Health IT, adieu 2015, accueillir 2016

Been an interesting year. Lots of chatter (ranging from the euphorically optimistic to the contentious, cynical, and bitter), less in the way of actual, well, "transformation" (Recall "Free Beer Tomorrow?")

I've been distracted a good bit in 2015 by my own interaction with the "shards" of our healthcare "system" from the patient's POV. Finished up two months of daily Calypso radiation treatment in November, and, in the wake of my first follow-up with my oncologist, looks like I'm good to go. Now I just gotta get back in shape. To that end, we bought a fancy NordicTrack rowing machine, and I've started giving it my Frank Underwood best.

~240 calories an hour? Jeesh...
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2015 started with a flourish for me via the inaugural Health 2.0 "WinterTech Conference" in January. Also extremely noteworthy early on, "Announcing the launch of Dr. Jerome Carter's Clinical Workflow Center."

The mid-year "Healthcare Lean Transformation Summit 2015" in Dallas was definitely a KHIT highlight. Progressive, effective process QI is alive and well. I'm going to the 2016 Summit in Miami. Dr. Toussaint told me "bring your axe."

I ended my conference coverage year at Health 2.0 2015 in Santa Clara. See here, here, here, and here. It was problematic, given that I had to bail mid-day every day to run up the freeway to Pleasant Hill for radiation tx.

Spent a lot of time in 2015 ruminating on the dx/tx implications of "The Omics," study that will no doubt continue and deepen. You have to worry about Gartner Hype Cycle stuff there.

Also of ongoing interest, "artificial intelligence (AI) and intelligence augmentation (IA)" and their implications for medical science and health care. See "AI vs IA: At the cutting edge of IT R&D."

Of course, there're also the usual: Health IT "usability"/UX, workflow, the beleaguered Meaningful Use program, "Interoperababble," healthcare workforce culture, clinical pedagogy, and so forth.

UP NEXT

From THCB:

Health 2.0 Presents the Final Agenda for WinterTech 2016

Health 2.0 announces the final agenda for the WinterTech conference, January 13, 2016 in San Francisco, California. As the only event dedicated to health tech and investing during the health investment mecca, JP Morgan Week, the event features leaders from Venrock, Canvas, Grand Rounds, Doximity, Livongo, Omada Health, Maverick Capital, GE Ventures, Kaiser Permanente and more. The conference brings together top health tech entrepreneurs, investors, and the health care establishment to discuss financial and business trends. “Everyone knows by now that health tech is a hot place for venture investing,” says Health 2.0’s Co-Founder Matthew Holt. “At Health 2.0 WinterTech, we are going to uncover the secrets of how the top VCs think and how they work with the star CEOs.” Key speakers will include:

• Vinod Khosla: Founder, Khosla Ventures. Vinod will discuss his thoughts on the digital health care space, his investments, and more with Health 2.0 CEO & Co-Founder, Indu Subaiya.
• Bryan Roberts: Partner, Venrock. Known as the original digital health VC, Bryan has made a lasting impact in the health care landscape. Health 2.0’s Co-Founder Matthew Holt will have a one-on-one with Bryan to address what investing in digital health really means.
• Jonathan Bush: CEO and Co-Founder, athenahealth. A firm believer in creating a marketplace that allows the unlimited and effective exchange of health information, Jonathan is set to keynote at this year’s conference.

With sessions addressing New Clinical Tools and Platforms, the Convergence of Life Sciences and Health Tech, the New Consumer Health Ecosystem and more, other speaker highlights include:

• Owen Tripp, CEO, Grand Rounds
• Glen Tullman, CEO, Livongo Health
• Sean Duffy, CEO, Omada Health
• Rebecca Lynn, Co-Founder & Partner, Canvas
• Jeff Tangney, CEO, Doximity
• Joan Kennedy, VP Consumer Health Engagement, Cigna
• John Mattison, CMIO, Assistant Medical Director, Kaiser Permanente
• Peter Ohnemus, President & CEO, dacadoo
• Jody Holtzman, SVP, AARP
• Ruchita Sinha, Director, GE Ventures
• Ankur Luther, Executive Director, Morgan Stanley
• David Duncan, Co-Founder & CEO, Arc Programs
• Carolyne Zimmermann, Partner, Novartis dRx Capital
• Ambar Bhattacharyya, Managing Director, Maverick      Capital
• Dave Francis, Managing Director, RBC Capital Markets

… Plus over 20 more speakers including live product demos.
Health 2.0 is famous for its incredible selection of LIVE demos, and this year you’ll see:

• Redox
• Lyra Health
• Accordion Health
• Bigfoot Biomedical
• Outset Medical
• dacadoo
• Propeller Health
• LifeQ
• physIQ

An exclusive Investor Breakfast is open to attending startups looking to discuss business models, examine trends, and explore portfolios before the mainstage kickoff. This year’s investors include Norvartis dRx Capital, Maverick Capital, Sandbox, Ziegler, HealthBox, Link-age Ventures, Arsenal Venture Partners, and more. Apply to attend by submitting your application here.

Learn more about the agenda here and visit the registration website to attend. We were sold out last year so buy your tickets soon!

About WinterTech

Through fireside chats, interviews, and compelling panel discussions, Health 2.0’s WinterTech brings together historically distinct industries in health to challenge the current landscape and push it towards an environment that is user driven, informed, and financially profitable for all players involved.

The VC/capital investing thing will be of particular personal interest this coming year. My Niece's husband Jeff Nyquist, who holds a Vanderbilt PhD in neuropsychology, is launching a startup.

The initial focus will be on virtual reality cognitive training for elite athletes, both for improving aggregate performance and for reducing the risk of injury -- particularly concussion injuries (now much in the news).

I watched an interesting interview yesterday featuring writer Gregg Easterbrook on the topic of concussion injury in football.

He noted that, while all of the media attention is focused on the NFL, a huge wave of brain injury litigation is coming at the high school level, and may well wipe out many high school football programs -- which, of course, feed the NCAA "farm league" system that in turn feeds the NFL.

In addition to collision-mitigating rule changes, perhaps "neural training" can be beneficial.

HIMSS 2016

HIMSS returns to Vegas.

There are not many cities with sufficient convention capacity to accommodate HIMSS. Won't be a problem in Vegas. I've again applied for a "social media ambassador" press pass. This, if granted, will be my 4th trip to HIMSS on a media comp, beginning with the 2012 Conference in Vegas.

This should be interesting, in light of current news.

Hope he's clean. Unfortunate timing for HIMSS.

ERRATUM

Relatively quiet on the fragmentation front at the moment. All I have are intermittent follow-ups in 2016. We've decided to jettison the BCBS/RI high-deductible HSA coverage in favor of straight Medicare A and B (and including Part-D Rx coverage and a MediGap Part-B Supp). My wife's employer notified them of pending large premium increases for 2016. We'd not known it, but her company is "self-insuring." The bumbling, obstructive BCBS/RI merely serves as their Plan Administrator. Gilbane doesn't have a big enough risk pool, and their 2015 claims loss experience has squeezed them big-time.

Medicare B/D/Supp won't be "free," but at least they will comprise "first-dollar coverage" (to a degree) and be pretty much a net wash in terms of monthly premium outlay (a lot of this stuff is not really "insurance," anyway, it's 3rd-party intermediated "pre-payment").

Interestingly, I went to the "Covered California" website and did some coverage searching. The "silver" plans were all just below $900 per month for someone like me. My total personal Medicare premium outlay, in contrast, will be on the order of $207 per month.

I'm now fully a Medicare "bene." My wife will be shortly as well once she finishes her Part-D and MediGap Supp apps.
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More to come...