This transcription is provided by artificial intelligence. We believe in technology but understand that even the most intelligent robots can sometimes get speech recognition wrong.

 Welcome to this Weekend in Health. It, it's Tuesday News Day where we look at the news, which will impact health it today. Oh, we've got so much going on. We're gonna talk a little bit about the, uh, Optum naviHealth deal. We will talk about, um, you know, people coming back to the hospitals at what rate and what things to look at.

We're gonna look at, uh, American Hospitals expansion into China. We're gonna look at CMOs, uh, comparing notes in Philadelphia and some other things. My name is Bill Russell Healthcare, CIO, coach and creator of this week. In health it a set of podcasts and videos and collaboration events dedicated to developing the next generation of health leaders.

This episode and every episode since we started the C Ovid 19 series has been sponsored by Sirius Healthcare. It is their commitment to making this content available that has made the daily episodes possible. Special thanks to Sirius for supporting the show's efforts during the crisis. I want to thank those of you who sent

Over stories for me to cover it is extremely helpful. I really do appreciate it. If you find a story that you think I should cover on this show, please shoot me an email with a link to Bill at this week in health it.com. Uh, if you have a reason you think the story's important, please share it with me as well.

That is really helpful. Okay, let's get to the news. There's a lot to talk about. Alright, we'll start with Optum buys Nava Health. . So I'm getting this from two places. I'm getting it from, uh, the Becker story, optimize naviHealth five details, and I'm getting it from, uh, a healthcare z Uh, Dr. Eric Bricker does these videos and I love them.

And, uh, I'm, they keep showing up in my LinkedIn feed. I finally signed up for them and I contacted Dr. Bricker and we recorded a show. So you're gonna be hearing from him in the next couple of weeks. Uh, so let me give you a couple of the details here. So Optum bought, not NavaHealth. naviHealth is a, uh, company that does post discharge for Medicare Advantage clients.

Uh, the company manages post-acute services for about four and a half million Medicare Advantage members. Serves more than 140 hospitals in the CMS bundled payments for care improvement advancement, our advanced program. Uh, okay, so that's some of the details. You know, here's what I loved about Eric. Uh, Dr.

Bricker's, uh, analysis. He talked about the, the reason he feels like this is, uh, this was successful. Um. , first of all, you know, and this actually gets into my, so what, the first thing is, this is a big number in and of itself, but this is during the pandemic. And, uh, Optum has the money to purchase naviHealth for two and a half billion dollars.

Uh, or at a valuation of two and a half billion, I think only a billion, billion one or something like that. Change stands. Um. You know, and then Dr. Berger sort of broke, broke this down, which I really liked. He said, you know, they, they've defined a very solvable problem, which was readmissions. Then they created a business model that really worked for a lot of health systems.

They went at risk, they went at risk for Medicare Advantage population. Um, and how that works is the, the government gives a lump sum. To the, uh, to the health systems to take care of this Medicare advantage population. If they can reduce the cost, they make more profit. And where, uh, naviHealth came in with the business model was to essentially say, we'll keep a percentage of that profit, but we're driving your profit up as a whole.

So that was the second thing. The third thing he talked about was how they had a perfectly . Uh, connected an involved investor, investor in Tom Scully who served in both Bush Bush administrations. He ran CMS, uh, uh, Federation of American Hospitals and whatnot. So they had a, an active investor who was very well connected within healthcare.

That's how you get to 140 hospitals, four and a half million Medicare advantage, uh, members. And then finally, he finally got to talking about the software data analytics. . Um, and, uh, and the software. And it's interesting, you know, that's the fourth priority in there. And he makes that point that the software really follows, uh, defining a, a solvable problem.

Uh, creating the right business model, having the right people on your board or in your leadership team, and then, uh, creating a model that works. The other thing that they did, which was pretty effective, is they didn't rely only on the technology. They actually put humans on site. , right? So, uh, and they didn't rely on the health systems staff to figure it out.

They put humans on site who utilize the software to drive those savings. Um, pretty successful model . Interesting one to follow. And that's the reason I, uh, do that as a, uh, as a, so what it's, uh, you know, it's an interesting form formula for health tech startups to consider. And I believe he's right. I think it is.

I think that model solvable pro problem, good business model at risk or just good business model, a highly connected . Uh, uh, board member or leadership and then the software, the software has to be good. Uh, but I think too many tech startups move that software up to number two, even number one, and they think, oh, the software will win the day.

And it doesn't. Um, it is, it is really about the business model and having the right business problem. Alright. Story number two, I'm gonna try to move through these stories. I've gotten a little lazy and only doing three or four stories. I'm gonna try to do a little bit more today. So Kaiser Health News, about half of the public says they have skipped or postponed medical care because of the Coronavirus outbreak.

And in fact, I think that's all I'm really gonna share from this if I go to this story. Um, nothing really . Uh, I mean, I'm not gonna share with you, with you anything that you don't already know. They asked the question in the past three months, have you or your family member in your household skipped or postponed any type of medical care because of the coronavirus outbreak?

And as you would imagine, uh, you know, close to 50% said, I. Yes, they have. I think the so what on this is I don't think we're all just gonna be, uh, able to sit back and all of a sudden these people are gonna magically appear on our doorstep. I think we're gonna have to create, uh, campaigns to do outreach.

We're gonna have to go out and get them back into the pipeline, get them back into the, uh, the, the workflows so that they, uh, schedule those appointments, schedule those procedures. And come back in. So I think that's gonna be a key to restoring revenue and, and, uh, and, and restoring the revenue streams quickly, which I think is gonna be important.

Uh, next article, and I think this is an interesting one as well. Uh, this somehow made it into my feed. I'm not sure how, but it it did, it's from the wire China and the, uh, story reads, American hospitals take the China Road, um. Let's see. It starts with, in a Chinese medical market, predicted to be $2.4 trillion, which is most likely the reason why American hospitals are taking the China Road 2.4 trillion.

Uh, more famed US clinics team up with private companies to get in on the action. Okay, so I, you know, this is a, this is a diversification strategy. That's what's going on. Let me, let me give you a little details of what's going on. Uh, the US hospitals are coming to China at a time when the government is relaxing restrictions on who can provide medical care.

According to a report published last year by Deloitte, the consulting firm, uh. The consulting firm, about two thirds of the country, approximately 35,000 hospitals are now privately managed. While few American hospitals make detailed disclosures about their Chinese ventures, analysts say that most of the deals consist of lucrative consulting agreements in which American medical institutions provide support and advice on hospital management and clinical practices.

In addition, Chinese hospitals often pay a hefty licensing fee in order to affiliate themselves with the brand name. American Hospitals. So let me give you a, um, let me pull this up in my browser and I'll give you a couple of the deals. Uh, they have a nice little chart in the middle of this thing.

So, uh, a lot of deals going on. The, you know, the, uh. Uh, when I read this article, none of that really surprised me. We've, we had, uh, been talking about this, uh, for a while. Uh, you know, these are significant deals that diversify the revenue of health systems, and that's what they're looking to do. They're looking to diversify, uh, not be as tied to, uh, the American healthcare market and the reimbursements that are there.

Uh, these give them another revenue stream. Uh, you know, these are gonna continue to be the norm as countries climb . The affluence ladder and seek better care. Uh, China is not the only location this is happening in. I think everybody knows that. Uh, we've seen, uh, some, uh, partnerships in the Middle East.

We've seen, uh, now partnerships in the uk even, uh, you know, the brands alone represent significant value, and so this is unlocking the value of the brand itself. But eventually it will be . Uh, things like digital care pathways and solutions that make these partnerships even more valuable. Um, I, the thing I, uh, the reason I have it on this week in health, it is, uh, you know, I think technology leaders will have to become more adept at really understanding the different geographies, regulations, and cultures in order to create value for these types of partnerships.

So that is just something to keep an eye on. I think that's gonna continue to, uh, grow. As I said, we are exporting healthcare around the world. Regardless of how bad you hear it is. Um, the brands are strong. The, uh, the care that people receive in the America. They used to travel thousands of miles to come to America to get the best healthcare in the world.

And we are now exporting, uh, that, uh, knowledge and that expertise, uh, around the world. So, um, that's gonna continue. Next story, strengthen numbers. Philly area c MiOS. See value in collaborating. So let me pull this one up. Take me a second. . Here we are, healthcare innovation, um, which is a, uh, group that I pull a lot of stories from.

This is, uh, David Wraths. So strength in Numbers Philadelphia area CMOs see value in collaborating, uh, progress by nine health systems on data sharing, paying off during the Covid pandemic. Uh, I, I'm gonna share this because. I believe we saw a lot of collaboration happen during, um, during the Coronavirus Pandemic and uh, and I think that's gonna form the foundation for ongoing

Uh, collaboration between health systems, and I think this is an interesting one, so I'm gonna read a little bit here. So, in early 20 18, 3 Philadelphia Area Health Systems all went live on the same EHR vendor. With the addition of these three, there were a total of nine health systems using the same EHR vendor in the region.

We decided the time was right to bring together the CMIOs and assistant CMIOs. For these nine health systems, Bish, uh, Benish, I should probably say who that is. Let's see. Joe Joel Bish, md Medical Informatics Officer at uh, Penn. Um. Beh said, just within the city of Philadelphia, they could bring together Penn Chop, Jefferson, and Temple.

These topics fell into four categories. The first was EHR enhancements that require regional cooperation to accomplish a good example. INV involves sharing clinical records with each oth, uh, with with each other. We proposed making an agreement that all patients would be automatically opted in to free sharing with the rest, also communication with each other via direct address.

Across instances of our EHR and also linking local resources to social determinants of health in our EHR Bish Explained. Another issue was how to get the EHR data from the recently closed large academic hospital, Hahnemann University Hospital. Uh, the second category revolved around, uh, currently used EHR features, including reconciliation of medication lists with each other, which may sound simple, but it's surprisingly complex.

Okay, let's get to the third. The third category was the potential use of new features such as real-time, prescription benefits, and cancel rx. Which means if Penn Medicine cancels a prescription and it's EHR, that information will get transmitted to . The pharmacy, obviously great for, uh, uh, really handling the opioid e epidemic.

And then the, uh, final one was collaborating on, uh, regulations, uh, interesting framework, interesting model. I think, uh, I shared the whole model with you because I think it's a good, good place to start if you have come together as a result of covid and now you're stepping back. It's, um. Uh, you know, it's, it's a good way to, uh, think their framework was pretty simple, but, uh, I think, uh, yielded some good results.

Um, you know, the one question I have is, does it have to be centered around a common HR? Uh, obviously I think, you know, I. It, it, it may be centered around the EHR because the collaborations, uh, are, are just easier, right? And they, they really don't rely on complex projects that require HIT to participate.

In many cases, you know, the collaborators are connected directly with the R providers. They can make requests, they can make little changes here and there, uh, without the use of of health it. Uh, I think it's also interesting CMIOs as associate CMIOs, uh, and no technology. Uh, players are at that table, even though an awful lot of it is going to take place across the technology.

I, I'm not saying that's a bad thing. I'm saying that, uh, I think that's a common thing that we have to be, uh, ready for and understand that it is happening. All right. Uh, healthcare Giant, Kaiser Permanente, considering private wireless LTE Network. Let me pull this one up. Here we go. Um, this is interesting to me.

So, uh. , Kristen Klein is in charge of a network strategy for Kaiser Permanente, the nation's largest nonprofit health plan with 12 million members, 39 hospitals, 84 billion in revenue, um, and . , uh, he recently completed Cornell University's five g for business online program. Uh, but when he thinks about how wireless technologies can solve business problems for Kaiser, five G isn't the only technology that he's keeping an eye on.

So I find this interesting 'cause what he goes on to talk about is how, um. There's a, uh, there's a spectrum, the three and a half gigahertz spectrum band that has been dubbed the Citizens Broadband Radio, CBRS, service, CBRS. Um, and, uh, you know, people are talking about five G and they're talking about wifi and connecting up all these devices.

But he goes on to say, patient monitoring and critical communications are the use cases that Klein needs to support with robust networking technologies. Currently, most of Kaiser Permanente connected devices use cables. Dedicated wireless frequencies or wifi. We've been progressing, uh, progressing wifi because we've, we have to be really good at it, and we're going to have to be really good at it going forward.

But I see an impending wave of additional devices. And we're going to have to have an answer to how do we deal with that said, client CBRS uh, came at the right time to be a potential answer. Uh, he goes on to talk about how CBRS could potentially offer, uh, more secure and, uh, more reliable bandwidth within the hospital, given all the challenges that, um, that are there now.

Interesting story. What do I like about this story? The thing I like the most about this story is thinking outside the box. Uh, I'm not sure about the solution really, to be honest with you. Um, it's a little bit beyond my technical pay grade at this point, but it is interesting to consider the limitations of five G and wifi.

And I would look at the limitations of five G and wifi. Uh, they hold so much promise, they're high on the hype site, or five G is high on the hype cycle right now. Um. I de whenever anything's at the, uh, at, on the hype cycle and, and, and peaking always look for its limitations so that you can, uh, plan for and understand when it starts to drop, uh, into the trough of disillusionment.

Um, and so the, these other frequencies are interesting to me and offer a, uh, interesting opportunity. Uh, how many, that's not nearly enough stories. Let's see, what else do we have here? I, you know, I'm gonna, I'm gonna save all these, I've. Five telehealth stories. Um, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 6 telehealth stories. I'll wet your appetite a little bit.

Um, I'm probably gonna do a whole, uh, episode next week on telehealth. That's, yeah, that is absolutely what I'll do. Um, one of the stories, network World Zeus, car Valla. Interesting. Uh, um, . Zeus Kea. K-E-R-R-A-V-A-L-A. There you go. Uh, as, as the Covid 19 crisis grew, areas that lacked high speed internet access, couldn't benefit from remote telehealth exams.

Um, COVID 19 trained critical services, and he, he goes on to talk about, uh, the digital divide and that's . The part I'll share with you before we end the show. Um, no single company has a technology or business model to single handedly close the digital divide. Industry collaboration and small investments in expanding connectivity options is what will make a big difference in people's quality of life.

Cisco called on tech leaders to direct their energy and resources towards developing solutions focused on global inclusion. This means creating broader access to healthcare and social services powered by cost-effective, efficient technologies that meet local needs. Bringing the internet to underserved populations could lift 500 million people out of poverty and add more than $6 trillion to the global economy.

Sid Jonathan Davidson, senior Vice President, general Manager of Cisco's Mass Scale infrastructure. Um, I, there's a bunch of interesting stats in this, um, in this article just talking about. Uh, things like, uh, about 20% of the Texas prison system doesn't have access to high speed internet and without it, nearly 40,000 inmates cannot get telehealth services.

I think I find that interesting. Um, rural healthcare I find interesting. Um, you know, the pandemic was a global, um, a global pandemic, so you had a whole bunch of areas that could not benefit from telehealth. We're gonna have to consider this . Uh, you know, telehealth is really interesting. I'm hearing a lot of people talking about the solutions they need to put in place in the hospitals themselves, but we're gonna have to keep this idea of the connectivity at the other end in mind as we're designing solutions.

Uh, we're going to still need to have some, um, some either low tech or low bandwidth type, uh, solutions that, uh, that we are. . Uh, considering. So, um, anyway, that what's your appetite for next week? We'll do, we'll do a pretty deep dive into telehealth and see where we're going. That's all for the news for this week.

Special thanks to our sponsors, VMware Starbridge Advisors, Galen Healthcare Health lyrics, Sears Healthcare and Protel and advisors for choosing to invest. In developing the next generation of health IT leaders, this show is a production of this week in Health it. For more great content, check out the website this week, health.com, or the YouTube channel.

If you wanna support the show, the best way to do that is to share it with a peer. Send 'em an email, let them know the value you're getting outta the show. Hey, there's a lot of ways to uh, subscribe. You can do it. On iTunes, on Google Podcast, on Spotify, on uh, on Stitcher. Uh, I use an app on my phone called Overcast.

There's a lot of ways to get the show. Um, I get my show as well as several others, uh, and, uh, right there on Overcast. It's fantastic. Anytime I go for a walk, I'm listening to a podcast. Um, please check back every day through the end of June as we will continue to drop shows. . Until we get through this pandemic together.

Thanks for listening. That's all for now.