NEW YORK (AP) — The outcome of the midterm elections was good for the stock market in general, mostly because it didn't produce any big surprises, but it was especially good for the health care industry and several other companies. Health insurers rose sharply Wednesday as investors anticipated that any prospects of repealing the Affordable Care Act, which expanded health insurance to millions of Americans, diminished greatly now that Democrats control the House of Representatives.
Reported by SeattlePI.com 15 hours ago.
Election Impact: Health care stocks jump following midterms
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Good Days Joins National Patient Groups to Urge Government Protections for Non-Profit Charitable Assistance
New OIG Rule Could Safeguard Financial Assistance for Patients in Need
PLANO, Texas (PRWEB) November 07, 2018
The national non-profit patient assistance charity Good Days joined 10 other leading national patient advocacy groups to submit a joint letter to the Office of the Inspector General in response to its Request for Information regarding the Medicare and State Health Care Programs: Fraud and Abuse; Request for Information Regarding the Anti-Kickback Statute and Beneficiary Inducements CMP. The patient organizations urged the OIG to add a new safe harbor under the anti-kickback statute for non-profit charitable assistance programs.
Due to the advent of innovative therapies, patients with conditions that were once considered disabling or life-threatening can now live as productive and contributing citizens if their access to therapy and complex care can be maintained. Even with insurance, the cost of these treatments can cause serious financial hardship. These patients occasionally turn to charitable assistance so that they can afford life-saving and life-extending treatments without the threat of bankruptcy looming overhead.
“Charitable patient assistance provides much needed financial security for Americans who realize they are severely underinsured because of an unexpected diagnosis,” said Clorinda Walley, president of Good Days. “Without the safety net of charitable assistance, millions of individual Americans and their families across the country would face serious financial hardship or bankruptcy.”
Whether you have private or public health insurance, serious illness can wipe out your life savings. A national survey released in October by Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health, the Commonwealth Fund and the New York Times found that 36 percent of seriously ill patients with insurance said they had used up all or most of their savings to pay for their care. Twenty-one percent of seriously ill patients with insurance said they had been unable to pay for everyday necessities.
New challenges to insured individuals with serious illness make safeguarding charitable assistance especially urgent. Health plans now deny coverage to patients by rejecting the premium and cost-sharing assistance they receive from non-profit third parties. Many patients are left to choose between treatments that are vital to their health and the cost of everyday living. The ability of private insurance plans to deny charitable assistance also artificially steers patients who should not otherwise be eligible into tax-payer funded healthcare programs.
The patient groups asked the OIG to establish an anti-kickback safe harbor ensuring relief to patients facing serious illness. Additionally, the patient groups suggested:· Financial assistance should be offered on a first-come, first-serve basis with payments or subsidies provided out of documented financial need in a consistent manner.
· Protections against assessing physician, provider, supplier, or course of treatment when determining eligibility or support should be maintained.
· Similar protections related to interactions with entities referring patients should be maintained.
Despite the importance of these programs, charitable assistance is systematically out-paced by the overall demand. For this reason, best practices must be maintained or even enhanced to further encourage giving from both individual and corporate donors. Patient-centered communication and coordination among various stakeholders (provided that anti-steering considerations remain preeminent) will ensure these programs maximize their service to the community with limited resources.
In addition to Good Days, signers to the letter included The aHUS Foundation, American Liver Foundation, Chronic Disease Coalition, Fabry Support & Information Group, GBS|CIDP Foundation International, Patient Services Incorporated, Pulmonary Hypertension Association, Scleroderma Foundation, United for Charitable Assistance and the US Hereditary Angioedema Association.
Good Days is a national, independent 501(c)(3) non-profit charitable organization that makes life-saving and life-extending treatments affordable. Since 2003, Good Days has provided more than 800,000 grants and helped more than 500,000 people with access to healthcare resources. Reported by PRWeb 13 hours ago.
PLANO, Texas (PRWEB) November 07, 2018
The national non-profit patient assistance charity Good Days joined 10 other leading national patient advocacy groups to submit a joint letter to the Office of the Inspector General in response to its Request for Information regarding the Medicare and State Health Care Programs: Fraud and Abuse; Request for Information Regarding the Anti-Kickback Statute and Beneficiary Inducements CMP. The patient organizations urged the OIG to add a new safe harbor under the anti-kickback statute for non-profit charitable assistance programs.
Due to the advent of innovative therapies, patients with conditions that were once considered disabling or life-threatening can now live as productive and contributing citizens if their access to therapy and complex care can be maintained. Even with insurance, the cost of these treatments can cause serious financial hardship. These patients occasionally turn to charitable assistance so that they can afford life-saving and life-extending treatments without the threat of bankruptcy looming overhead.
“Charitable patient assistance provides much needed financial security for Americans who realize they are severely underinsured because of an unexpected diagnosis,” said Clorinda Walley, president of Good Days. “Without the safety net of charitable assistance, millions of individual Americans and their families across the country would face serious financial hardship or bankruptcy.”
Whether you have private or public health insurance, serious illness can wipe out your life savings. A national survey released in October by Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health, the Commonwealth Fund and the New York Times found that 36 percent of seriously ill patients with insurance said they had used up all or most of their savings to pay for their care. Twenty-one percent of seriously ill patients with insurance said they had been unable to pay for everyday necessities.
New challenges to insured individuals with serious illness make safeguarding charitable assistance especially urgent. Health plans now deny coverage to patients by rejecting the premium and cost-sharing assistance they receive from non-profit third parties. Many patients are left to choose between treatments that are vital to their health and the cost of everyday living. The ability of private insurance plans to deny charitable assistance also artificially steers patients who should not otherwise be eligible into tax-payer funded healthcare programs.
The patient groups asked the OIG to establish an anti-kickback safe harbor ensuring relief to patients facing serious illness. Additionally, the patient groups suggested:· Financial assistance should be offered on a first-come, first-serve basis with payments or subsidies provided out of documented financial need in a consistent manner.
· Protections against assessing physician, provider, supplier, or course of treatment when determining eligibility or support should be maintained.
· Similar protections related to interactions with entities referring patients should be maintained.
Despite the importance of these programs, charitable assistance is systematically out-paced by the overall demand. For this reason, best practices must be maintained or even enhanced to further encourage giving from both individual and corporate donors. Patient-centered communication and coordination among various stakeholders (provided that anti-steering considerations remain preeminent) will ensure these programs maximize their service to the community with limited resources.
In addition to Good Days, signers to the letter included The aHUS Foundation, American Liver Foundation, Chronic Disease Coalition, Fabry Support & Information Group, GBS|CIDP Foundation International, Patient Services Incorporated, Pulmonary Hypertension Association, Scleroderma Foundation, United for Charitable Assistance and the US Hereditary Angioedema Association.
Good Days is a national, independent 501(c)(3) non-profit charitable organization that makes life-saving and life-extending treatments affordable. Since 2003, Good Days has provided more than 800,000 grants and helped more than 500,000 people with access to healthcare resources. Reported by PRWeb 13 hours ago.
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Trump adminstration announces new conscience exemptions for contraceptive mandate
Washington D.C., Nov 7, 2018 / 04:30 pm (CNA).- The Departments of Health and Human Services, Treasury, and Labor released two updated rules concerning conscience protections for organizations and individuals in relation to the HHS contraception mandate.
Under the new rules, organizations and individuals objecting to the controversial mandate’s provisions on either religious or moral grounds will be exempt.
According to a press release from HHS, the new rules “provide an exemption from the contraceptive coverage mandate to entities and individuals that object to services covered by the mandate on the basis of sincerely held religious beliefs.”
“Thus,” the release said, “entities that have sincerely held religious beliefs against providing contraceptive services (or services which they consider to be abortifacients) would be exempt from the mandate and no longer be required to provide such coverage.”
The new rules also cover nonprofit organizations, small businesses, and individuals that have “non-religious moral convictions” opposed to the services covered by the mandate.
Mark Rienzi, president of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, offered praise for the new rules, saying they signaled the end of a “long, unnecessary culture war.”
Under the Affordable Care Act, employer-provided health insurance plans are required to cover certain “preventative services.” These were defined by guidance issued under the Obama Administration as including all contraception methods approved by the Food and Drug Administration, including abortifacient birth control pills, IUDs, and sterilization procedures.
This provision was not included in the original bill, but was announced in January 2012 by then-HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.
Initially, there were no exemptions for those opposed to the distribution of contraceptives due to their deeply-held religious beliefs. Eventually, an exemption was made, but it was so narrow in scope it excluded religious orders such as the Little Sisters of the Poor.
The Little Sisters of the Poor, along with several other organizations, including EWTN, filed suit against HHS over the mandate.
Rienzi, whose organization represented the Little Sisters of the Poor, said that the change in administration policy meant attention could now turn to ongoing cases in the states.
“Today, at long last, the federal government finalized the rule providing a religious exemption from the HHS Mandate to the Little Sisters and other religious non-profits.”
“All that is left is for state governments to admit that there are many ways to deliver these services without nuns, and the Little Sisters can return to serving the elderly poor in peace.”
The Little Sisters of the Poor are currently being sued by the state attorney general’s office in Pennsylvania and California.
In May of 2017, Trump issued an executive order asking that conscience-based objections to the HHS Contraceptive Mandate be addressed.
In October 2017, the Trump administration announced additional exemptions to protect those with religious objections to the distribution of contraception. These have been the subject of ongoing legal challenges.
Judge Wendy Beetlestone of the Federal District Court in Philadelphia issued a preliminary injunction against the Trump administration's initial rules Dec. 15, 2017, saying Pennsylvania could suffer “serious and irreparable harm” from the rules because a lack of cost-effective contraception would mean “individual choices which will result in an increase in unintended pregnancies” burdening the state.
Shortly after Beetlestone's ruling, Judge Haywood Gilliam Jr. of the Federal District Court in Oakland also blocked the Trump administration's rules, saying they would “transform contraceptive coverage from a legal entitlement to an essentially gratuitous benefit wholly subject to their employer’s discretion.”
Both of these cases were appealed by the administration and remain pending.
In April, 2018, District Court Judge David Russell issued a permanent injunction and declaratory relief against the mandate for members of the Catholic Benefits Association.
Russell also ruled that the mandate violates the Religious Freedom Restoration Act by attempting to force employers to provide contraception and sterilization in violation of their sincerely held religious beliefs.
The updated exemptions, released Wednesday, will not include publicly-traded businesses. Employers that still wish to cover contraceptives as part of their insurance plan remain free to do so.
In addition to the exemption, employers and other affected bodies can still choose to arrange for a third-party accommodation, which would provide contraceptive coverage to its employees and their dependents either through independent action by their insurer or insurance administrator.
A press release for HHS also confirmed that government programs providing contraception either for free or at a lower cost to low-income women will not be impacted by these new rules.
In addition to these two rules, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued a proposed rule concerning eligibility for premium subsidies through the Affordable Care Act Exchange.
This rule, titled “Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA): Exchange Program Integrity,” looks to ensure that patients are eligible for these subsidies. It also proposes that issuers bill patients abortion services separately from other medical services. Reported by CNA 10 hours ago.
Under the new rules, organizations and individuals objecting to the controversial mandate’s provisions on either religious or moral grounds will be exempt.
According to a press release from HHS, the new rules “provide an exemption from the contraceptive coverage mandate to entities and individuals that object to services covered by the mandate on the basis of sincerely held religious beliefs.”
“Thus,” the release said, “entities that have sincerely held religious beliefs against providing contraceptive services (or services which they consider to be abortifacients) would be exempt from the mandate and no longer be required to provide such coverage.”
The new rules also cover nonprofit organizations, small businesses, and individuals that have “non-religious moral convictions” opposed to the services covered by the mandate.
Mark Rienzi, president of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, offered praise for the new rules, saying they signaled the end of a “long, unnecessary culture war.”
Under the Affordable Care Act, employer-provided health insurance plans are required to cover certain “preventative services.” These were defined by guidance issued under the Obama Administration as including all contraception methods approved by the Food and Drug Administration, including abortifacient birth control pills, IUDs, and sterilization procedures.
This provision was not included in the original bill, but was announced in January 2012 by then-HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.
Initially, there were no exemptions for those opposed to the distribution of contraceptives due to their deeply-held religious beliefs. Eventually, an exemption was made, but it was so narrow in scope it excluded religious orders such as the Little Sisters of the Poor.
The Little Sisters of the Poor, along with several other organizations, including EWTN, filed suit against HHS over the mandate.
Rienzi, whose organization represented the Little Sisters of the Poor, said that the change in administration policy meant attention could now turn to ongoing cases in the states.
“Today, at long last, the federal government finalized the rule providing a religious exemption from the HHS Mandate to the Little Sisters and other religious non-profits.”
“All that is left is for state governments to admit that there are many ways to deliver these services without nuns, and the Little Sisters can return to serving the elderly poor in peace.”
The Little Sisters of the Poor are currently being sued by the state attorney general’s office in Pennsylvania and California.
In May of 2017, Trump issued an executive order asking that conscience-based objections to the HHS Contraceptive Mandate be addressed.
In October 2017, the Trump administration announced additional exemptions to protect those with religious objections to the distribution of contraception. These have been the subject of ongoing legal challenges.
Judge Wendy Beetlestone of the Federal District Court in Philadelphia issued a preliminary injunction against the Trump administration's initial rules Dec. 15, 2017, saying Pennsylvania could suffer “serious and irreparable harm” from the rules because a lack of cost-effective contraception would mean “individual choices which will result in an increase in unintended pregnancies” burdening the state.
Shortly after Beetlestone's ruling, Judge Haywood Gilliam Jr. of the Federal District Court in Oakland also blocked the Trump administration's rules, saying they would “transform contraceptive coverage from a legal entitlement to an essentially gratuitous benefit wholly subject to their employer’s discretion.”
Both of these cases were appealed by the administration and remain pending.
In April, 2018, District Court Judge David Russell issued a permanent injunction and declaratory relief against the mandate for members of the Catholic Benefits Association.
Russell also ruled that the mandate violates the Religious Freedom Restoration Act by attempting to force employers to provide contraception and sterilization in violation of their sincerely held religious beliefs.
The updated exemptions, released Wednesday, will not include publicly-traded businesses. Employers that still wish to cover contraceptives as part of their insurance plan remain free to do so.
In addition to the exemption, employers and other affected bodies can still choose to arrange for a third-party accommodation, which would provide contraceptive coverage to its employees and their dependents either through independent action by their insurer or insurance administrator.
A press release for HHS also confirmed that government programs providing contraception either for free or at a lower cost to low-income women will not be impacted by these new rules.
In addition to these two rules, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued a proposed rule concerning eligibility for premium subsidies through the Affordable Care Act Exchange.
This rule, titled “Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA): Exchange Program Integrity,” looks to ensure that patients are eligible for these subsidies. It also proposes that issuers bill patients abortion services separately from other medical services. Reported by CNA 10 hours ago.
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New Rules Give Employers Right to Deny Contraception Coverage
The Trump administration issued new rules Wednesday that gave some employers the right to refuse contraceptive coverage for their employees' health insurance.
Reported by Newsmax 6 hours ago.
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Obama’s health insurance overhaul a winner in midterms
WASHINGTON (AP) — The personality looming over the 2018 midterms was President Donald Trump. The issue was health care, the top concern for voters as they decided how to cast their ballots. This week’s election showed a nation increasingly — if belatedly — in step with former President Barack Obama’s approach to it. Health care […]
Reported by Seattle Times 3 hours ago.
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Obama's health insurance overhaul a winner in midterms
WASHINGTON (AP) — The personality looming over the 2018 midterms was President Donald Trump. The issue was health care, the top concern for voters as they decided how to cast their ballots.This week's election showed a nation increasingly...
Reported by New Zealand Herald 4 hours ago.
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Gov't to revise health insurance system to prevent misuse by both Japanese, foreign workers
The government said Wednesday it aims to revise Japan's public insurance system to address concerns that healthcare costs would surge when it opens up to more foreign workers…
Reported by Japan Today 3 hours ago.
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Member Benefits Launches Private Health Insurance Exchange to Assist Members of the Washington State Bar Association
Member Benefits, a national leader in association benefits and private health exchanges, announced that it has been selected as the provider of a private health insurance exchange for members of the Washington State Bar Association (WSBA).
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (PRWEB) November 08, 2018
Member Benefits, a national leader in association member benefits and private health exchanges, announced that it has been selected as the exclusive administrator a private health insurance exchange for members of the Washington State Bar Association (WSBA). The offering is a unique online marketplace that offers customized benefit plans for individual WSBA members and group health options for law firm groups of all sizes. With a full line of health insurance plans and other benefits, the exchange also provides an integrated and efficient shopping experience that utilizes decision support technology to help members choose the plans that best suits their needs.
The Washington State Bar Association joins several other state bar associations such as the State Bar of Texas, The Florida Bar, State Bar of Georgia, and The Missouri Bar currently taking advantage of leading association health insurance platform offered by Member Benefits.
“With healthcare on the minds of many of our members, the Washington State Bar Association is proud to partner with Member Benefits to offer an insurance exchange,” said Bill Pickett, president of the WSBA. “We’re delighted to offer an option that fits the needs of solo and small firm practitioners, as well as law firms alike.”
Initial offerings being introduced to WSBA members include:· Group Health Insurance (fully insured, self, and level-funded options)
· Individual Health Insurance
· Dental Insurance
· Vision Insurance
· Long-Term Disability Insurance
· Term Life Insurance
Products and services are available to WSBA members, their spouses, eligible dependents, and employees through Member Benefits proprietary insurance marketplace exchange technology.
The new WSBA Private Health Insurance Exchange marketplace helps address a clear need by members – assistance in finding affordable insurance for themselves, their families and their staffs. WSBA members may now access the information and services provided. 2019 ACA individual health insurance plans and rates will be ready to view when the open enrollment period begins on November 1, 2018.
“We find that when we launch new exchanges, the members are often pleased with the service model behind the exchange. Members find that there is much more that the exchange offers than just products. Our team of in-house Benefits Counselors have extensive experience working with lawyer’s insurance needs and provide an enhanced customer experience to the member” said Chip Trefry, President of Member Benefits. “As participation in the program grows, our goal is to have the numbers that allow us to add an exclusive group option such as an Association Health Plan (AHP) to include on the exchange” Trefry added.
About Member Benefits
Member Benefits is a technology-driven insurance brokerage and third-party administrator that focuses on benefit programs and insurance exchanges for associations and member-based organizations. Member Benefits specializes in the design, marketing, and administration of programs for employer groups, associations, affinity groups and franchises. Member Benefits operates in most states with locations in Jacksonville, FL and Austin, TX. For more information, visit http://www.memberbenefits.com/.
About the Washington State Bar Association
The Washington State Bar Association operates under the delegated authority of the Washington Supreme Court to license the state’s nearly 40,000 lawyers and other legal professionals. In furtherance of its obligation to protect and serve the public, the WSBA both regulates lawyers and other legal professionals and serves its members as a professional association – all without public funding. The WSBA’s mission is to serve the public and the members of the Bar, to ensure the integrity of the legal profession, and to champion justice. Reported by PRWeb 2 hours ago.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (PRWEB) November 08, 2018
Member Benefits, a national leader in association member benefits and private health exchanges, announced that it has been selected as the exclusive administrator a private health insurance exchange for members of the Washington State Bar Association (WSBA). The offering is a unique online marketplace that offers customized benefit plans for individual WSBA members and group health options for law firm groups of all sizes. With a full line of health insurance plans and other benefits, the exchange also provides an integrated and efficient shopping experience that utilizes decision support technology to help members choose the plans that best suits their needs.
The Washington State Bar Association joins several other state bar associations such as the State Bar of Texas, The Florida Bar, State Bar of Georgia, and The Missouri Bar currently taking advantage of leading association health insurance platform offered by Member Benefits.
“With healthcare on the minds of many of our members, the Washington State Bar Association is proud to partner with Member Benefits to offer an insurance exchange,” said Bill Pickett, president of the WSBA. “We’re delighted to offer an option that fits the needs of solo and small firm practitioners, as well as law firms alike.”
Initial offerings being introduced to WSBA members include:· Group Health Insurance (fully insured, self, and level-funded options)
· Individual Health Insurance
· Dental Insurance
· Vision Insurance
· Long-Term Disability Insurance
· Term Life Insurance
Products and services are available to WSBA members, their spouses, eligible dependents, and employees through Member Benefits proprietary insurance marketplace exchange technology.
The new WSBA Private Health Insurance Exchange marketplace helps address a clear need by members – assistance in finding affordable insurance for themselves, their families and their staffs. WSBA members may now access the information and services provided. 2019 ACA individual health insurance plans and rates will be ready to view when the open enrollment period begins on November 1, 2018.
“We find that when we launch new exchanges, the members are often pleased with the service model behind the exchange. Members find that there is much more that the exchange offers than just products. Our team of in-house Benefits Counselors have extensive experience working with lawyer’s insurance needs and provide an enhanced customer experience to the member” said Chip Trefry, President of Member Benefits. “As participation in the program grows, our goal is to have the numbers that allow us to add an exclusive group option such as an Association Health Plan (AHP) to include on the exchange” Trefry added.
About Member Benefits
Member Benefits is a technology-driven insurance brokerage and third-party administrator that focuses on benefit programs and insurance exchanges for associations and member-based organizations. Member Benefits specializes in the design, marketing, and administration of programs for employer groups, associations, affinity groups and franchises. Member Benefits operates in most states with locations in Jacksonville, FL and Austin, TX. For more information, visit http://www.memberbenefits.com/.
About the Washington State Bar Association
The Washington State Bar Association operates under the delegated authority of the Washington Supreme Court to license the state’s nearly 40,000 lawyers and other legal professionals. In furtherance of its obligation to protect and serve the public, the WSBA both regulates lawyers and other legal professionals and serves its members as a professional association – all without public funding. The WSBA’s mission is to serve the public and the members of the Bar, to ensure the integrity of the legal profession, and to champion justice. Reported by PRWeb 2 hours ago.
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United States: The New Massachusetts HIRD Form - Mintz
The Health Insurance Responsibility Disclosure (HIRD) form is a new state reporting requirement in Massachusetts in 2018.
Reported by Mondaq 20 hours ago.
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Lead Battery Industry Recognizes Veterans Day with Year-Round Support of Vets, Their Families
Company Programs Model How to Recruit, Mentor and Ease Transition to Civilian Workforce
WASHINGTON (PRWEB) November 08, 2018
The lead battery industry is marking Veterans Day 2018, the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I, with dual gratitude for our country’s veterans and active military: First, for their loyal service and sacrifice, and second, for the valuable skills and experience they bring to careers in lead battery manufacturing, recycling and among suppliers.
According to the Institute for Veterans and Military Families, 200,000 servicemen and women separate from active duty in the U.S. military each year. Many employers compete for the training and abilities service members bring to the workforce. But transitioning from military to civilian life can be challenging.
Kevin Moran knows this firsthand. He is executive vice president of Battery Council International (BCI) and a former sergeant in the U.S. Army. Moran said his industry is committed to easing that transition.
“The lead battery industry places a priority on hiring, mentoring and retaining those who have sacrificed to preserve our freedoms,” Moran said. “While in uniform, lead batteries supported service members in many ways, including land, air and sea transportation. It’s only right, that we continue to honor and support them in civilian life.”
How BCI Supports Military Employees
BCI member companies participate in dozens of programs to help service members transition to the private workforce, including Heroes Make America, Veterans Jobs Mission, Allies in Service and more. Here are additional examples.
East Penn Manufacturing: Founded by Air Force Veteran
East Penn Manufacturing operates the largest single-site, lead battery manufacturing facility in the world. It is unrecognizable from its humble launch in 1946 by a young Air Force veteran. Today, East Penn continues to hire veterans like its founder. Consistently ranked as a best place to work, East Penn received the Above and Beyond Award for Support of the Military through the Department of Defense. The award recognizes employers who support members of the active reserves while they serve and still maintain civilian employment. “East Penn has supported my military career for about 25 years,” says Barry Frain assistant plant manager. “When I was deployed, East Penn continued to contribute to and maintain health insurance for me and my family. Normally, you would switch to military insurance during deployment, but East Penn’s philosophy is that when you are deployed, they don’t want you worried about what’s happening at home, but instead to focus on where you are. Leadership also checked in with my family while I was gone. It’s a support network that’s tremendous.”
Frain noted that as his responsibilities and rank within the military grew, East Penn supported additional time off to serve beyond the customary two weeks. Frain pointed out that these high levels of support are companywide and not just for him. Last year Frain retired from the U.S. Marine Corps after serving for 30 years, including the first Gulf War, several tours of duty in Iraq and U.S. posts for homeland security.
Johnson Controls: Seeking Veteran Work Ethic
Johnson Controls, a global technology company and battery manufacturer, employs a former military recruiter to recruit servicemen and women for careers. Ray Cuttino who leads this talent acquisition effort for the Milwaukee-based company says military training provides the foundation for an excellent employee.
“The number one reason in my mind for recruiting military is the work ethic; the ability to show up every day and give 100 percent.” In addition to the employees’ mission mindset, Cuttino added, “Their leadership ability, flexibility and drive to get things done fits well within our culture.” The company partners with more than a dozen organizations committed to the military community and has also formed Veterans Resources Groups at several locations to provide support for their employees.
Exide Technologies: Intentionally Recruiting Veterans
Exide, a worldwide leader in electrical storage solutions, is one of 22 U.S. manufacturing companies recognized as Military Friendly®. That means it has met (and exceeded) a standard that measures an organization’s commitment, effort and success in creating sustainable and meaningful benefit for the military community. In addition to employment opportunities, Exide provides philanthropic support to local veterans in a partnership with Green Veterans. Earlier this year Georgia State Senator John Albers commended Exide for donating iPads to veterans.
Interstate Batteries: Hiring Veterans is Part of “Values Mission” Hiring Initiative
Hiring veterans is a natural extension of Interstate Batteries’ purpose and values, said Chris Montoya, corporate recruiter. “We want to enrich lives as we deliver the most trustworthy source of power to the world.” He said it’s a cornerstone for the company’s Values Mission Hiring Initiative that provides potential career opportunities to active military, veterans and military spouses. In June, Interstate was honored by the Department of Labor for its leadership in veteran outreach. Interstate also partners with many military-focused service organizations like Allies in Service, Folded Flag, Hiring Our Heroes and the Bush Foundation.
Hammond Group, Inc.: Supporting Veteran Appreciation Day
This year, the company is a corporate sponsor of Hammond, Indiana’s 5th Annual Veteran Appreciation Day to honor veterans and active military personnel. The company’s contribution will help support the popular local parade that features antique military vehicles, honor guards and a flyover by the entertaining Lima Lima Flight Team. Stephanie Smith, corporate marketing coordinator, noted that, “As a member of this community for nearly 100 years, we are active in a number of civic programs. But it’s a point of pride to recognize of our country’s veterans.”
For More Information
Battery Council International is the North American trade association representing lead based-battery manufacturers, suppliers, recyclers, and distribution companies – a total of approximately 250 companies and 20,000 employees. For more information on the association, visit batterycouncil.org.
Essential Energy Everyday exists to increase awareness of the critical importance of lead batteries in powering our daily lives. It encourages continued investment in sustainable lead battery technology to store and provide energy on demand. Its initiative is supported by the two global trade associations that represent the lead battery and lead industries, Battery Council International and the International Lead Association. Reported by PRWeb 1 day ago.
WASHINGTON (PRWEB) November 08, 2018
The lead battery industry is marking Veterans Day 2018, the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I, with dual gratitude for our country’s veterans and active military: First, for their loyal service and sacrifice, and second, for the valuable skills and experience they bring to careers in lead battery manufacturing, recycling and among suppliers.
According to the Institute for Veterans and Military Families, 200,000 servicemen and women separate from active duty in the U.S. military each year. Many employers compete for the training and abilities service members bring to the workforce. But transitioning from military to civilian life can be challenging.
Kevin Moran knows this firsthand. He is executive vice president of Battery Council International (BCI) and a former sergeant in the U.S. Army. Moran said his industry is committed to easing that transition.
“The lead battery industry places a priority on hiring, mentoring and retaining those who have sacrificed to preserve our freedoms,” Moran said. “While in uniform, lead batteries supported service members in many ways, including land, air and sea transportation. It’s only right, that we continue to honor and support them in civilian life.”
How BCI Supports Military Employees
BCI member companies participate in dozens of programs to help service members transition to the private workforce, including Heroes Make America, Veterans Jobs Mission, Allies in Service and more. Here are additional examples.
East Penn Manufacturing: Founded by Air Force Veteran
East Penn Manufacturing operates the largest single-site, lead battery manufacturing facility in the world. It is unrecognizable from its humble launch in 1946 by a young Air Force veteran. Today, East Penn continues to hire veterans like its founder. Consistently ranked as a best place to work, East Penn received the Above and Beyond Award for Support of the Military through the Department of Defense. The award recognizes employers who support members of the active reserves while they serve and still maintain civilian employment. “East Penn has supported my military career for about 25 years,” says Barry Frain assistant plant manager. “When I was deployed, East Penn continued to contribute to and maintain health insurance for me and my family. Normally, you would switch to military insurance during deployment, but East Penn’s philosophy is that when you are deployed, they don’t want you worried about what’s happening at home, but instead to focus on where you are. Leadership also checked in with my family while I was gone. It’s a support network that’s tremendous.”
Frain noted that as his responsibilities and rank within the military grew, East Penn supported additional time off to serve beyond the customary two weeks. Frain pointed out that these high levels of support are companywide and not just for him. Last year Frain retired from the U.S. Marine Corps after serving for 30 years, including the first Gulf War, several tours of duty in Iraq and U.S. posts for homeland security.
Johnson Controls: Seeking Veteran Work Ethic
Johnson Controls, a global technology company and battery manufacturer, employs a former military recruiter to recruit servicemen and women for careers. Ray Cuttino who leads this talent acquisition effort for the Milwaukee-based company says military training provides the foundation for an excellent employee.
“The number one reason in my mind for recruiting military is the work ethic; the ability to show up every day and give 100 percent.” In addition to the employees’ mission mindset, Cuttino added, “Their leadership ability, flexibility and drive to get things done fits well within our culture.” The company partners with more than a dozen organizations committed to the military community and has also formed Veterans Resources Groups at several locations to provide support for their employees.
Exide Technologies: Intentionally Recruiting Veterans
Exide, a worldwide leader in electrical storage solutions, is one of 22 U.S. manufacturing companies recognized as Military Friendly®. That means it has met (and exceeded) a standard that measures an organization’s commitment, effort and success in creating sustainable and meaningful benefit for the military community. In addition to employment opportunities, Exide provides philanthropic support to local veterans in a partnership with Green Veterans. Earlier this year Georgia State Senator John Albers commended Exide for donating iPads to veterans.
Interstate Batteries: Hiring Veterans is Part of “Values Mission” Hiring Initiative
Hiring veterans is a natural extension of Interstate Batteries’ purpose and values, said Chris Montoya, corporate recruiter. “We want to enrich lives as we deliver the most trustworthy source of power to the world.” He said it’s a cornerstone for the company’s Values Mission Hiring Initiative that provides potential career opportunities to active military, veterans and military spouses. In June, Interstate was honored by the Department of Labor for its leadership in veteran outreach. Interstate also partners with many military-focused service organizations like Allies in Service, Folded Flag, Hiring Our Heroes and the Bush Foundation.
Hammond Group, Inc.: Supporting Veteran Appreciation Day
This year, the company is a corporate sponsor of Hammond, Indiana’s 5th Annual Veteran Appreciation Day to honor veterans and active military personnel. The company’s contribution will help support the popular local parade that features antique military vehicles, honor guards and a flyover by the entertaining Lima Lima Flight Team. Stephanie Smith, corporate marketing coordinator, noted that, “As a member of this community for nearly 100 years, we are active in a number of civic programs. But it’s a point of pride to recognize of our country’s veterans.”
For More Information
Battery Council International is the North American trade association representing lead based-battery manufacturers, suppliers, recyclers, and distribution companies – a total of approximately 250 companies and 20,000 employees. For more information on the association, visit batterycouncil.org.
Essential Energy Everyday exists to increase awareness of the critical importance of lead batteries in powering our daily lives. It encourages continued investment in sustainable lead battery technology to store and provide energy on demand. Its initiative is supported by the two global trade associations that represent the lead battery and lead industries, Battery Council International and the International Lead Association. Reported by PRWeb 1 day ago.
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Solid start for 2019 enrollment to Washington’s health insurance exchange; enrollment is up statewide
The open enrollment period for Washington state's health insurance exchange began Thursday. The enrollment period will close a month earlier than last year.
Reported by Seattle Times 20 hours ago.
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Highmark Health's Karen L. Hanlon Named "2018 CFO of the Year" Award Winner by the Pittsburgh Business Times
Karen L. Hanlon, executive vice president, chief operating officer and chief financial officer of Highmark Health was named a 2018 CFO of the Year award winner by the Pittsburgh Business Times on Nov. 7. The award recognizes Hanlon for her outstanding corporate financial stewardship.
PITTSBURGH (PRWEB) November 08, 2018
Karen L. Hanlon, executive vice president, chief operating officer and chief financial officer of Highmark Health was named a “2018 CFO of the Year” award winner in a ceremony hosted by the Pittsburgh Business Times on Nov. 7. The award recognizes Hanlon for her outstanding corporate financial stewardship.
A certified public accountant and member of the finance team since 1997, Hanlon has served as Highmark Health’s CFO since 2014 and was additionally named its chief operating officer in July 2018. In addition to having oversight of the corporation’s financial success, Hanlon oversees its long-term operations as it focuses on bringing transformational value-based care to customers and growing beyond traditional health care models and core markets.
“Karen Hanlon’s recognition as a CFO of the Year is well deserved,” said David L. Holmberg, president and CEO of Highmark Health. “On behalf of our more than 40,000 employees, we thank Karen for her superb financial stewardship. She has been pivotal in the growth and stability of Highmark Health, and will continue to be instrumental as we transform health care in western Pennsylvania and nationally through the Highmark Health Plan, Allegheny Health Network, United Concordia Dental, Visionworks and our other businesses.”
In addition to serving on the executive leadership team at Highmark Health, Hanlon sits on the board of directors of Gateway Health and Penn State Health and previously served on the boards and as treasurer for the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Pittsburgh and Leadership Pittsburgh. She is a 15-year member of the Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
“I’ve had the benefit of working on some of our most significant strategic initiatives at Highmark, Allegheny Health Network, and Highmark Health,” said Hanlon. “This gave me the opportunity to be connected directly to our various businesses and to build relationships throughout the organization. The knowledge I gained and the relationships built through this work were critical in preparing me to become CFO.
“The array of topics I work on in a given day goes beyond what I ever thought I would do,” Hanlon added. “I’m fortunate to be working for a progressive, growing company. This has afforded me the opportunity to work on some pretty exciting things, and I look forward to continuing to work with all of my colleagues as we successfully transform health care.”
About Highmark Health
Highmark Health, a Pittsburgh, PA-based company, that, together with its subsidiaries and affiliates, collectively employ more than 40,000 people and serve millions of Americans across the country, is the second largest integrated health care delivery and financing network in the nation based on revenue. Highmark Health is the parent company of Highmark Inc., Allegheny Health Network, and HM Health Solutions. Highmark Inc. and its subsidiaries and affiliates provide health insurance to nearly 5 million members in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Delaware as well as dental insurance, vision care and related health products through a national network of diversified businesses that include United Concordia Companies, HM Insurance Group, and Visionworks. Allegheny Health Network is the parent company of an integrated delivery network that includes eight hospitals, more than 2,400 affiliated physicians, ambulatory surgery centers, an employed physician organization, home and community-based health services, a research institute, a group purchasing organization, and health and wellness pavilions in western Pennsylvania. HM Health Solutions focuses on meeting the information technology platform and other business needs of the Highmark Health enterprise as well as unaffiliated health insurance plans by providing proven business processes, expert knowledge and integrated cloud-based platforms. To learn more, please visit http://www.highmarkhealth.org. Reported by PRWeb 19 hours ago.
PITTSBURGH (PRWEB) November 08, 2018
Karen L. Hanlon, executive vice president, chief operating officer and chief financial officer of Highmark Health was named a “2018 CFO of the Year” award winner in a ceremony hosted by the Pittsburgh Business Times on Nov. 7. The award recognizes Hanlon for her outstanding corporate financial stewardship.
A certified public accountant and member of the finance team since 1997, Hanlon has served as Highmark Health’s CFO since 2014 and was additionally named its chief operating officer in July 2018. In addition to having oversight of the corporation’s financial success, Hanlon oversees its long-term operations as it focuses on bringing transformational value-based care to customers and growing beyond traditional health care models and core markets.
“Karen Hanlon’s recognition as a CFO of the Year is well deserved,” said David L. Holmberg, president and CEO of Highmark Health. “On behalf of our more than 40,000 employees, we thank Karen for her superb financial stewardship. She has been pivotal in the growth and stability of Highmark Health, and will continue to be instrumental as we transform health care in western Pennsylvania and nationally through the Highmark Health Plan, Allegheny Health Network, United Concordia Dental, Visionworks and our other businesses.”
In addition to serving on the executive leadership team at Highmark Health, Hanlon sits on the board of directors of Gateway Health and Penn State Health and previously served on the boards and as treasurer for the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Pittsburgh and Leadership Pittsburgh. She is a 15-year member of the Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
“I’ve had the benefit of working on some of our most significant strategic initiatives at Highmark, Allegheny Health Network, and Highmark Health,” said Hanlon. “This gave me the opportunity to be connected directly to our various businesses and to build relationships throughout the organization. The knowledge I gained and the relationships built through this work were critical in preparing me to become CFO.
“The array of topics I work on in a given day goes beyond what I ever thought I would do,” Hanlon added. “I’m fortunate to be working for a progressive, growing company. This has afforded me the opportunity to work on some pretty exciting things, and I look forward to continuing to work with all of my colleagues as we successfully transform health care.”
About Highmark Health
Highmark Health, a Pittsburgh, PA-based company, that, together with its subsidiaries and affiliates, collectively employ more than 40,000 people and serve millions of Americans across the country, is the second largest integrated health care delivery and financing network in the nation based on revenue. Highmark Health is the parent company of Highmark Inc., Allegheny Health Network, and HM Health Solutions. Highmark Inc. and its subsidiaries and affiliates provide health insurance to nearly 5 million members in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Delaware as well as dental insurance, vision care and related health products through a national network of diversified businesses that include United Concordia Companies, HM Insurance Group, and Visionworks. Allegheny Health Network is the parent company of an integrated delivery network that includes eight hospitals, more than 2,400 affiliated physicians, ambulatory surgery centers, an employed physician organization, home and community-based health services, a research institute, a group purchasing organization, and health and wellness pavilions in western Pennsylvania. HM Health Solutions focuses on meeting the information technology platform and other business needs of the Highmark Health enterprise as well as unaffiliated health insurance plans by providing proven business processes, expert knowledge and integrated cloud-based platforms. To learn more, please visit http://www.highmarkhealth.org. Reported by PRWeb 19 hours ago.
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Keet Health Announces MIPS Guarantee for Therapists
First of its kind MIPS Guarantee for therapists eases the transition to value-based care by protecting providers and practices from costly MIPS penalties.
AUSTIN, Texas (PRWEB) November 08, 2018
Keet Health Inc., (“Keet”), a leading patient engagement company, announced today its Merit Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) Guarantee (1) for outpatient rehab therapists. The MIPS Guarantee aims to make it easier for eligible clinicians to participate in MIPS by shielding providers and practices from downward payment adjustment thresholds under the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) reimbursement program. In the event a reporting provider or practice receives a penalty under the CMS MIPS reimbursement program, the cost of Keet Outcomes™ and the annual fees associated with the Medicare submission are guaranteed by Keet Health, Inc.
“At a time when the transition to value-based care (VBC) is picking up speed, the new MIPS eligibility for therapists offers an opportunity for our industry to develop the competencies needed to thrive in the new reimbursement landscape,” said Holly Taylor, Vice President and General Manager, Keet Health, Inc. “At Keet, MIPS isn’t seen as another reporting burden, but an opportunity to advance our profession into the future. We are committed to supporting physical therapy in the transition to VBC and, by offering this guarantee, are looking to mitigate any risk associated with quality reporting requirements.”
Keet Outcomes™ enables clinicians to measure the quality of care delivered and provides intuitive tools to drive continuous quality improvement - competencies that are instrumental for the transition from fee-for-service to value-based care. The solution supports outpatient rehab therapists in meeting payer incentive program requirements associated with alternative payment models. This includes MIPS which requires eligible clinicians to provide high-quality, efficient care that is supported by certified technology. For the first time since the inception of MIPS, therapists will be eligible clinicians beginning in 2019. With Keet Outcomes™, required data is automatically collected and submitted in a way that’s easy and convenient for patients, efficient for clinics, useful for providers, and actionable for management teams.
Keet Outcomes™ is powered by Intermountain Healthcare’s Rehab Outcomes Management System (Intermountain ROMS), the premier clinical outcomes registry and quality reporting system for physical and occupational therapy. Intermountain ROMS is backed by 18 years of experience and 10 years of peer-reviewed research published in such journals as Spine, Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Journal of Arthroplasty, JOSPT and PTJ. Intermountain Healthcare is a leading innovator in value-based care delivery.
“The Intermountain ROMS team is excited to help power the Keet Outcomes™ solution. With this offering, therapists can demonstrate their value, reduce variation in practice, and provide higher quality patient-centered care. We are confident that Keet Outcomes™ combined with Intermountain ROMS will help clinicians make better clinical decisions, improve the patient experience, and allow practices to thrive,” said Stephen Hunter PT, DPT, OCS, Rehab Services Internal Process Control Director at Intermountain Healthcare.
Keet believes that quality improvement starts with data and has designed Keet Outcomes™ to capture patient reported outcomes, identify care improvement opportunities through robust analytics, and handle quality reporting so providers can focus on increasing the value of their patient interactions without adding administrative burden.
“While many clinical outcome registries look to measure the care provided, Keet is focused on providing a holistic solution to improve patient care, not just measure it,” said Taylor. “We feel this is a natural progression of patient engagement and key to Keet’s overall strategy of helping clinicians move towards value-based care.”
About Keet Health, Inc.
Keet Health, Inc., is a health tech company on a mission to restore humanity in healthcare. Since 2015, Keet has been committed to helping providers, employers, and health systems facilitate and deliver more connected, personalized care through our patient engagement platform. Keet Health, Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary company of Clinicient, Inc. For more information, visit http://www.keethealth.com.
About Intermountain Healthcare
Intermountain Healthcare is a not-for-profit health system based in Salt Lake City with 23 hospitals, 180 clinics, and a health insurance plan, SelectHealth. Recognized for its excellent clinical care and low costs, Intermountain is helping people live the healthiest lives possible©. For more information, visit http://www.intermountainhealthcare.org.
1 Available to new Keet Health, Inc., clients, using Keet Outcomes™ and with a go-live date by December 19th, 2018. Client agrees to Guarantee terms in an effective Business Services Agreement. Guarantee is subject to reporting year and limited to service credits, up to and including the subscription Keet Outcomes™ fee and annual fees associated with the Medicare submission. Amounts guaranteed under this program are the client’s sole and exclusive remedy with respect to any downward payment adjustment to their Medicare fee schedule during the applicable MIPS year. Additional terms may apply.
To learn more about Keet Health, Inc., MIPS Guarantee, please visit https://www.keethealth.com/mips-guarantee/ Reported by PRWeb 14 hours ago.
AUSTIN, Texas (PRWEB) November 08, 2018
Keet Health Inc., (“Keet”), a leading patient engagement company, announced today its Merit Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) Guarantee (1) for outpatient rehab therapists. The MIPS Guarantee aims to make it easier for eligible clinicians to participate in MIPS by shielding providers and practices from downward payment adjustment thresholds under the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) reimbursement program. In the event a reporting provider or practice receives a penalty under the CMS MIPS reimbursement program, the cost of Keet Outcomes™ and the annual fees associated with the Medicare submission are guaranteed by Keet Health, Inc.
“At a time when the transition to value-based care (VBC) is picking up speed, the new MIPS eligibility for therapists offers an opportunity for our industry to develop the competencies needed to thrive in the new reimbursement landscape,” said Holly Taylor, Vice President and General Manager, Keet Health, Inc. “At Keet, MIPS isn’t seen as another reporting burden, but an opportunity to advance our profession into the future. We are committed to supporting physical therapy in the transition to VBC and, by offering this guarantee, are looking to mitigate any risk associated with quality reporting requirements.”
Keet Outcomes™ enables clinicians to measure the quality of care delivered and provides intuitive tools to drive continuous quality improvement - competencies that are instrumental for the transition from fee-for-service to value-based care. The solution supports outpatient rehab therapists in meeting payer incentive program requirements associated with alternative payment models. This includes MIPS which requires eligible clinicians to provide high-quality, efficient care that is supported by certified technology. For the first time since the inception of MIPS, therapists will be eligible clinicians beginning in 2019. With Keet Outcomes™, required data is automatically collected and submitted in a way that’s easy and convenient for patients, efficient for clinics, useful for providers, and actionable for management teams.
Keet Outcomes™ is powered by Intermountain Healthcare’s Rehab Outcomes Management System (Intermountain ROMS), the premier clinical outcomes registry and quality reporting system for physical and occupational therapy. Intermountain ROMS is backed by 18 years of experience and 10 years of peer-reviewed research published in such journals as Spine, Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Journal of Arthroplasty, JOSPT and PTJ. Intermountain Healthcare is a leading innovator in value-based care delivery.
“The Intermountain ROMS team is excited to help power the Keet Outcomes™ solution. With this offering, therapists can demonstrate their value, reduce variation in practice, and provide higher quality patient-centered care. We are confident that Keet Outcomes™ combined with Intermountain ROMS will help clinicians make better clinical decisions, improve the patient experience, and allow practices to thrive,” said Stephen Hunter PT, DPT, OCS, Rehab Services Internal Process Control Director at Intermountain Healthcare.
Keet believes that quality improvement starts with data and has designed Keet Outcomes™ to capture patient reported outcomes, identify care improvement opportunities through robust analytics, and handle quality reporting so providers can focus on increasing the value of their patient interactions without adding administrative burden.
“While many clinical outcome registries look to measure the care provided, Keet is focused on providing a holistic solution to improve patient care, not just measure it,” said Taylor. “We feel this is a natural progression of patient engagement and key to Keet’s overall strategy of helping clinicians move towards value-based care.”
About Keet Health, Inc.
Keet Health, Inc., is a health tech company on a mission to restore humanity in healthcare. Since 2015, Keet has been committed to helping providers, employers, and health systems facilitate and deliver more connected, personalized care through our patient engagement platform. Keet Health, Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary company of Clinicient, Inc. For more information, visit http://www.keethealth.com.
About Intermountain Healthcare
Intermountain Healthcare is a not-for-profit health system based in Salt Lake City with 23 hospitals, 180 clinics, and a health insurance plan, SelectHealth. Recognized for its excellent clinical care and low costs, Intermountain is helping people live the healthiest lives possible©. For more information, visit http://www.intermountainhealthcare.org.
1 Available to new Keet Health, Inc., clients, using Keet Outcomes™ and with a go-live date by December 19th, 2018. Client agrees to Guarantee terms in an effective Business Services Agreement. Guarantee is subject to reporting year and limited to service credits, up to and including the subscription Keet Outcomes™ fee and annual fees associated with the Medicare submission. Amounts guaranteed under this program are the client’s sole and exclusive remedy with respect to any downward payment adjustment to their Medicare fee schedule during the applicable MIPS year. Additional terms may apply.
To learn more about Keet Health, Inc., MIPS Guarantee, please visit https://www.keethealth.com/mips-guarantee/ Reported by PRWeb 14 hours ago.
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Obama's health insurance overhaul a winner in midterms
The personality looming over the 2018 midterms was President Donald Trump. The issue was health care, the top concern for...
Reported by Deseret News 14 hours ago.
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Google is reportedly about to hire a big name in healthcare to coordinate all of its healthcare initiatives
· Google is about to hire Geisinger Health CEO David Feinberg to lead its healthcare efforts, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday. · The Journal reports Feinberg's role will be to coordinate all of the healthcare-related initiatives Google already has underway.
Google is reportedly expected to hire Geisinger Health CEO David Feinberg to a new role leading the company's healthcare efforts.
The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that Feinberg's role will be to coordinate the health initiatives Google has underway, including the work happening in artificial intelligence and devices.
Feinberg has been at Geisinger, a health system in Pennsylvania that provides health insurance as well as care through its medical centers, since 2015. Prior to that he served as CEO of UCLA's health system.
A representative from Google did not immediately return a request for comment. A Geisinger spokesman declined to comment.
Alphabet, Google's parent company, has a number of bets in healthcare from Verily, its life sciences arm that's developing everything from glucose-monitoring contact lenses to surgical robots, to Calico, its life-extension spinoff. Google AI has some projects in the healthcare space as well as through DeepMind.
The company has also made a number of investments in healthcare through its venture funds GV and Capital G as well as through Alphabet itself.
This isn't the first time Feinberg has had a brush with tech. In June, CNBC reported that he was in talks to lead the Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway, and JPMorgan healthcare joint venture. That role ultimately went to Dr. Atul Gawande.
At Google, Feinberg will join former Cleveland Clinic Toby Cosgrove, who recently joined as an advisor to Google Cloud.
Join the conversation about this story »
NOW WATCH: This mind-melting thought experiment of Einstein's reveals how to manipulate time Reported by Business Insider 12 hours ago.
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Ping An Good Doctor, UMP and Zheng He Announce Strategic Cooperation
Building Online and Offline Family Doctor Service Network
SHANGHAI and HONG KONG, Nov. 9, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Ping An Good Doctor (the "Company", stock code: 1833.HK), UMP Healthcare Holdings Limited ("UMP", stock code: 722.HK) and Zheng He Health and Medical Resources Limited ("Zheng He") today announced their strategic cooperation. The three parties will make full use of their respective advantages and resources to jointly build an online and offline family doctor services network and realize the shared vision of "providing each family with a trusted family doctor". This cooperation also aims to help the government to achieve the goal of promoting and developing family doctor services across China.
According to the strategic cooperation agreement, Ping An Good Doctor, UMP and Zheng He will carry out in-depth cooperation on various aspects, such as improving the medical service capacity and capability of online and offline doctors, perfecting the closed loop of online and offline medical services, expanding the offline clinic network, optimizing and improving the "GOLD Training Plan" to provide better, more personalized and efficient services for both doctors and users.
In terms of improving the medical service capacity and capability, UMP will provide training to the Ping An Good Doctor medical team under the General Practice Oriented Learning and Development Training Program ("GOLD Training Program"), further improving the consultation skills and clinical technology of doctors, and providing a large number of online users with medical health consultation services which are of higher quality and in line with international standards. In the future, doctors who have been through the medical training and passed the "GOLD Training Program" will be able to provide efficient and high-quality telemedicine consultation services on the platform to meet the growing demand of online consultations.
In the meantime, Ping An Good Doctor and UMP will improve the closed loop of online and offline medical services through the sharing of medical resources. Ping An Good Doctor is a leading one-stop healthcare ecosystem platform in China, while UMP has a network of more than 600 family doctors/general practitioners clinics across China. The two parties will jointly provide users with high quality online and offline medical services.
In the future, online users of Ping An Good Doctor will be able to enjoy quality face-to-face offline primary care services through UMP's owned and managed clinics (including public community health centers) located across Beijing, Shanghai and the Greater Bay Area (including Hong Kong); Ping An Good Doctor's global leading mobile medical technology will also enable users of UMP's offline medical centers and clinics to manage their health and booking before the consultation and also engage such users for follow up after the consultation through their mobile phone, helping all three parties to expand and engage more new online and offline users.
In terms of expanding the network of offline clinics, Ping An Good Doctor and UMP will work closely with various regional governments to establish more high quality clinics and service locations across the country, providing users with online and offline integrated medical services. At present, the Greater Bay Area and other regions are introducing new technologies with a positive and open attitude, with the aim of improving the capacity and capability level of primary health services. According to the "Guangdong Provincial Action Plan to Promote 'Internet +' Medical Health (2018-2020)", by 2020, the top three hospitals in Guangdong will fully utilize "Internet +" medical services, and medical health artificial intelligence (AI) technology will cover county-level hospitals, township hospitals and community health service centers.
In the long-term, the three parties will make full use of their advantages and further optimize and improve the "GOLD Training Plan", as well as to provide online and offline comprehensive consultation and clinical services. Ping An Good Doctor has the world's leading mobile medical technology and AI technology, a large number of online consulting cases and data; UMP owns and manages more than 600 offline clinics in China (including Hong Kong) as well as overall delivery and management of the training plan "GOLD Training Plan", with the aim of developing more high quality family doctors; Zheng He has rich resources in medical technology in North America.
Regarding the strategic cooperation, Mr. Wang Tao, Chairman and CEO of Ping An Good Doctor, said, "UMP has rich experience in family doctor services, and the cooperation with the Greater Bay Area community hospital and clinic network is impressive; Zheng He has rich experience and a plethora of global medical technology resources in the medical health industry. Through this strategic cooperation, Ping An Good Doctor will further improve the service level and efficiency, establish a larger network of offline primary clinics, improve the closed loop of online and offline integrated services, and provide convenient and premium medical and health services for both domestic and overseas consumers."
Dr. Sun Yiu Kwong, Chairman and CEO of UMP, stated, "UMP is always acting in line with the national policy of developing more general practitioners and patient triage through primary care. UMP does so by providing the GOLD training programme to family doctors who are practicing in public community health centers, improving the clinical skills of these family doctors and empowering them to better implement the government's policies of contracting a dedicated family doctor for each citizen or family. UMP has been very active in setting up public-private partnership community health centers, thereby expanding its geographical reach of clinics and also clinical service capabilities. The cooperation with Ping An Good Doctor and Zheng He brings the three parties together, allowing each party to share their resources, needs and benefits with each other. Ping An Good Doctor can improve UMP's information technology capacity and empower UMP to adopt a more aggressive expansion strategy, enable UMP to develop new corporate healthcare management plan and develop new and innovative commercial health insurance products. On the other hand, Zheng He will be using its resources and network to assist UMP to develop precise medical solutions that is most suitable for the three parties' users and patients. Working together, the three parties shall strive to create a comprehensive medical ecosystem."
Zheng He's CEO, Mr. Law Siu Wah, Eddie, said, "We are very excited to cooperate with Ping An Good Doctor and UMP. Zheng He's vision is to become the ultimate and most crucial service link between patients and high quality medical service providers in the market. Zheng He is a strategic shareholder of Ping An Good Doctor, as well as of UMP, and will continue to seek out innovators in different fields to create an ecosystem together. In this way, we can work together with customers and patients to find out the medical solutions that best suit their needs. We will work closely with Ping An Good Doctor and UMP to realize this vision. We look forward to contributing our expertise, capital and insights to other partners in the market."
*About Ping An Good Doctor (1833.HK)*
Ping An Good Doctor is the leading one-stop healthcare ecosystem platform in China. By combining "mobile health + AI technology", the Company strives to provide every family with a family doctor, every person with an e-health profile and everyone with a healthcare management plan. Ping An Good Doctor has established a comprehensive, one-stop healthcare ecosystem covering family doctor services, consumer healthcare services, a health mall as well as health management and wellness interaction.
As of the end of June 2018, there were 228 million registered users and the Company's MAU reached 48.6 million. Ping An Good Doctor is today the largest mobile medical application in China in terms of user scale. Ping An Good Doctor employs more than a thousand medical personnel (Assistant Supervisor Level or above from Class III Grade A Hospitals) in its in-house medical team and contracts with 4,650 renowned external doctors. This in-house medical team, empowered by our proprietary AI technology, provides users with 24 x 7 online consultation services. In our offline partnership network, Ping An Good Doctor collaborates with approximately 3,100 hospitals (including more than 1,200 Class III Grade A hospitals) to provide services such as hospital referral, appointment and inpatient arrangements. Ping An Good Doctor also partners with more than 2,000 healthcare institutions, including physical examination centers, dental clinics, cosmetic surgery institutions and more than 10,000 pharmacy outlets, to provide relevant health and wellness services to our users. By integrating our AI-empowered medical team, external doctors and offline network, Ping An Good Doctor has established a closed-loop healthcare ecosystem which enables our users to enjoy online consultations and online drug purchases, as well as online consultations and offline follow-up treatment, thereby providing convenient, high-quality and efficient family doctor services.
In April 2015, the App "Ping An Good Doctor" was officially launched. In May 2016, the Company completed an A round financing and raised US$500 million. In December 2017, the Company completed the pre-IPO financing from Softbank Vision Fund, during which it raised US$400 million. On 4 May 2018, Ping An Good Doctor became the No.1 listed internet health-tech company in the world when it joined the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, stock code 01833.HK. Our IPO cornerstone investors include Blackrock, Capital Group, GIC, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Khazanah Nasional Berhad, Swiss Re and CP Group.
*About UMP (722.HK)*
UMP is a people-centric healthcare services provider. UMP was founded in 1990 by a group of multi-disciplinary physicians and healthcare professionals who were filled with enthusiasm and a sense of mission to provide professional healthcare services.
UMP provides customized healthcare solutions to over 3,000 corporations, institutions and insurance companies across Hong Kong, Macau and the Greater China region. Equipped with over 28 years of professional experience, UMP offers a comprehensive range of healthcare services through a network of more than 600 self-operated and affiliated medical centres and clinics located across Hong Kong, Macau, Zhuhai, Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen. UMP administers over 10,000 health management plans, serving 1.5 million patient visits annually.
UMP is also quickly expanding its clinic network across China through a combination of owned, managed and invested primary care clinics. UMP is benefiting from various Greater Bay Area government policies and is exporting its general practice doctor raining programmes to family doctors in community health centers in China, thereby empowering these family doctors to enhance their quality of services, with the aim of serving UMP's growing corporate members and its commercial health insurance partners.
*About Zheng He Health and Medical Resources Limited*
One of the investment focuses of Zheng He Health and Medical Resources is in the future technology for medical and healthcare ecosystem, which provides quality medical services to patients in collaboration with various innovators in the market. Zheng He Health and Medical Resources has vast experiences and extensive network in the healthcare industry, including reputable overseas medical schools and Hong Kong and international medical advisory boards. Reported by PR Newswire Asia 8 hours ago.
SHANGHAI and HONG KONG, Nov. 9, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Ping An Good Doctor (the "Company", stock code: 1833.HK), UMP Healthcare Holdings Limited ("UMP", stock code: 722.HK) and Zheng He Health and Medical Resources Limited ("Zheng He") today announced their strategic cooperation. The three parties will make full use of their respective advantages and resources to jointly build an online and offline family doctor services network and realize the shared vision of "providing each family with a trusted family doctor". This cooperation also aims to help the government to achieve the goal of promoting and developing family doctor services across China.
According to the strategic cooperation agreement, Ping An Good Doctor, UMP and Zheng He will carry out in-depth cooperation on various aspects, such as improving the medical service capacity and capability of online and offline doctors, perfecting the closed loop of online and offline medical services, expanding the offline clinic network, optimizing and improving the "GOLD Training Plan" to provide better, more personalized and efficient services for both doctors and users.
In terms of improving the medical service capacity and capability, UMP will provide training to the Ping An Good Doctor medical team under the General Practice Oriented Learning and Development Training Program ("GOLD Training Program"), further improving the consultation skills and clinical technology of doctors, and providing a large number of online users with medical health consultation services which are of higher quality and in line with international standards. In the future, doctors who have been through the medical training and passed the "GOLD Training Program" will be able to provide efficient and high-quality telemedicine consultation services on the platform to meet the growing demand of online consultations.
In the meantime, Ping An Good Doctor and UMP will improve the closed loop of online and offline medical services through the sharing of medical resources. Ping An Good Doctor is a leading one-stop healthcare ecosystem platform in China, while UMP has a network of more than 600 family doctors/general practitioners clinics across China. The two parties will jointly provide users with high quality online and offline medical services.
In the future, online users of Ping An Good Doctor will be able to enjoy quality face-to-face offline primary care services through UMP's owned and managed clinics (including public community health centers) located across Beijing, Shanghai and the Greater Bay Area (including Hong Kong); Ping An Good Doctor's global leading mobile medical technology will also enable users of UMP's offline medical centers and clinics to manage their health and booking before the consultation and also engage such users for follow up after the consultation through their mobile phone, helping all three parties to expand and engage more new online and offline users.
In terms of expanding the network of offline clinics, Ping An Good Doctor and UMP will work closely with various regional governments to establish more high quality clinics and service locations across the country, providing users with online and offline integrated medical services. At present, the Greater Bay Area and other regions are introducing new technologies with a positive and open attitude, with the aim of improving the capacity and capability level of primary health services. According to the "Guangdong Provincial Action Plan to Promote 'Internet +' Medical Health (2018-2020)", by 2020, the top three hospitals in Guangdong will fully utilize "Internet +" medical services, and medical health artificial intelligence (AI) technology will cover county-level hospitals, township hospitals and community health service centers.
In the long-term, the three parties will make full use of their advantages and further optimize and improve the "GOLD Training Plan", as well as to provide online and offline comprehensive consultation and clinical services. Ping An Good Doctor has the world's leading mobile medical technology and AI technology, a large number of online consulting cases and data; UMP owns and manages more than 600 offline clinics in China (including Hong Kong) as well as overall delivery and management of the training plan "GOLD Training Plan", with the aim of developing more high quality family doctors; Zheng He has rich resources in medical technology in North America.
Regarding the strategic cooperation, Mr. Wang Tao, Chairman and CEO of Ping An Good Doctor, said, "UMP has rich experience in family doctor services, and the cooperation with the Greater Bay Area community hospital and clinic network is impressive; Zheng He has rich experience and a plethora of global medical technology resources in the medical health industry. Through this strategic cooperation, Ping An Good Doctor will further improve the service level and efficiency, establish a larger network of offline primary clinics, improve the closed loop of online and offline integrated services, and provide convenient and premium medical and health services for both domestic and overseas consumers."
Dr. Sun Yiu Kwong, Chairman and CEO of UMP, stated, "UMP is always acting in line with the national policy of developing more general practitioners and patient triage through primary care. UMP does so by providing the GOLD training programme to family doctors who are practicing in public community health centers, improving the clinical skills of these family doctors and empowering them to better implement the government's policies of contracting a dedicated family doctor for each citizen or family. UMP has been very active in setting up public-private partnership community health centers, thereby expanding its geographical reach of clinics and also clinical service capabilities. The cooperation with Ping An Good Doctor and Zheng He brings the three parties together, allowing each party to share their resources, needs and benefits with each other. Ping An Good Doctor can improve UMP's information technology capacity and empower UMP to adopt a more aggressive expansion strategy, enable UMP to develop new corporate healthcare management plan and develop new and innovative commercial health insurance products. On the other hand, Zheng He will be using its resources and network to assist UMP to develop precise medical solutions that is most suitable for the three parties' users and patients. Working together, the three parties shall strive to create a comprehensive medical ecosystem."
Zheng He's CEO, Mr. Law Siu Wah, Eddie, said, "We are very excited to cooperate with Ping An Good Doctor and UMP. Zheng He's vision is to become the ultimate and most crucial service link between patients and high quality medical service providers in the market. Zheng He is a strategic shareholder of Ping An Good Doctor, as well as of UMP, and will continue to seek out innovators in different fields to create an ecosystem together. In this way, we can work together with customers and patients to find out the medical solutions that best suit their needs. We will work closely with Ping An Good Doctor and UMP to realize this vision. We look forward to contributing our expertise, capital and insights to other partners in the market."
*About Ping An Good Doctor (1833.HK)*
Ping An Good Doctor is the leading one-stop healthcare ecosystem platform in China. By combining "mobile health + AI technology", the Company strives to provide every family with a family doctor, every person with an e-health profile and everyone with a healthcare management plan. Ping An Good Doctor has established a comprehensive, one-stop healthcare ecosystem covering family doctor services, consumer healthcare services, a health mall as well as health management and wellness interaction.
As of the end of June 2018, there were 228 million registered users and the Company's MAU reached 48.6 million. Ping An Good Doctor is today the largest mobile medical application in China in terms of user scale. Ping An Good Doctor employs more than a thousand medical personnel (Assistant Supervisor Level or above from Class III Grade A Hospitals) in its in-house medical team and contracts with 4,650 renowned external doctors. This in-house medical team, empowered by our proprietary AI technology, provides users with 24 x 7 online consultation services. In our offline partnership network, Ping An Good Doctor collaborates with approximately 3,100 hospitals (including more than 1,200 Class III Grade A hospitals) to provide services such as hospital referral, appointment and inpatient arrangements. Ping An Good Doctor also partners with more than 2,000 healthcare institutions, including physical examination centers, dental clinics, cosmetic surgery institutions and more than 10,000 pharmacy outlets, to provide relevant health and wellness services to our users. By integrating our AI-empowered medical team, external doctors and offline network, Ping An Good Doctor has established a closed-loop healthcare ecosystem which enables our users to enjoy online consultations and online drug purchases, as well as online consultations and offline follow-up treatment, thereby providing convenient, high-quality and efficient family doctor services.
In April 2015, the App "Ping An Good Doctor" was officially launched. In May 2016, the Company completed an A round financing and raised US$500 million. In December 2017, the Company completed the pre-IPO financing from Softbank Vision Fund, during which it raised US$400 million. On 4 May 2018, Ping An Good Doctor became the No.1 listed internet health-tech company in the world when it joined the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, stock code 01833.HK. Our IPO cornerstone investors include Blackrock, Capital Group, GIC, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Khazanah Nasional Berhad, Swiss Re and CP Group.
*About UMP (722.HK)*
UMP is a people-centric healthcare services provider. UMP was founded in 1990 by a group of multi-disciplinary physicians and healthcare professionals who were filled with enthusiasm and a sense of mission to provide professional healthcare services.
UMP provides customized healthcare solutions to over 3,000 corporations, institutions and insurance companies across Hong Kong, Macau and the Greater China region. Equipped with over 28 years of professional experience, UMP offers a comprehensive range of healthcare services through a network of more than 600 self-operated and affiliated medical centres and clinics located across Hong Kong, Macau, Zhuhai, Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen. UMP administers over 10,000 health management plans, serving 1.5 million patient visits annually.
UMP is also quickly expanding its clinic network across China through a combination of owned, managed and invested primary care clinics. UMP is benefiting from various Greater Bay Area government policies and is exporting its general practice doctor raining programmes to family doctors in community health centers in China, thereby empowering these family doctors to enhance their quality of services, with the aim of serving UMP's growing corporate members and its commercial health insurance partners.
*About Zheng He Health and Medical Resources Limited*
One of the investment focuses of Zheng He Health and Medical Resources is in the future technology for medical and healthcare ecosystem, which provides quality medical services to patients in collaboration with various innovators in the market. Zheng He Health and Medical Resources has vast experiences and extensive network in the healthcare industry, including reputable overseas medical schools and Hong Kong and international medical advisory boards. Reported by PR Newswire Asia 8 hours ago.
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Ping An Good Doctor, UMP and Zheng He Announce Strategic Cooperation Building Online and Offline Family Doctor Service Network
HONG KONG, CHINA - Media OutReach - 9 November 2018 - Ping An Good Doctor (the "Company", stock code: 1833.HK), UMP Healthcare Holdings Limited ("UMP", stock code: 722.HK) and Zheng He Health and Medical Resources Limited ("Zheng He") today announced their strategic cooperation. The three parties will make full use of their respective advantages and resources to jointly build an online and offline family doctor services network and realize the shared vision of "providing each family with a trusted family doctor". This cooperation also aims to help the government to achieve the goal of promoting and developing family doctor services across China.
According to the strategic cooperation agreement, Ping An Good Doctor, UMP and Zheng He will carry out in-depth cooperation on various aspects, such as improving the medical service capacity and capability of online and offline doctors, perfecting the closed loop of online and offline medical services, expanding the offline clinic network, optimizing and improving the "GOLD Training Plan" to provide better, more personalized and efficient services for both doctors and users.
In terms of improving the medical service capacity and capability, UMP will provide training to the Ping An Good Doctor medical team under the General Practice Oriented Learning and Development Training Program ("GOLD Training Programme"), further improving the consultation skills and clinical technology of doctors, and providing a large number of online users with medical health consultation services which are of higher quality and in line with international standards. In the future, doctors who have been through the medical training and passed the "GOLD Training Program" will be able to provide efficient and high-quality telemedicine consultation services on the platform to meet the growing demand of online consultations.
In the meantime, Ping An Good Doctor and UMP will improve the closed loop of online and offline medical services through the sharing of medical resources. Ping An Good Doctor is a leading one-stop healthcare ecosystem platform in China, while UMP has a network of more than 600 family doctors/general practitioners clinics across China. The two parties will jointly provide users with high quality online and offline medical services.
In the future, online users of Ping An Good Doctor will be able to enjoy quality face-to-face offline primary care services through UMP's owned and managed clinics (including public community health centers) located across Beijing, Shanghai and the Greater Bay Area (including Hong Kong); Ping An Good Doctor's global leading mobile medical technology will also enable users of UMP's offline medical centers and clinics to manage their health and booking before the consultation and also engage such users for follow up after the consultation through their mobile phone, helping all three parties to expand and engage more new online and offline users.
In terms of expanding the network of offline clinics, Ping An Good Doctor and UMP will work closely with various regional governments to establish more high quality clinics and service locations across the country, providing users with online and offline integrated medical services. At present, the Greater Bay Area and other regions are introducing new technologies with a positive and open attitude, with the aim of improving the capacity and capability level of primary health services. According to the "Guangdong Provincial Action Plan to Promote 'Internet +' Medical Health (2018-2020)", by 2020, the top three hospitals in Guangdong will fully utilize "Internet
+" medical services, and medical health artificial intelligence (AI) technology will cover county-level hospitals, township hospitals and community health service centers.
In the long-term, the three parties will make full use of their advantages and further optimize and improve the "GOLD Training Programme", as well as to provide online and offline comprehensive consultation and clinical services. Ping An Good Doctor has the world's leading mobile medical technology and AI technology, a large number of online consulting cases and data; UMP owns and manages more than 600 offline clinics in China (including Hong Kong) as well as overall delivery and management of the training plan "GOLD Training Plan", with the aim of developing more high quality family doctors; Zheng He has rich resources in medical technology in North America.
Regarding the strategic cooperation, Mr. Wang Tao, Chairman and CEO of Ping An Good Doctor, said, "UMP has rich experience in family doctor services, and the cooperation with the Greater Bay Area community hospital and clinic network is impressive; Zheng He has rich experience and a plethora of global medical technology resources in the medical health industry. Through this strategic cooperation, Ping An Good Doctor will further improve the service level and efficiency, establish a larger network of offline primary clinics, improve the closed loop of online and offline integrated services, and provide convenient and premium medical and health services for both domestic and overseas consumers."
Dr. Sun Yiu Kwong, Chairman and CEO of UMP, stated, "UMP is always acting in line with the national policy of developing more general practitioners and patient triage through primary care. UMP does so by providing the GOLD Training Programme to family doctors who are practicing in public community health centers, improving the clinical skills of these family doctors and empowering them to better implement the government's policies of contracting a dedicated family doctor for each citizen or family. UMP has been very active in setting up public-private partnership community health centers, thereby expanding its geographical reach of clinics and also clinical service capabilities. The cooperation with Ping An Good Doctor and Zheng He brings the three parties together, allowing each party to share their resources, needs and benefits with each other. Ping An Good Doctor can improve UMP's information technology capacity and empower UMP to adopt a more aggressive expansion strategy, enable UMP to develop new corporate healthcare management plans and develop new and innovative commercial health insurance products. On the other hand, Zheng He will be using its resources and network to assist UMP to develop precise medical solutions that are most suitable for the three parties' users and patients. Working together, the three parties shall strive to create a comprehensive medical ecosystem."
Zheng He's CEO, Mr. Law Siu Wah, Eddie, said, "We are very excited to cooperate with Ping An Good Doctor and UMP. Zheng He's vision is to become the ultimate and most crucial service link between patients and high quality medical service providers in the market. Zheng He is a strategic shareholder of Ping An Good Doctor, as well as of UMP, and will continue to seek out innovators in different fields to create an ecosystem together. In this way, we can work together with customers and patients to find out the medical solutions that best suit their needs. We will work closely with Ping An Good Doctor and UMP to realize this vision. We look forward to contributing our expertise, capital and insights to other partners in the market."
*About Ping An Good Doctor (1833.HK)*
Ping An Good Doctor is the leading one-stop healthcare ecosystem platform in China. By combining "mobile health + AI technology", the Company strives to provide every family with a family doctor, every person with an e-health profile and everyone with a healthcare management plan. Ping An Good Doctor has established a comprehensive, one-stop healthcare ecosystem covering family doctor services, consumer healthcare services, a health mall as well as health management and wellness interaction.
As of the end of June 2018, there were 228 million registered users and the Company's MAU reached 48.6 million. Ping An Good Doctor is today the largest mobile medical application in China in terms of user scale. Ping An Good Doctor employs more than a thousand medical personnel (Assistant Supervisor Level or above from Class III Grade A Hospitals) in its in-house medical team and contracts with 4,650 renowned external doctors. This in-house medical team, empowered by our proprietary AI technology, provides users with 24 x 7 online consultation services. In its offline partnership network, Ping An Good Doctor collaborates with approximately 3,100 hospitals (including more than 1,200 Class III Grade A hospitals) to provide services such as hospital referral, appointment and inpatient arrangements. Ping An Good Doctor also partners with more than 2,000 healthcare institutions, including physical examination centers, dental clinics, cosmetic surgery institutions and more than 10,000 pharmacy outlets, to provide relevant health and wellness services to our users. By integrating its AI-empowered medical team, external doctors and offline network, Ping An Good Doctor has established a closed-loop healthcare ecosystem which enables its users to enjoy online consultations and online drug purchases, as well as online consultations and offline follow-up treatment, thereby providing convenient, high-quality and efficient family doctor services.
In April 2015, the App "Ping An Good Doctor" was officially launched. In May 2016, Ping An Good Doctor completed an A round financing and raised US$500 million. In December 2017, Ping An Good Doctor completed the pre-IPO financing from Softbank Vision Fund, during which it raised US$400 million. On 4 May 2018, Ping An Good Doctor became the No.1 listed internet health-tech company in the world when it joined the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, stock code 01833.HK. Ping An Good Doctor's IPO cornerstone investors include Blackrock, Capital Group, GIC, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Khazanah Nasional Berhad, Swiss Re and CP Group.
*About UMP (722.HK)*
UMP is a people-centric healthcare services provider. UMP was founded in 1990 by a group of multi-disciplinary physicians and healthcare professionals who were filled with enthusiasm and a sense of mission to provide professional healthcare services.
UMP provides customized healthcare solutions to over 3,000 corporations, institutions and insurance companies across Hong Kong, Macau and the Greater China region. Equipped with over 28 years of professional experience, UMP offers a comprehensive range of healthcare services through a network of more than 600 self-operated and affiliated medical centres and clinics located across Hong Kong, Macau, Zhuhai, Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen. UMP administers over 10,000 health management plans, serving 1.5 million patient visits annually.
UMP is also quickly expanding its clinic network across China through a combination of owned, managed and invested primary care clinics. UMP is benefiting from various Greater Bay Area government policies and is exporting its general practice doctor training programmes to family doctors in community health centers in China, thereby empowering these family doctors to enhance their quality of services, with the aim of serving UMP's growing corporate members and its commercial health insurance partners.
*
*
*About Zheng He*
One of the investment priorities of Zheng He is the future technology of the medical and healthcare ecosystem, which provides quality medical services to patients in collaboration with different innovators in the market. Zheng He has extensive experiences in the medical services industry, a vast network home and abroad, including renowned overseas medical schools and Hong Kong and international medical advisory organizations. Reported by Media OutReach 8 hours ago.
According to the strategic cooperation agreement, Ping An Good Doctor, UMP and Zheng He will carry out in-depth cooperation on various aspects, such as improving the medical service capacity and capability of online and offline doctors, perfecting the closed loop of online and offline medical services, expanding the offline clinic network, optimizing and improving the "GOLD Training Plan" to provide better, more personalized and efficient services for both doctors and users.
In terms of improving the medical service capacity and capability, UMP will provide training to the Ping An Good Doctor medical team under the General Practice Oriented Learning and Development Training Program ("GOLD Training Programme"), further improving the consultation skills and clinical technology of doctors, and providing a large number of online users with medical health consultation services which are of higher quality and in line with international standards. In the future, doctors who have been through the medical training and passed the "GOLD Training Program" will be able to provide efficient and high-quality telemedicine consultation services on the platform to meet the growing demand of online consultations.
In the meantime, Ping An Good Doctor and UMP will improve the closed loop of online and offline medical services through the sharing of medical resources. Ping An Good Doctor is a leading one-stop healthcare ecosystem platform in China, while UMP has a network of more than 600 family doctors/general practitioners clinics across China. The two parties will jointly provide users with high quality online and offline medical services.
In the future, online users of Ping An Good Doctor will be able to enjoy quality face-to-face offline primary care services through UMP's owned and managed clinics (including public community health centers) located across Beijing, Shanghai and the Greater Bay Area (including Hong Kong); Ping An Good Doctor's global leading mobile medical technology will also enable users of UMP's offline medical centers and clinics to manage their health and booking before the consultation and also engage such users for follow up after the consultation through their mobile phone, helping all three parties to expand and engage more new online and offline users.
In terms of expanding the network of offline clinics, Ping An Good Doctor and UMP will work closely with various regional governments to establish more high quality clinics and service locations across the country, providing users with online and offline integrated medical services. At present, the Greater Bay Area and other regions are introducing new technologies with a positive and open attitude, with the aim of improving the capacity and capability level of primary health services. According to the "Guangdong Provincial Action Plan to Promote 'Internet +' Medical Health (2018-2020)", by 2020, the top three hospitals in Guangdong will fully utilize "Internet
+" medical services, and medical health artificial intelligence (AI) technology will cover county-level hospitals, township hospitals and community health service centers.
In the long-term, the three parties will make full use of their advantages and further optimize and improve the "GOLD Training Programme", as well as to provide online and offline comprehensive consultation and clinical services. Ping An Good Doctor has the world's leading mobile medical technology and AI technology, a large number of online consulting cases and data; UMP owns and manages more than 600 offline clinics in China (including Hong Kong) as well as overall delivery and management of the training plan "GOLD Training Plan", with the aim of developing more high quality family doctors; Zheng He has rich resources in medical technology in North America.
Regarding the strategic cooperation, Mr. Wang Tao, Chairman and CEO of Ping An Good Doctor, said, "UMP has rich experience in family doctor services, and the cooperation with the Greater Bay Area community hospital and clinic network is impressive; Zheng He has rich experience and a plethora of global medical technology resources in the medical health industry. Through this strategic cooperation, Ping An Good Doctor will further improve the service level and efficiency, establish a larger network of offline primary clinics, improve the closed loop of online and offline integrated services, and provide convenient and premium medical and health services for both domestic and overseas consumers."
Dr. Sun Yiu Kwong, Chairman and CEO of UMP, stated, "UMP is always acting in line with the national policy of developing more general practitioners and patient triage through primary care. UMP does so by providing the GOLD Training Programme to family doctors who are practicing in public community health centers, improving the clinical skills of these family doctors and empowering them to better implement the government's policies of contracting a dedicated family doctor for each citizen or family. UMP has been very active in setting up public-private partnership community health centers, thereby expanding its geographical reach of clinics and also clinical service capabilities. The cooperation with Ping An Good Doctor and Zheng He brings the three parties together, allowing each party to share their resources, needs and benefits with each other. Ping An Good Doctor can improve UMP's information technology capacity and empower UMP to adopt a more aggressive expansion strategy, enable UMP to develop new corporate healthcare management plans and develop new and innovative commercial health insurance products. On the other hand, Zheng He will be using its resources and network to assist UMP to develop precise medical solutions that are most suitable for the three parties' users and patients. Working together, the three parties shall strive to create a comprehensive medical ecosystem."
Zheng He's CEO, Mr. Law Siu Wah, Eddie, said, "We are very excited to cooperate with Ping An Good Doctor and UMP. Zheng He's vision is to become the ultimate and most crucial service link between patients and high quality medical service providers in the market. Zheng He is a strategic shareholder of Ping An Good Doctor, as well as of UMP, and will continue to seek out innovators in different fields to create an ecosystem together. In this way, we can work together with customers and patients to find out the medical solutions that best suit their needs. We will work closely with Ping An Good Doctor and UMP to realize this vision. We look forward to contributing our expertise, capital and insights to other partners in the market."
*About Ping An Good Doctor (1833.HK)*
Ping An Good Doctor is the leading one-stop healthcare ecosystem platform in China. By combining "mobile health + AI technology", the Company strives to provide every family with a family doctor, every person with an e-health profile and everyone with a healthcare management plan. Ping An Good Doctor has established a comprehensive, one-stop healthcare ecosystem covering family doctor services, consumer healthcare services, a health mall as well as health management and wellness interaction.
As of the end of June 2018, there were 228 million registered users and the Company's MAU reached 48.6 million. Ping An Good Doctor is today the largest mobile medical application in China in terms of user scale. Ping An Good Doctor employs more than a thousand medical personnel (Assistant Supervisor Level or above from Class III Grade A Hospitals) in its in-house medical team and contracts with 4,650 renowned external doctors. This in-house medical team, empowered by our proprietary AI technology, provides users with 24 x 7 online consultation services. In its offline partnership network, Ping An Good Doctor collaborates with approximately 3,100 hospitals (including more than 1,200 Class III Grade A hospitals) to provide services such as hospital referral, appointment and inpatient arrangements. Ping An Good Doctor also partners with more than 2,000 healthcare institutions, including physical examination centers, dental clinics, cosmetic surgery institutions and more than 10,000 pharmacy outlets, to provide relevant health and wellness services to our users. By integrating its AI-empowered medical team, external doctors and offline network, Ping An Good Doctor has established a closed-loop healthcare ecosystem which enables its users to enjoy online consultations and online drug purchases, as well as online consultations and offline follow-up treatment, thereby providing convenient, high-quality and efficient family doctor services.
In April 2015, the App "Ping An Good Doctor" was officially launched. In May 2016, Ping An Good Doctor completed an A round financing and raised US$500 million. In December 2017, Ping An Good Doctor completed the pre-IPO financing from Softbank Vision Fund, during which it raised US$400 million. On 4 May 2018, Ping An Good Doctor became the No.1 listed internet health-tech company in the world when it joined the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, stock code 01833.HK. Ping An Good Doctor's IPO cornerstone investors include Blackrock, Capital Group, GIC, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Khazanah Nasional Berhad, Swiss Re and CP Group.
*About UMP (722.HK)*
UMP is a people-centric healthcare services provider. UMP was founded in 1990 by a group of multi-disciplinary physicians and healthcare professionals who were filled with enthusiasm and a sense of mission to provide professional healthcare services.
UMP provides customized healthcare solutions to over 3,000 corporations, institutions and insurance companies across Hong Kong, Macau and the Greater China region. Equipped with over 28 years of professional experience, UMP offers a comprehensive range of healthcare services through a network of more than 600 self-operated and affiliated medical centres and clinics located across Hong Kong, Macau, Zhuhai, Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen. UMP administers over 10,000 health management plans, serving 1.5 million patient visits annually.
UMP is also quickly expanding its clinic network across China through a combination of owned, managed and invested primary care clinics. UMP is benefiting from various Greater Bay Area government policies and is exporting its general practice doctor training programmes to family doctors in community health centers in China, thereby empowering these family doctors to enhance their quality of services, with the aim of serving UMP's growing corporate members and its commercial health insurance partners.
*
*
*About Zheng He*
One of the investment priorities of Zheng He is the future technology of the medical and healthcare ecosystem, which provides quality medical services to patients in collaboration with different innovators in the market. Zheng He has extensive experiences in the medical services industry, a vast network home and abroad, including renowned overseas medical schools and Hong Kong and international medical advisory organizations. Reported by Media OutReach 8 hours ago.
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Trump Finalizes Conscience Rights – OpEd
When giving the Commencement Address at the University of Notre Dame in 2009, President Barack Obama said, “Let’s honor the conscience of those who disagree with abortion, and draft a sensible conscience clause.” His administration never did. Worse, it sought to violate conscience rights of pro-life Americans.
When Donald Trump was running for president in 2016, he pledged to undo the damage that his predecessor did to conscience rights. Now he has made good on his promise. On November 7, his administration released final rules on conscience rights for Americans who object to paying for abortion-inducing drugs and contraceptives in their insurance plans. They will take effect two months from now.
President Trump had to undo the Health and Human Services mandate established by the Obama administration. That provision sought to force organizations such as the Little Sisters of the Poor to violate their conscience by paying for morally objectionable services in their health insurance plans.
Under the new rules, an exemption is being afforded “from the contraceptive coverage mandate to entities and individuals that object to services covered by the mandate on the basis of sincerely held religious beliefs.” The rules are inclusive of “nonprofit organizations, small businesses, and individuals that have non-religious moral convictions.”
Kudos to President Trump for affirming religious liberty and conscience rights. Reported by Eurasia Review 5 hours ago.
When Donald Trump was running for president in 2016, he pledged to undo the damage that his predecessor did to conscience rights. Now he has made good on his promise. On November 7, his administration released final rules on conscience rights for Americans who object to paying for abortion-inducing drugs and contraceptives in their insurance plans. They will take effect two months from now.
President Trump had to undo the Health and Human Services mandate established by the Obama administration. That provision sought to force organizations such as the Little Sisters of the Poor to violate their conscience by paying for morally objectionable services in their health insurance plans.
Under the new rules, an exemption is being afforded “from the contraceptive coverage mandate to entities and individuals that object to services covered by the mandate on the basis of sincerely held religious beliefs.” The rules are inclusive of “nonprofit organizations, small businesses, and individuals that have non-religious moral convictions.”
Kudos to President Trump for affirming religious liberty and conscience rights. Reported by Eurasia Review 5 hours ago.
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Allianz SE: Allianz achieves an operating profit of 3 billion euros in the third quarter of 2018
DGAP-News: Allianz SE / Key word(s): 9-month figures/Quarter Results
09.11.2018 / 06:59
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
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· Internal revenue growth of 9.8 percent in 3Q 2018
· 3Q 2018 net income attributable to shareholders grew 23.6 percent to 1.9 billion euros
· Solvency II ratio of 229 percent
· 9M 2018 operating profit up 4.8 percent to 8.7 billion euros, representing 79 percent of the full year target midpoint
· Allianz full-year 2018 operating profit outlook confirmed at 11.1 billion euros, plus or minus 500 million euros
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*Management Summary: Strong growth of revenues, operating profit and net income*
Internal revenue growth, which adjusts for currency and consolidation effects, amounted to 9.8 percent and was supported by all business segments. Total revenues increased by 7.9 percent to 30.5 (third quarter of 2017: 28.3) billion euros. Operating profit grew 20.6 percent to 3.0 (2.5) billion euros, mostly driven by our Property-Casualty business, which experienced lower claims from natural catastrophes, a better underlying claims development and a decreased expense ratio, as well as strong premium growth. An increase in assets under management (AuM) driven revenues and higher performance fees led to an increase in the operating profit from our Asset Management business segment. Our Life/Health business segment operating profit decreased slightly but remained at a good level. Net income attributable to shareholders was up 23.6 percent to 1.9 (1.6) billion euros, mainly driven by the increased operating profit.
Basic Earnings per Share (EPS) increased 12.0 percent to 13.42 (11.98) euros in the first nine months of 2018. Annualized Return on Equity (RoE) amounted to 13.8 percent (full year 2017: 11.8 percent).
Solvency II capitalization ratio amounted to 229 percent at the end of the quarter compared to 230 percent recorded at the end of the second quarter of 2018.
In the first nine months of 2018 operating profit grew 4.8 percent to 8.7 (8.3) billion euros, due to a higher underwriting result from our Property-Casualty business, as well as increased operating revenues (primarily AuM-driven) from our Asset Management business. Life/Health business segment operating profit declined slightly as a result of less favorable foreign currency translation effects and a normalization of the investment margin in the United States. Net income attributable to shareholders increased to 5.8 (5.4) billion euros: a negative impact from the sale of our traditional life insurance portfolio in Taiwan was more than offset by the increase in operating profit and lower income taxes.
Allianz completed its latest share buy-back program in September 2018 with a volume of 1.0 billion euros. All repurchased shares have been cancelled.
"During the first nine months of 2018 Allianz showed a strong performance across the board, now also supported by substantial productivity gains," said Oliver Bäte, Chief Executive Officer of Allianz SE. "Especially in challenging times, customers are looking for a financially solid partner for their insurance and investment needs. Allianz has been that reliable partner year after year. And we are very confident to reach our targets also for this year."
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*Property-Casualty insurance: Operating profit up 44.6 percent*
· Gross premiums written amounted to 12.0 (11.5) billion euros in the third quarter of 2018. Adjusted for foreign exchange and consolidation effects, internal growth totaled 6.1 percent, with volume and price effects contributing 4.3 percent and 1.8 percent respectively. Internal growth was mostly driven by positive developments at AGCS, in Germany, and at Credit Insurance.
· The combined ratio improved to 93.1 (96.9) percent in the third quarter of 2018, mainly due to three factors: losses from natural catastrophes went down to a normal level, a better underlying claims development, and a decreased expense ratio.
· Operating profit increased to 1,503 (1,039) million euros.
"Our Property and Casualty business had a successful third quarter of 2018 supported by strong results in our core markets," said Giulio Terzariol, Chief Financial Officer of Allianz SE. "After the first nine months of the year the combined ratio is in line with our Renewal Agenda target of 94 percent, and we are pleased with the overall development of the segment."
In the first nine months of 2018, gross premiums written increased to 41.9 (40.9) billion euros. Adjusted for foreign exchange and consolidation effects, internal growth amounted to 5.9 percent: AGCS, Germany, and Allianz Partners were the main growth drivers. As a result of a higher underwriting result operating profit grew by 13.0 percent to 4,232 million euros compared to the same period of the prior year. The combined ratio improved by 1.4 percentage points to 94.0 percent.
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*Life and Health insurance: Favorable new business development*
· PVNBP^^[1], the present value of new business premiums, increased to 13.4 (12.0) billion euros in the third quarter of 2018, mainly due to higher sales of fixed-indexed annuities in the United States and of capital-efficient products in the German life insurance business. This was partly offset by lower sales in Asia.
· The new business margin (NBM) strengthened to 3.5 (3.4) percent due to a favorable business mix and favorable economic conditions in the United States. The value of new business (VNB) increased to 476 (410) million euros in the third quarter driven by strong sales of capital-efficient products.
· Operating profit decreased slightly to 1,052 (1,069) million euros.
"Our Life and Health insurance segment is performing well and generates growing revenues and good margins," said Giulio Terzariol. "The value of new business grew by 16 percent in the third quarter of 2018, and the new business margin increased to 3.5 percent."
In the first nine months of 2018 PVNBP^1 increased to 42.4 (40.3) billion euros largely because of the higher sales of our capital-efficient products in the German life business. Operating profit decreased slightly to 3,197 (3,351) million euros as a result of less favorable foreign currency translation effects and a normalized level of investment margin in the United States compared to the first nine month of 2017. This was partly offset by the increased income from unit-linked business in Italy and Taiwan. The NBM increased to 3.4 (3.3) percent bringing the VNB to 1,456 (1,332) million euros.
--------------------
*Asset Management: Total AuM reached the 2 trillion mark for the first time*
· Third-party assets under management (AuM) grew by 23 billion euros (1.6 percent) to 1,487 billion euros compared to the end of the second quarter of 2018. Thereby, we recorded third-party net inflows of 15 billion euros after net outflows in the second quarter of 2018. Market, foreign currency and other effects also added to the positive development. Total AuM reached a record level of 2,015 billion euros.
· The cost-income ratio (CIR) increased by 0.6 percentage points to 62.5 percent in the third quarter of 2018 compared to last year's respective quarter due to one-off expenses and investments in business growth.
· Operating profit increased by 10.6 percent to 650 (588) million euros in the third quarter of 2018 compared to the third quarter of 2017. This was due to an increase in AuM-driven revenues, supported by both higher average AuM and a slightly improved margin, as well as an increase in performance fees.
"Our Asset Management business once again achieved excellent results. Both, Allianz Global Investors and PIMCO recorded net inflows, adding up to 15 billion euros in the third quarter," said Giulio Terzariol. "With a double digit operating profit growth, the Asset Management segment has again made an important contribution to the profitability of Allianz."
In the first nine months of 2018, operating revenues increased by 7.2 percent to 5.0 billion euros, mainly driven by increased average third-party AuM and an increase in third-party AuM-driven margins at both PIMCO and Allianz Global Investors. Operating revenue growth was also supported by higher performance fees at Allianz Global Investors. The cost-income ratio improved by 0.6 percentage points to 62.0 percent, as revenue growth outpaced the increase in expenses. Operating profit rose 8.8 percent to 1,897 (1,743) million euros. Third-party AuM increased by 40 billion euros compared to year-end 2017, as third-party net inflows and favorable foreign currency effects outweighed negative market effects.
--------------------
^^[1]PVNBP is shown after non-controlling interests unless otherwise stated.
*Allianz Group - key figures third quarter and first nine months 2018*
3Q 2018 3Q
2017 9M 2018 9M 2017
*Total revenues * *EUR bn* *30.5* *28.3* *97.8* *94.5*
- Property-Casualty EUR bn 12.0 11.5 41.9 40.9
- Life/Health EUR bn 16.8 15.1 51.1 48.7
- Asset Management EUR bn 1.7 1.5 5.0 4.7
- Corporate and Other EUR bn 0.1 0.1 0.2 0.4
- Consolidation EUR bn -0.1 -0.1 -0.4 -0.3
*Operating profit / loss* *EUR mn* *2,988* *2,477* *8,742* *8,337*
- Property-Casualty EUR mn 1,503 1,039 4,232 3,744
- Life/Health EUR mn 1,052 1,069 3,197 3,351
- Asset Management EUR mn 650 588 1,897 1,743
- Corporate and Other EUR mn -210 -211 -588 -476
- Consolidation EUR mn -7 -8 4 -26
*Net income* *EUR mn* *1,921* *1,670* *5,946* *5,683*
- attributable to non-controlling interests EUR mn -15 104 181 307
- attributable to shareholders EUR mn 1,936 1,566 5,765 5,376
*Basic earnings per share* *EUR* *4.55* *3.53* *13.42* *11.98*
*Diluted earnings per share* *EUR* *4.54* *3.52* *13.36* *11.98*
*Additional KPIs*
- Group Return on equity^1,2 % 14.2% 11.8% 13.8% 11.8%
- Property-Casualty Combined ratio % 93.1% 96.9% 94.0% 95.4%
- Life/Health New business margin % 3.5% 3.4% 3.4% 3.3%
- Life/Health Value of new business EUR mn 476 410 1,456 1,332
- Asset Management Cost-income ratio % 62.5% 61.9% 62.0% 62.6%
09/30/2018 12/31/2017
*Shareholders' equity*^1 *EUR bn* *-* *-* *60.1* *65.6*
*Solvency II capitalization ratio*^3 *%* *-* *-* *229%* *229%*
*Third-party assets under management* *EUR bn* *-* *-* *1,487* *1,448*
Please note: The figures are presented in millions of Euros, unless otherwise stated. Due to rounding, numbers presented may not add up precisely to the totals provided and percentages may not precisely reflect the absolute figures.
(1) Excluding non-controlling interests.
(2) Excluding unrealized gains/losses on bonds, net of shadow accounting. RoE for 3Q 2018 and 9M 2018 is annualized. For 3Q 2017 and 9M 2017, the return on equity for the full year 2017 is shown. Annualized figures are not a forecast for full year numbers.
(3) Risk capital figures are group diversified at 99.5% confidence level.
These assessments are, as always, subject to the disclaimer provided below.
*Cautionary note regarding forward-looking statements*
The statements contained herein may include prospects, statements of future expectations and other forward-looking statements that are based on management's current views and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Actual results, performance or events may differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements.
Such deviations may arise due to, without limitation, (i) changes of the general economic conditions and competitive situation, particularly in the Allianz Group's core business and core markets, (ii) performance of financial markets (particularly market volatility, liquidity and credit events), (iii) frequency and severity of insured loss events, including from natural catastrophes, and the development of loss expenses, (iv) mortality and morbidity levels and trends, (v) persistency levels, (vi) particularly in the banking business, the extent of credit defaults, (vii) interest rate levels, (viii) currency exchange rates including the EUR/USD exchange rate, (ix) changes in laws and regulations, including tax regulations, (x) the impact of acquisitions, including related integration issues, and reorganization measures, and (xi) general competitive factors, in each case on a local, regional, national and/or global basis. Many of these factors may be more likely to occur, or more pronounced, as a result of terrorist activities and their consequences.
*No duty to update*
The company assumes no obligation to update any information or forward-looking statement contained herein, save for any information required to be disclosed by law.
*Other*
The figures regarding the net assets, financial position and results of operations have been prepared in conformity with International Financial Reporting Standards. This Quarterly and First Nine Months Earnings Release is not an Interim Financial Report within the meaning of International Accounting Standard (IAS) 34.
This is a translation of the German Quarterly and first nine months Earnings Release of the Allianz Group. In case of any divergences, the German original is binding.
*Privacy Note*
Allianz SE is committed to protecting your personal data. Find out more in our *Privacy Statement*.
--------------------
09.11.2018 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 --------------------
Language: English
Company: Allianz SE
Königinstr. 28
80802 München
Germany
Phone: +49 (0)89 38 00 - 41 24
Fax: +49 (0)89 38 00 - 38 99
E-mail: investor.relations@allianz.com
Internet: www.allianz.com
ISIN: DE0008404005
WKN: 840400
Indices: DAX-30, EURO STOXX 50
Listed: Regulated Market in Berlin, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt (Prime Standard), Hamburg, Hanover, Munich, Stuttgart; Regulated Unofficial Market in Tradegate Exchange
End of News DGAP News Service Reported by EQS Group 4 hours ago.
09.11.2018 / 06:59
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
--------------------
· Internal revenue growth of 9.8 percent in 3Q 2018
· 3Q 2018 net income attributable to shareholders grew 23.6 percent to 1.9 billion euros
· Solvency II ratio of 229 percent
· 9M 2018 operating profit up 4.8 percent to 8.7 billion euros, representing 79 percent of the full year target midpoint
· Allianz full-year 2018 operating profit outlook confirmed at 11.1 billion euros, plus or minus 500 million euros
--------------------
*Management Summary: Strong growth of revenues, operating profit and net income*
Internal revenue growth, which adjusts for currency and consolidation effects, amounted to 9.8 percent and was supported by all business segments. Total revenues increased by 7.9 percent to 30.5 (third quarter of 2017: 28.3) billion euros. Operating profit grew 20.6 percent to 3.0 (2.5) billion euros, mostly driven by our Property-Casualty business, which experienced lower claims from natural catastrophes, a better underlying claims development and a decreased expense ratio, as well as strong premium growth. An increase in assets under management (AuM) driven revenues and higher performance fees led to an increase in the operating profit from our Asset Management business segment. Our Life/Health business segment operating profit decreased slightly but remained at a good level. Net income attributable to shareholders was up 23.6 percent to 1.9 (1.6) billion euros, mainly driven by the increased operating profit.
Basic Earnings per Share (EPS) increased 12.0 percent to 13.42 (11.98) euros in the first nine months of 2018. Annualized Return on Equity (RoE) amounted to 13.8 percent (full year 2017: 11.8 percent).
Solvency II capitalization ratio amounted to 229 percent at the end of the quarter compared to 230 percent recorded at the end of the second quarter of 2018.
In the first nine months of 2018 operating profit grew 4.8 percent to 8.7 (8.3) billion euros, due to a higher underwriting result from our Property-Casualty business, as well as increased operating revenues (primarily AuM-driven) from our Asset Management business. Life/Health business segment operating profit declined slightly as a result of less favorable foreign currency translation effects and a normalization of the investment margin in the United States. Net income attributable to shareholders increased to 5.8 (5.4) billion euros: a negative impact from the sale of our traditional life insurance portfolio in Taiwan was more than offset by the increase in operating profit and lower income taxes.
Allianz completed its latest share buy-back program in September 2018 with a volume of 1.0 billion euros. All repurchased shares have been cancelled.
"During the first nine months of 2018 Allianz showed a strong performance across the board, now also supported by substantial productivity gains," said Oliver Bäte, Chief Executive Officer of Allianz SE. "Especially in challenging times, customers are looking for a financially solid partner for their insurance and investment needs. Allianz has been that reliable partner year after year. And we are very confident to reach our targets also for this year."
--------------------
*Property-Casualty insurance: Operating profit up 44.6 percent*
· Gross premiums written amounted to 12.0 (11.5) billion euros in the third quarter of 2018. Adjusted for foreign exchange and consolidation effects, internal growth totaled 6.1 percent, with volume and price effects contributing 4.3 percent and 1.8 percent respectively. Internal growth was mostly driven by positive developments at AGCS, in Germany, and at Credit Insurance.
· The combined ratio improved to 93.1 (96.9) percent in the third quarter of 2018, mainly due to three factors: losses from natural catastrophes went down to a normal level, a better underlying claims development, and a decreased expense ratio.
· Operating profit increased to 1,503 (1,039) million euros.
"Our Property and Casualty business had a successful third quarter of 2018 supported by strong results in our core markets," said Giulio Terzariol, Chief Financial Officer of Allianz SE. "After the first nine months of the year the combined ratio is in line with our Renewal Agenda target of 94 percent, and we are pleased with the overall development of the segment."
In the first nine months of 2018, gross premiums written increased to 41.9 (40.9) billion euros. Adjusted for foreign exchange and consolidation effects, internal growth amounted to 5.9 percent: AGCS, Germany, and Allianz Partners were the main growth drivers. As a result of a higher underwriting result operating profit grew by 13.0 percent to 4,232 million euros compared to the same period of the prior year. The combined ratio improved by 1.4 percentage points to 94.0 percent.
--------------------
*Life and Health insurance: Favorable new business development*
· PVNBP^^[1], the present value of new business premiums, increased to 13.4 (12.0) billion euros in the third quarter of 2018, mainly due to higher sales of fixed-indexed annuities in the United States and of capital-efficient products in the German life insurance business. This was partly offset by lower sales in Asia.
· The new business margin (NBM) strengthened to 3.5 (3.4) percent due to a favorable business mix and favorable economic conditions in the United States. The value of new business (VNB) increased to 476 (410) million euros in the third quarter driven by strong sales of capital-efficient products.
· Operating profit decreased slightly to 1,052 (1,069) million euros.
"Our Life and Health insurance segment is performing well and generates growing revenues and good margins," said Giulio Terzariol. "The value of new business grew by 16 percent in the third quarter of 2018, and the new business margin increased to 3.5 percent."
In the first nine months of 2018 PVNBP^1 increased to 42.4 (40.3) billion euros largely because of the higher sales of our capital-efficient products in the German life business. Operating profit decreased slightly to 3,197 (3,351) million euros as a result of less favorable foreign currency translation effects and a normalized level of investment margin in the United States compared to the first nine month of 2017. This was partly offset by the increased income from unit-linked business in Italy and Taiwan. The NBM increased to 3.4 (3.3) percent bringing the VNB to 1,456 (1,332) million euros.
--------------------
*Asset Management: Total AuM reached the 2 trillion mark for the first time*
· Third-party assets under management (AuM) grew by 23 billion euros (1.6 percent) to 1,487 billion euros compared to the end of the second quarter of 2018. Thereby, we recorded third-party net inflows of 15 billion euros after net outflows in the second quarter of 2018. Market, foreign currency and other effects also added to the positive development. Total AuM reached a record level of 2,015 billion euros.
· The cost-income ratio (CIR) increased by 0.6 percentage points to 62.5 percent in the third quarter of 2018 compared to last year's respective quarter due to one-off expenses and investments in business growth.
· Operating profit increased by 10.6 percent to 650 (588) million euros in the third quarter of 2018 compared to the third quarter of 2017. This was due to an increase in AuM-driven revenues, supported by both higher average AuM and a slightly improved margin, as well as an increase in performance fees.
"Our Asset Management business once again achieved excellent results. Both, Allianz Global Investors and PIMCO recorded net inflows, adding up to 15 billion euros in the third quarter," said Giulio Terzariol. "With a double digit operating profit growth, the Asset Management segment has again made an important contribution to the profitability of Allianz."
In the first nine months of 2018, operating revenues increased by 7.2 percent to 5.0 billion euros, mainly driven by increased average third-party AuM and an increase in third-party AuM-driven margins at both PIMCO and Allianz Global Investors. Operating revenue growth was also supported by higher performance fees at Allianz Global Investors. The cost-income ratio improved by 0.6 percentage points to 62.0 percent, as revenue growth outpaced the increase in expenses. Operating profit rose 8.8 percent to 1,897 (1,743) million euros. Third-party AuM increased by 40 billion euros compared to year-end 2017, as third-party net inflows and favorable foreign currency effects outweighed negative market effects.
--------------------
^^[1]PVNBP is shown after non-controlling interests unless otherwise stated.
*Allianz Group - key figures third quarter and first nine months 2018*
3Q 2018 3Q
2017 9M 2018 9M 2017
*Total revenues * *EUR bn* *30.5* *28.3* *97.8* *94.5*
- Property-Casualty EUR bn 12.0 11.5 41.9 40.9
- Life/Health EUR bn 16.8 15.1 51.1 48.7
- Asset Management EUR bn 1.7 1.5 5.0 4.7
- Corporate and Other EUR bn 0.1 0.1 0.2 0.4
- Consolidation EUR bn -0.1 -0.1 -0.4 -0.3
*Operating profit / loss* *EUR mn* *2,988* *2,477* *8,742* *8,337*
- Property-Casualty EUR mn 1,503 1,039 4,232 3,744
- Life/Health EUR mn 1,052 1,069 3,197 3,351
- Asset Management EUR mn 650 588 1,897 1,743
- Corporate and Other EUR mn -210 -211 -588 -476
- Consolidation EUR mn -7 -8 4 -26
*Net income* *EUR mn* *1,921* *1,670* *5,946* *5,683*
- attributable to non-controlling interests EUR mn -15 104 181 307
- attributable to shareholders EUR mn 1,936 1,566 5,765 5,376
*Basic earnings per share* *EUR* *4.55* *3.53* *13.42* *11.98*
*Diluted earnings per share* *EUR* *4.54* *3.52* *13.36* *11.98*
*Additional KPIs*
- Group Return on equity^1,2 % 14.2% 11.8% 13.8% 11.8%
- Property-Casualty Combined ratio % 93.1% 96.9% 94.0% 95.4%
- Life/Health New business margin % 3.5% 3.4% 3.4% 3.3%
- Life/Health Value of new business EUR mn 476 410 1,456 1,332
- Asset Management Cost-income ratio % 62.5% 61.9% 62.0% 62.6%
09/30/2018 12/31/2017
*Shareholders' equity*^1 *EUR bn* *-* *-* *60.1* *65.6*
*Solvency II capitalization ratio*^3 *%* *-* *-* *229%* *229%*
*Third-party assets under management* *EUR bn* *-* *-* *1,487* *1,448*
Please note: The figures are presented in millions of Euros, unless otherwise stated. Due to rounding, numbers presented may not add up precisely to the totals provided and percentages may not precisely reflect the absolute figures.
(1) Excluding non-controlling interests.
(2) Excluding unrealized gains/losses on bonds, net of shadow accounting. RoE for 3Q 2018 and 9M 2018 is annualized. For 3Q 2017 and 9M 2017, the return on equity for the full year 2017 is shown. Annualized figures are not a forecast for full year numbers.
(3) Risk capital figures are group diversified at 99.5% confidence level.
These assessments are, as always, subject to the disclaimer provided below.
*Cautionary note regarding forward-looking statements*
The statements contained herein may include prospects, statements of future expectations and other forward-looking statements that are based on management's current views and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Actual results, performance or events may differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements.
Such deviations may arise due to, without limitation, (i) changes of the general economic conditions and competitive situation, particularly in the Allianz Group's core business and core markets, (ii) performance of financial markets (particularly market volatility, liquidity and credit events), (iii) frequency and severity of insured loss events, including from natural catastrophes, and the development of loss expenses, (iv) mortality and morbidity levels and trends, (v) persistency levels, (vi) particularly in the banking business, the extent of credit defaults, (vii) interest rate levels, (viii) currency exchange rates including the EUR/USD exchange rate, (ix) changes in laws and regulations, including tax regulations, (x) the impact of acquisitions, including related integration issues, and reorganization measures, and (xi) general competitive factors, in each case on a local, regional, national and/or global basis. Many of these factors may be more likely to occur, or more pronounced, as a result of terrorist activities and their consequences.
*No duty to update*
The company assumes no obligation to update any information or forward-looking statement contained herein, save for any information required to be disclosed by law.
*Other*
The figures regarding the net assets, financial position and results of operations have been prepared in conformity with International Financial Reporting Standards. This Quarterly and First Nine Months Earnings Release is not an Interim Financial Report within the meaning of International Accounting Standard (IAS) 34.
This is a translation of the German Quarterly and first nine months Earnings Release of the Allianz Group. In case of any divergences, the German original is binding.
*Privacy Note*
Allianz SE is committed to protecting your personal data. Find out more in our *Privacy Statement*.
--------------------
09.11.2018 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 --------------------
Language: English
Company: Allianz SE
Königinstr. 28
80802 München
Germany
Phone: +49 (0)89 38 00 - 41 24
Fax: +49 (0)89 38 00 - 38 99
E-mail: investor.relations@allianz.com
Internet: www.allianz.com
ISIN: DE0008404005
WKN: 840400
Indices: DAX-30, EURO STOXX 50
Listed: Regulated Market in Berlin, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt (Prime Standard), Hamburg, Hanover, Munich, Stuttgart; Regulated Unofficial Market in Tradegate Exchange
End of News DGAP News Service Reported by EQS Group 4 hours ago.
↧
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PEORIA, Ill. (PRWEB) November 09, 2018
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PEORIA, Ill. (PRWEB) November 09, 2018
Halfpricesoft.com developer’s have just released the 2018 version of ez1095 to the US. Companies and accountants seeking an easier way to file the ACA form 1095 and 1094 can download the latest ez1095 software and begin processing immediately. Ez1095 software can prepare and print form 1095 B, 1094 B, 1095 C and 1095 B.
Current customers of the 2017 version can easily roll data forward from last year to this year in record time. This software remains compatible with Windows 10, 8.1, 8, 7, and Vista.
“Developers at Halfpricesoft.com have just released the 2018 version of ez1095 software for the upcoming 2019 tax season.” said Dr. Ge, the founder of Halfpricesoft.com.
The quick start guide for ez1095 software allows for easy installation and setup. ez1095 2018 software’s graphical interface leads customers step-by-step through setting up company, adding employees, add forms and print forms. Customers can also click form level help links to get more details regarding the software.
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The main features include:· Print ACA forms 1095 and 1094 on blank paper with inkjet or laser printer.
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· Print recipient copies in PDF format.
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· Print unlimited number of 1095 and 1094 forms.
· Fast data import feature
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About halfpricesoft.com
Founded in 2003, Halfpricesoft.com has established itself as a leader in meeting the software needs of small businesses around the world with its payroll software, employee attendance tracking software, check printing software, W2 software, 1099 software and barcode generating software. It continues to grow with its philosophy that small business owners need affordable, user friendly, super simple, and totally risk-free software. Reported by PRWeb 30 minutes ago.
↧
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