only hours to implement product changes."

Dr Stefan M. Knoll: "With our IT and the digital processes based on it, we are the German answer from Frankfurt in the state of Hesse to the international insurtech development."

*Amazon Echo & DFV chat bot*

The insurtech firm facilitates product consulting for its customers via digital voice assistants. As the first insurer in Germany, DFV offers not only consulting but also the conclusion of insurance policies through its own Alexa Skills. For more product consulting, an AI-based chat bot is also available at the DFV website.

Dr Stefan M. Knoll comments on this: "Insurance policies in the future will be concluded by means of digital voice assistants to a large extent. We are aware of the increasingly digital lifestyle habits of our customers and thus we adjust our digital services accordingly."

*State-of-the-art payment methods - Paypal & AmazonPay*

Customers want to execute their contract closings in the most simple and fastest way possible. For this reason, DFV has radically simplified its closing procedure.

Dr Stefan M. Knoll: "Thanks to the Amazon login, the data input is substantially shortened, which saves valuable time. In addition, besides conventional payment methods, we also offer using AmazonPay or PayPal. This goes without saying for us. This way, we offer the shortest possible closing procedure and we are the first insurance company to offer AmazonPay and monthly payments using PayPal.

*Digital customer service - DFV app and DFV customer portal*

The entire process for the issuance of policies runs completely automatically and takes six minutes on average. Afterwards, the customer receives access to the DFV customer portal, the DFV customer app and the DFV customer wallet. Through these digital customer services, the customer can manage his/her policies and initiate applications for benefits and notifications of claims.

*Artificial intelligence & claims settlement*

Artificial intelligence identifies from submitted medical bills what their contents are and attributes the invoices to policies. It checks if the medical service is covered by the concluded policy. Thanks to artificial intelligence and digital value creation, the payment to the customer will then be made quickly in an uncomplicated and fully automated manner.

Dr Stefan M. Knoll: "Thanks to this AI-based, digital capacity, our record for settling a dentist invoice is 45 seconds."

*Great growth potential & highly scalable distribution*

DFV believes the German market has a great growth potential. In the segment of supplementary health insurance, the insurtech firm aspires to become the market leader in Germany. With the expected proceeds from the initial public offering, DFV plans to invest more in branding and traditional marketing and, in particular, to enormously increase the growth of the recent years of around 10-15% in the core business.

Dr Stefan M. Knoll, founder and CEO: "DFV is a new kind of insurer: Excellent products plus direct digital value creation facilitate the greatest possible customer benefit with unlimited scalability. DFV is a German insurtech firm which has revolutionised the market for many. The stock exchange listing is therefore a very good match for the growth potential of our digital platform."

Stephan Schinnenburg, Chief Sales Officers: "We felt that there is an enormous demand for digital services. We are the ones that can credibly satisfy this demand whilst providing high quality in terms of technology. The possibility through the going public of being able to invest more in branding and traditional marketing, besides transaction-specific advertising, will lead to a tremendous increase of the new customer business in our view."

*Initial public offering to support further growth*

In connection with the IPO, the Company expects issue proceeds from the placement of new shares in the amount of around 100 million euro. The Company plans to use these proceeds primarily for the expansion of its sales and the implementation of marketing measures. In addition, the Company wants to invest in its IT and further digitalisation. The Company also wants to broaden its product portfolio and launch new insurance products on the market. Furthermore, DFV plans to enter at least one further European market within the next 12 months.

Michael Morgenstern, Chief Financial Officer: "DFV has a very solid structure and fulfils all requirements of supervisory authorities at national and European level. The going public therefore provides a very good basis for the planned sustainable and profitable growth."

To allow for sufficient free float, it is also planned to offer secondary shares of two shareholders in addition to issuing new shares. The proceeds from the over-allotment option are to be received to the full extent by the Company, as the Greenshoe Option would be satisfied by an additional capital increase from authorised capital of the Company. For the Company and its existing shareholders, a lock-up period of 12 months applies. The major shareholders intend to hold the majority of the Company's shares on a long-term perspective.
Hauck & Aufhäuser Privatbankiers AG acts as the Sole Global Coordinator and Joint Bookrunner,  MAINFIRST BANK AG acts as Joint Bookrunner.
More details on the planned initial public offering will be announced with publication of the securities prospectus.

*The German insurtech firm - a special success story*

DFV is a success story and it has established itself in the market with more than 420,000 active policies. Based on the approach of selling only insurance policies to customers that are easy to understand and that can be concluded without complications and within the shortest possible time, the insurtech offers a new kind of digital insurance. DFV has been consistently profitable since 2015. The Company ended the year 2017 with an EBIT of 1.4 million euro. The Company's solvency II ratio in the year 2017 was at 214%. The product portfolio of the Frankfurt insurtech firm includes supplemental health insurance policies such as supplementary outpatient, inpatient, dental and long-term care insurance, and property insurance such as household contents, liability, legal defence and accident insurance policies. Sales take place primarily digitally and online respectively. The Company generates 80% of its customers via the direct online distribution channels (Google, Bing, Affiliate) and DRTV advertising (direct response television). The Company reaches 20% of new customers via the distribution channels of "Collaborations" (e.g. with statutory health insurers) and "Brokers". 

*About DFV Deutsche Familienversicherung AG*

DFV Deutsche Familienversicherung AG was founded in 2007 as an insurance start-up with the aim of offering insurance products that people really need and understand immediately ("Simple. Reasonable"). Today DFV is an insurtech firm and known for its supplemental health insurance policies that have won many awards (supplementary dental, health, nursing insurance as well as accident and property insurance). The Company sets new standards in the industry with the entirely digital product design.
 
*Press & Investor Relations contact: *

Lutz Kiesewetter
Head of Corporate Communications & Investor Relations
tel.: 0049 69 74 30 46 396
mobil: 0049 170 7130114
mail: Lutz.Kiesewetter@deutsche-familienversicherung.de
 
*Important Note*
 
"These materials are for informational purposes only and are not intended to constitute, and should not be construed as, an offer to sell or subscribe for, or the announcement of a forthcoming offer to sell or subscribe for, or a solicitation of any offer to buy or subscribe for, or the announcement of a forthcoming solicitation of any offer to buy or subscribe for, ordinary shares in the share capital of DFV Deutsche Familienversicherung AG (the "*Company*", and such shares, the "*Shares*") in the United States or in any other jurisdiction.
 
The Shares have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "*Securities Act*") and may not be offered or sold within the United States absent registration or an exemption from the registration requirements under the Securities Act. The Company does not intend to register any portion of the offering in the United States or to conduct a public offering of Shares in the United States.
 
The Company has not authorised any offer to the public of Shares in any Member State of the European Economic Area, except in the Federal Republic of Germany and Luxembourg. With respect to any Member State of the European Economic Area which has implemented the Prospectus Directive other than Germany and Luxembourg (each a "*Relevant Member State*"), no action has been undertaken or will be undertaken to make an offer to the public of Shares requiring publication of a prospectus in any Relevant Member State. As a result, the Shares may only be offered in Relevant Member States:
 
(i)         to any legal entity which is a "qualified investor" as defined in the Prospectus Directive; or
(ii)        in any other circumstances falling within Article 3(2) of the Prospectus Directive.
 
For the purpose of this paragraph, the expression "offer of securities to the public" means the communication in any form and by any means of sufficient information on the terms of the offer and the Shares to be offered so as to enable the investor to decide to exercise, purchase or subscribe for the Shares, as the same may be varied in that Member State by any measure implementing the Prospectus Directive in that Member State and the expression "*Prospectus Directive*" means Directive 2003/71/EC (as amended, including by Directive 2010/73/EU), and includes any relevant implementing measure in the Relevant Member State.
 
Any such investor will also be deemed to have represented and agreed that any Shares acquired by it in the contemplated offering of Shares have not been acquired on behalf of persons other than such investor. This announcement is not an advertisement within the meaning of the Prospectus Directive and does not constitute a prospectus.
 
In the United Kingdom, this document and any other materials in relation to the Shares is only being distributed to, and is only directed at, and any investment or investment activity to which this document relates is available only to, and will be engaged in only with, "*qualified investors*" (as defined in section 86(7) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000) and who are (i) persons having professional experience in matters relating to investments who fall within the definition of "*investment professionals*" in Article 19(5) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 ("*Financial Promotion*") Order 2005 (the "*Order*"); or (ii) high net worth entities falling within Article 49(2)(a) to (d) of the Order (all such persons together being referred to as "*relevant persons*"). This communication is directed only at relevant persons. Persons who are not relevant persons should not take any action on the basis of this document and should not act or rely on it. Any investment activity to which this communication relates will only be available to and will only be engaged with, relevant persons. No action has been taken by the Company that would permit an offer of Shares or the possession or distribution of these materials or any other offering or publicity material relating to such Shares in any jurisdiction, except for the Republic of Germany and Luxembourg, where action for that purpose is required.
 
This document may contain forward-looking statements. These statements are based on the current views, expectations and assumptions of the management of the Company and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statements. Actual results, performance or events may differ materially from those described in such statements due to, among other things, changes in the general economic and competitive environment, risks associated with capital markets, currency exchange rate fluctuations and competition from other companies, changes in international and national laws and regulations, in particular with respect to tax laws and regulations, affecting the Company and other factors. The Company does not assume any obligations to update any forward- looking statements.
 
Neither these materials nor any copy of it may be taken or transmitted, directly or indirectly, into the United States, Australia, Canada, Japan or the South Africa. These materials do not constitute or form part of any offer or invitation to sell, or any solicitation of any offer to purchase or subscribe nor shall it (or any part of it) or the fact of its distribution, form the basis of, or be relied on in connection with, any contract therefore. The offer and the distribution of these materials and other information in connection with the listing and offer in certain jurisdictions may be restricted by law."
 
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Additional features:

Picture: http://newsfeed2.eqs.com/dfv/732935.html
Subtitle: Dr. Stefan M. Knoll, Founder & CEO --------------------

12.10.2018 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a service of EQS Group AG.
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

The DGAP Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases.
Archive at www.dgap.de -------------------- Reported by EQS Group 4 hours ago.

Consultants in demand as benefits gets more complex

October 12, 2018, 1:50 am

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It wasn’t long ago that health insurance brokers had one primary focus: to sell insurance policies to clients. But the increasingly complex – and costly – nature of health insurance means that clients often want someone who can not only present different plan options but will advise on which plan might work best and how to save money. Lisa Engler is a health care actuary at M&T Insurance Agency Inc. in Buffalo. As director of analytics for the group benefits team, she uses data to help clients… Reported by bizjournals 3 hours ago.

Premiums for Obamacare's Most Popular Plan to Fall for First Time

October 12, 2018, 8:14 am

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The price of the most popular level of health insurance sold under the Affordable Care Act will drop slightly next year, the first time rates have dropped since the law was implemented, The New York Times reports. Reported by Newsmax 21 hours ago.

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Criminal daughter of corrupt mayor freed from prison early after scamming nearly $1M from town

October 12, 2018, 3:57 pm

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Ex-Brick employee and daughter of a disgraced mayor served only 10 months of a 5-year sentence for stealing nearly $1M from the town's health insurance program to help brother's failing business. Reported by NJ.com 13 hours ago.

New strategy: Democrats go all-in on health care in midterms

October 14, 2018, 8:17 am

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PHOENIX (AP) — In a windowless conference room, Republican Senate candidate Martha McSally was asking executives at a small crane manufacturing company how the GOP tax cut has helped their business when one woman said: "I want to ask you a question about health care." Marylea Evans recounted how, decades ago, her husband had been unable to get health insurance after developing cancer, forcing the couple to sell some of their Texas ranch to pay for his treatment. Now she was worried about Democratic ads saying McSally, currently a congresswoman, supported legislation removing the requirement that insurers cover people with pre-existing medical conditions. Reported by SeattlePI.com 2 days ago.

Democratic candidates focus on health care as midterms near

October 14, 2018, 9:42 pm

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PHOENIX (AP) — In a windowless conference room, Republican Senate candidate Martha McSally was asking executives at a small crane manufacturing company how the GOP tax cut has helped their business when one woman said: "I want to ask you a question about health care." Marylea Evans recounted how, decades ago, her husband had been unable to get health insurance after developing cancer, forcing the couple to sell some of their Texas ranch to pay for his treatment. Now she was worried about Democratic ads saying McSally, currently a congresswoman, supported legislation removing the requirement that insurers cover people with pre-existing medical conditions. Reported by SeattlePI.com 1 day ago.

Columbia-Inland Medical Pumper Car Earns Designation by FDA

October 15, 2018, 7:04 am

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Pumper Car mobility devices help to redevelop muscles or restore motion to joints for patients who have an aversion to physical exercise, including children with special needs, so the FDA designation means that if Pumper Cars are prescribed for medical purposes the cost may be covered by health insurance, Medicare or Medicaid.

PORTLAND, Ore. (PRWEB) October 15, 2018

The Columbia-Inland Medical Pumper Car has been designated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as non-measuring exercise device intended for medical purposes. Pumper Cars originally were designed as a fun ride-on toy for kids, similar to a rowing machine on wheels, propelled by arm and leg pumping action. Unexpectedly, they were discovered by pediatric physical therapists as effective exercise devices for kids with special needs. The FDA designation means that if Pumper Cars are prescribed for medical purposes the cost may be covered by health insurance, Medicare or Medicaid.

With use of the Pumper Car, children may be able to improve their equilibrium and strength of their upper and lower torso. As such, this ride-on exercise device could be especially useful for children with special needs, such as Down syndrome, autism, spina bifida, cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, brain injury, pain disorders, generalized weaknesses and child obesity. The Indications for Use (IFU) of the Pumper Car, temporary registration number 10058329, is a four wheeled, low-center of gravity, non-measuring exercise device intended for medical purposes. It helps to redevelop muscles or restore motion to joints for patients who have an aversion to physical exercise.

Previously, a University of Michigan institutional review board study found that the Pumper Car has significant physical therapeutic value for children with Down syndrome. Researchers Janet L. Hauck, PhD and Dale A. Ulrich, PhD published their findings online on June 26, 2015 in Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport. They noted that the Pumper Car, “…provides a practical method of promoting health‐enhancing behaviors in young children with DS [Down syndrome] and should be considered for clinical application by service providers.” For these children in the study, the mean time spent in moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) increased from 7.8 minutes with the baseline equipment to 22.0 minutes using the Power Pumpers—an increase of 182%. “The increase seen in MVPA from baseline to the [Pumper Car] sessions is striking,” according to the researchers.

Columbia‐Inland Corp. designs and manufactures high‐quality mobility products for children of all abilities to promote exercise for improved health and physical therapy. Pumper Cars are sold directly from the company at http://www.pumpercar.com. Reported by PRWeb 23 hours ago.

Enrollment Period Opens To Buy Health Insurance Through Federal Marketplace

October 15, 2018, 1:05 pm

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Floridians who buy their health insurance from the federal marketplace will notice increases in their premiums will be relatively low this year compared to previous years. Reported by cbs4.com 17 hours ago.

Held Hostage by Health Insurance

October 15, 2018, 5:02 pm

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Every career choice I made was determined by my epilepsy. If the Affordable Care Act is killed, I’ll be back in the same trap. Reported by NYTimes.com 13 hours ago.

FinCanna to Host Conference Call at 1:15 pm PST, Thursday, Oct 18

October 16, 2018, 12:11 am

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*Conference Call to Provide Update on FinCanna's Investee Companies*VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Oct. 16, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --  FinCanna Capital Corp. (“*FinCanna*”) (CSE: CALI) (OTCQB: FNNZF), a royalty company for the U.S. licensed medical cannabis industry, announces that it will hold a conference call and online presentation at 1:15 PM PST, Thursday, October 18, 2018.

The call will be led by the FinCanna executive team, and the opening statements will be followed by a presentation from CEO and Director, Andriyko Herchak of FinCanna Capital Corp who will discuss FinCanna’s investee companies and provide a general FinCanna update.  Mike Coner, CEO of ezGreen Compliance, a FinCanna investee company, will also be on the call to provide an update on his company’s latest developments.  A question and answer session will follow the presentations.

“This past Thursday, we hosted a well-attended investor event in Vancouver which featured presentations from our investee companies,” said Andriyko Herchak, President and CEO of FinCanna Capital. “We want to provide interested parties and our shareholders not able to attend the event the opportunity to receive an update on FinCanna and its investee companies’ recent activities and future plans.”

*Details of the conference call:*

Date: Thursday, October 18, 2018

Time: 1:15 PM PST / 4:15 PM EST

Please register for the webcast here.

It is also available (voice only) by calling: +1 (866) 521-4909 (Toll-Free) / +1 (647) 427-2311.

There will also be a playback of the conference call, available in MP3 format by contacting investor relations at CALI@kincommunications.com.

*About ezGreen Compliance*

ezGreen Compliance, located in Fort Lauderdale FL, provides through its ezGreen software technology, a proven state-of-the-art enterprise compliance and point-of-sale software solution for licensed medical cannabis dispensaries and cultivators. Navigating through state-by-state license, tax and compliance issues has been challenging for the legal cannabis industry. ezGreen Compliance helps its customers comply with both the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (“HIPAA”) and State Laws by ensuring patients’ confidential data is being handled properly, helping to protect from possible security breaches and financial and criminal liability resulting from potential violations. For more information around a HIPAA compliance strategy for the Cannabis industry, please visit www.ezgreencompliance.com.

*About Refined Resin Technologies Inc.*

Refined Resin Technologies, based in Oakland, California, is a cannabinoid research and refinement company focussed on the medical cannabis industry to provide B2B and B2C products and services to licensed dispensaries, infused product manufacturers and numerous others in the medical cannabis supply chain. 

*About FinCanna Capital Corp.*

FinCanna provides financing to top-tier companies in the licensed medical cannabis industry in exchange for a royalty on revenues.  FinCanna, led by a team of finance and industry experts, is building its diversified portfolio of royalty investments in scalable, best-in-class projects and companies in U.S. legal states, with a focus on California.  For additional information visit www.fincannacapital.com and FinCanna’s profile at www.sedar.com.

*FinCanna Capital Corp.* 
Andriyko Herchak, CEO & Director

*Investor Relations:*
Arlen Hansen
Kin Communications
1-866-684-6730
CALI@kincommunications.com

*Forward-Looking Information *

Information set forth in this release involves forward-looking statements under applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements are statements that relate to future, not past, events. In this context, forward-looking statements often address expected future business and financial performance, and often contain words such as "anticipate", "believe", "plan", "estimate", "expect", and "intend", statements that an action or event "may", "might", "could", "should", or "will" be taken or occur, or other similar expressions. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein including, without limitation, statements about how the developing U.S. legal regime will impact the cannabis industry, and statements regarding future revenues of FinCanna’s investee companies and FinCanna’s expectation to have a royalty income stream by 2019 and positive cash flows thereafter, by their nature, are forward-looking statements which involve risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements, or other future events, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, among others, the risks identified in the Company’s CSE listing statement and other reports and filings on the SEDAR website. Forward-looking statements are made based on management's beliefs, estimates and opinions on the date that statements are made, and the respective companies undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if these beliefs, estimates and opinions or other circumstances should change, except as required by applicable securities laws. Shareholders are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements. The Company assumes no responsibility to update or revise forward-looking information to reflect new events or circumstances unless required by applicable law.

  Reported by GlobeNewswire 6 hours ago.

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Crédit Agricole Assurances signs an agreement with Seguradoras Unidas to acquire a 25% stake in GNB Seguros

October 16, 2018, 12:41 am

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Crédit Agricole Assurances signed an agreement with Seguradoras Unidas to acquire a 25% stake in GNB Seguros. Post closing, Crédit Agricole Assurances would therefore increase its stake from 50% to 75% of GNB Seguros, the remaining 25% stake being held by the Portuguese banking Group Novo Banco. The transaction is subject to approval by Portuguese authorities. This operation confirms Crédit Agricole Assurances's willingness to go on developing its non-life business in Portugal and to reinforce its partnership with Novo Banco. Following the announcement in July 2018 of a partnership in life insurance with the Italian bank Credito Valtellinese, this transaction also confirms Credit Agricole Assurance's strategy to develop partnerships with external banking groups to strengthen its international presence.

From Seguradoras Unidas's perspective, "the sale of the 25% share in GNB Seguros will allow the Company to further focus on its key distribution channel - the Agents and Brokers Networks."

Founded in 1996, GNB Seguros is the 13^th non-life insurance player in Portugal with more than €77m gross written premiums at the end of 2017. GNB Seguros' main product lines are home, auto and health insurance. It also provides unemployment (mainly credit linked), repatriation and accident policies. Its products are mainly distributed in Novo Banco's large retail network and, more recently through Credibom, Credit Agricole's portuguese entity for consumer finance.

Crédit Agricole Corporate & Investment Bank acted as the sole financial advisor to Crédit Agricole Assurances on this transaction.

*Attachment*

· CAA signs an agreement with Seguradoras Unidas.pdf Reported by GlobeNewswire 5 hours ago.

Colorado Insurance Agent Eric Smith Discusses Alternative Health Plans

October 16, 2018, 1:31 am

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Boulder insurance agent Eric Smith, of CO Health Brokers, educates consumers about alternative health plans, which could cut premiums in half.

BOULDER, Colo. (PRWEB) October 16, 2018

The enactment of the Affordable Care Act (ACA/Obamacare) requires health insurance companies cover people with pre-existing conditions and requires that everyone purchase insurance or be faced with a tax penalty. “These requirements on the insurance companies have lead to rising premiums,” said insurance agent Eric Smith, of CO Health Brokers. “High premiums have priced some families out of the traditional health insurance market.”

“Fortunately, an alternative healthcare market has emerged to fill the need. Alternative plans work as traditional health insurance, but they do not have to follow all of the ACA guidelines,” noted Smith.

Specifically, they do not have to cover individuals with pre-existing conditions and they can be purchased any time of the year instead of only during open enrollment (November 1 through January 15, effective dates as early as January 1). This allows the premiums for these plans to be much lower than traditional health insurance.

“Families who qualify could potentially cut their premiums in half using an alternative plan,” stated Smith. “Although, these families might have to pay the penalty this year, starting in October 2018 there would be no penalty.”

Currently, the penalty for not having an ACA-approved health insurance plan is $695 per adult or 2.5 percent of household income, whichever is greater. Fortunately, the law has changed and the penalty can be avoided starting October 2018, and it is completely eliminated for 2019.

When looking for health insurance, Smith advises understanding the alternatives to buying individual health insurance, know what you need and can afford, and visit CO Health Brokers.

About Eric Smith, CO Health Brokers
For the last 15 years, Eric Smith has specialized exclusively in health insurance for individuals, families, and businesses. Eric has received numerous awards as a top producer and was hired by Colorado to help train other brokers on http://www.connectforhealthco.com. For more information, please call (303) 541-9533, or visit http://www.cohealthbrokers.com.

About the NALA™
The NALA offers small and medium-sized businesses effective ways to reach customers through new media. As a single-agency source, the NALA helps businesses flourish in their local community. The NALA’s mission is to promote a business’ relevant and newsworthy events and achievements, both online and through traditional media. The information and content in this article are not in conjunction with the views of the NALA. For media inquiries, please call 805.650.6121, ext. 361. Reported by PRWeb 4 hours ago.

RegQuest Announces New Workers’ Compensation Utilization Management Module

October 16, 2018, 5:03 am

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RegQuest™, the nation’s premier online regulatory compliance resource focused on health insurance functions including medical management and appeals, today announced the launch of its fourth and newest module: Workers’ Compensation Utilization Management, which reviews state workers’ compensation utilization management laws and regulations.

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (PRWEB) October 16, 2018

RegQuest™, the nation’s premier online regulatory compliance resource focused on health insurance functions including medical management and appeals, today announced the launch of its fourth and newest module: Workers’ Compensation Utilization Management, which reviews state workers’ compensation utilization management laws and regulations.

The module offers subscribers regularly updated regulatory information broken down by state, and states are classified into four categories: Monopolistic, Not Regulated, Regulated – No License, and Regulated – License or State Contract Required.

The information focuses on several key components related to each states’ unique statutes and regulations, including: scope and applicability, regulatory contact information, licensure/certification requirements, program requirements, reviewer qualifications, and reviews and appeals. In addition to providing substantive information, each cited statute and regulation is hyperlinked for easy access to the applicable code and/or law.

As with other RegQuest modules, all research is updated on a regular basis and vetted by a team of legal and regulatory experts, and subscribers are notified via email when updates are made.

“In this highly complex industry, it is important to ensure compliance with state regulations and laws,” said Jessica Grillo, JD, Executive Director, RegQuest. Ms. Grillo added, “RegQuest’s Workers’ Compensation Utilization Management module is an essential tool in remaining apprised of developments in this ever-changing landscape.”

RegQuest not only provides key regulatory and industry trends, but also works with key stakeholders, including The Kennedy Forum and Schooner Strategies, LLC, to develop new model regulations and policies that promote value, transparency and accountability in health care.

To learn more about the new Workers’ Compensation Utilization Management module, visit: https://www.regquest.com/modules/wc/.

About RegQuest
RegQuest, an online, subscription-based tracking and reporting service, details many of the business, legal and regulatory forces directly impacting health insurance companies, medical management organizations, third party administrators and other key players in the health insurance industry. RegQuest is an essential current awareness tool for employers and health plans, making compliance easier and more efficient by offering accurate information in a user-friendly format via its 50 state regulatory surveys, quick reference summary tables, and subscriber alerts. RegQuest is well on its way to complete the “DNA sequencing” of all medical management regulations. For more information or to subscribe, please visit http://www.RegQuest.com. Reported by PRWeb 47 minutes ago.

Attis Industries Strengthens its Executive Management Team

October 16, 2018, 5:34 am

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*Appoints President and Chief Operating Officer*

*MILTON, GA, Oct. 16, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NEWMEDIAWIRE -- *Attis Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATIS) (the “Company” or “Attis”), a diversified company focused on innovation and technology throughout key components of the new economy, which include renewable fuels, bio-based plastics, healthcare and communications infrastructure, today announced the appointments of J. Gregory Pilewicz as President of the Company and Mark Schifani as Chief Operation Officer of the Company by a unanimous vote of the Board of Directors, effective immediately.  Additionally, Mr. Pilewicz, Mr. Schifani and Mr. Chris Diaz, the Company’s Chief Financial Officer, were granted three (3) year employment agreements. 

Mr. Pilewicz, 55, has over 16 years of senior management experience.  Previously he served as President of Esmark, Inc. and was a member of their Board of Directors from 2009 to 2017.  Additionally, he held the position of Chief Executive Officer of Esmark Industrial Group, the Company’s machining and fabrication business.   During his tenure at Esmark, Mr. Pilewicz developed a great deal of experience across a number of industries, including energy, healthcare, industrial manufacturing, technology, and financial services.   He additionally worked for Esmark, Inc. from 2006-2008 as Senior Vice President.  During that period at Esmark, he worked closely with the CEO to lead the highly successful takeover of Wheeling Pittsburgh Steel Corp. while effectively working with the multiple lines of business, providing organizational leadership and restructuring, financial and operational management, while focusing on shareholder value.   From 2003 through 2006, Mr. Pilewicz worked for UnitedHealth Group and its financial services company named Exante Financial Services (currently known as Optum Bank).  During his time at UHC, he worked on the convergence of healthcare and financial services, working extensively at reducing costs in health insurance.  Mr. Pilewicz also worked for PNC Bank for 17 years holding positions in Commercial Lending and Treasury Management during that period.   During his later years while at the Bank, he was part of a new organization capitalized by both PNC and Perot Systems focused on the early stages of the electronic invoicing and payment process where most of that same technology is being used today.  Mr. Pilewicz holds a BS in Finance from the Pennsylvania State University.   He and his wife Maura currently reside in Sewickley, PA and have three children (Jake, Adam and Emily).  

Jeff Cosman, the Company’s Chief Executive Officer said, “Greg Pilewicz has a proven track record in company transformation and delivering shareholder value.  He is an energetic and strong leader with deep knowledge of industrial businesses, healthcare, finance and technology, and an intense focus on execution, organization and talent development. The board looks forward to working with Greg and his team to help the Company develop and grow while experiencing long-term success.”

MarkSchifani, 51, is an accomplished leader with significant business acumen in finance, sales, market development and operations, as well as a team-oriented professional with more than 20 years of experience creating business sustainability across multiple disciplines.  Mr. Schifani is an energetic and service-oriented leader who consistently demonstrates desire to lead by example.  Mr. Schifani, in the past, has developed the business processes and people needed to build, grow and engage teams to perform and exceed expected results.  Mr. Schifani has held numerous positions in the waste industry, including Region Controller, Assistant Corporate Controller and positions in Market Development.  Mr. Schifani spent most of his career with BFI and Republic Services, where he was awarded the Finance Leader of the Year (2013). As Region Controller, Mr. Schifani was responsible for $750 million in revenue, 50 locations across 6 states and over 2,000 employees. Mr. Schifani earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting from the University of Memphis.  He and his wife Tina live in Roswell, GA and have three children (Joe, John and Hannah).

“I’m excited to announce Mark’s appointment as our COO.  His ability to integrate new acquisitions should help move the Company to the level of service and rigor that our customers and shareholders expect,” stated Mr. Cosman.  Mr. Cosman continued, “Mark was a large part of growing and bringing professional standards in his past companies.  I look forward to working with Mark as we continue our efforts to build Attis Industries into a premier company.” 

Mr. Chris Diaz, 52, has been the Company’s Chief Financial Officer since April 2017 and has played an instrumental role in the Company divesting its solid waste business earlier this year and transitioning its focus into the healthcare, medical waste, and environmental technology sectors. Mr. Diaz will continue to lead all aspects of financial reporting and accounting for the Company.  The Board re-affirmed its commitment to Mr. Diaz by awarding him a three-year employment agreement.

For more information, see the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 15, 2018.

*Attis Industries, Inc. *
Attis Industries Inc. (NASDAQ: ATIS) is a holding company focused on developing and building businesses that play important roles in the new economy, which include renewable fuels, bio-based plastics, healthcare and communications infrastructure.We strive to encourage our employees to be entrepreneurs focused on innovation and technology.  We will remain dynamic, persistent and motivated to our mission of winning.  The growth of our company will rely on our integrity and our vision for the future. Attis Industries will continue to fulfill essential needs in healthcare, energy independence and digital communications.  Today, each of these sectors provide high growth opportunities that collectively account for more than a third of our nations GDP.    For more information, visit: www.attisind.com

*Forward-Looking Statements*
Any statements contained in this press release that do not describe historical facts may constitute forward-looking statements as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. You can identify forward-looking statements by words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “should,” “would” or similar words. You should consider these statements carefully because they discuss our plans, targets, strategies, prospects and expectations concerning our business, operating results, financial condition and other similar matters. These statements are subject to certain risks, uncertainties, and assumptions, including, but not limited to, risks and uncertainties relating to the Company's ability to develop, market and sell products based on its technology; the expected benefits and efficacy of the Company's products and technology; the availability of substantial additional funding for the Company to continue its operations and to conduct research and development, clinical studies and future product commercialization; and, the Company's business, research, product development, regulatory approval, marketing and distribution plans and strategies; the ability of the Company to continue to meet the listing requirements of NASDAQ; the ability of the Company to execute on a business plan that permits the technologies and innovations businesses to provide sufficient growth, revenue, liquidity and cash flows for sustaining the Company’s go-forward business, and the risks identified and discussed under the caption “Risk Factors” in the Attis Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on April 16, 2018 and the other documents Attis files with the SEC from time to time. There will be events in the future, however, that Attis is not able to predict accurately or control. Attis’s actual results may differ materially from the expectations that Attis describes in its forward-looking statements. Factors or events that could cause Attis’s actual results to materially differ may emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for Attis to accurately predict all of them. Any forward-looking statement made by Attis in this press release speaks only as of the date on which Attis makes it. Attis undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

CONTACT: Media and Investors Contact: 
Hayden IR
(917) 658-7878
hart@haydenir.com Reported by GlobeNewswire 16 minutes ago.

'Now we can sprint': A startup founded by 2 brothers just raised $300 million to reinvent how we care for elderly Americans

October 16, 2018, 9:15 am

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· Devoted Health, a startup that wants to reinvent how we care for aging Americans, just raised $300 million ahead of its launch of health plans for 2019 in parts of Florida. 
· Devoted's founders have tons of healthcare experience, but the company will have to compete for customers with some of the biggest health insurers in the US.
· The funding will be used to fuel the plans through 2019, as well as help Devoted build up its technology. "Now we can sprint," DJ Patil, Devoted's head of technology told Business Insider.  

A startup that wants to reinvent the way we take care of seniors in America just raised hundreds of millions as it gears up to launch its new plans in 2019. 

Devoted Health on Tuesday said that it had raised $300 million in a series B round led by Andreessen Horowitz, bringing its total funding to $369 million in funding. The company is based in Waltham, Massachusetts, but it'll initially offer Medicare Advantage plans in parts of Florida, starting next year.

Devoted is the latest firm to enter Medicare Advantage, the private side of the government-funded Medicare program for seniors. It'll have to compete for customers immediately with big, entrenched rivals like Humana, UnitedHealth Group and soon-to-be-merged CVS Health and Aetna. UnitedHealth on Tuesday said that it covers 4.9 million Medicare Advantage members, 12 percent more than a year earlier. About 19 million people were covered by Medicare Advantage last year.Oscar Health, known for its individual plans on the Affordable Care Act insurance exchanges, said in August that it plans to move into the Medicare Advantage market after raising $375 million from Alphabet. Clover Health, which was founded in 2014, has been offering insurance plans in four states, with plans to expand into three more in 2019

Devoted was founded in 2017 by brothers Ed and Todd Park. Prior to Devoted, Todd co-founded health IT company Athenahealth and served as chief technology officer of the US during the Obama administration. Ed, who serves as Devoted’s CEO, was formerly chief technology officer and later chief operating officer at Athenahealth.

The company's plans might look a bit different from traditional insurance in that Devoted plans to do more than pay for visits to doctors and hospitals. It's also hiring nurses and other employees aimed at keeping seniors healthier and out of the hospital.

Because health insurers are in charge of paying for healthcare, the companies tend to know what's going on with a particular patient: have they been in for a check-up, or have they had a recent trip to the emergency room? Knowing that, the insurer — in this case Devoted — can clue in the other parts of the system so that the primary care doctor knows when his or her patient has been in the hospital and can follow up with them, for example. 

To do that however, the Devoted team had to build out its own technology to process claims as well as build out its networks of doctors that it can work with. The latest funding round is being used to build out the technology to help them do that. 

"Now we can sprint," DJ Patil, Devoted's head of technology told Business Insider. 

*A growing Medicare Advantage market*

Medicare Advantage, the private version of the government health insurance program for the elderly and some disabled people, has been steadily growing. As of 2017, 33% of people on Medicare were in one of these plans. Individuals can typically choose to enroll in either Traditional Medicare or Medicare Advantage plans.

Medicare Advantage works like private insurance does for those under 65. It's designed to allow people to shop around and choose among different plans, which may restrict which doctors and hospitals individuals can use. The US government in turn pays the insurers a certain amount for each person who is covered, creating an incentive for the insurer to try to keep that person healthy and out of the hospital. If the insurer does a good job of caring for its customer at a low cost, it can keep the extra funds as profits.

"Medicare Advantage is today the simplest way to align financial incentives across the various parties in the system," Venrock partner Bryan Roberts, who's an investor and board member at Devoted told Business Insider. "Therefore, you can drive better efficiency in the healthcare system." 

Vijay Pande, a partner at Andreessen Horowitz, said a key reason his firm led Devoted's fundraising was because of the implications plans like Devoted's could have beyond Florida, and even beyond just Americans 65 and older. 

"The future could look like Medicare Advantage for all," Pande said. 

*See also: *

· A VC spoke to 30 founders and investors about the $350 billion elder-care market and found 3 reasons why starting a company in the market is a challenge
· Oscar Health just raised $375 million from Alphabet
· US investors are pouring millions into a healthcare company that doesn't take insurance and lists its prices like a 'McDonald's menu'
· One Medical, a fast-growing startup that just raised $350 million to reinvent how you visit your doctor, is betting it can 'blow this thing out nationally'

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