News and notes from the day in MedCity, Ohio:
Northeast Ohio’s largest grocery store chain — Giant Eagle of Pittsburgh, Penn. — is teaming up with Akron’s biggest health system — Summa Health System — to operate walk-in clinics inside its supermarkets in Wadsworth and on Kent Road in Stow, according to the Akron Beacon Journal. Giant Eagle also confirmed last week that it has a deal with University Hospitals to staff retail clinics in its Cleveland-area stores. Summa’s cross-town rival, Akron General Health System, has partnered with Acme Fresh Market since 2008 to staff walk-in clinics. Meanwhile,the Cleveland Clinic partners with MinuteClinic, which runs walk-in medical practices inside CVS Pharmacy stores.
Meridian Bioscience Inc. in Cincinnati said in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing Monday that its chief executive, John A. Kraeutler, plans to sell up to 100,000 shares of his company’s stock in “specified share amounts at specified market prices.” The disclosure was part of a stock trading plan required by the securities regulator.
With the Rise of AI, What IP Disputes in Healthcare Are Likely to Emerge?
Munck Wilson Mandala Partner Greg Howison shared his perspective on some of the legal ramifications around AI, IP, connected devices and the data they generate, in response to emailed questions.
A state law passed nearly four years ago that requires hospitals to provide extensive quality and pricing information to the Ohio Department of Health is expected to result in a consumer-friendly Web site on New Year’s Day, according to the Columbus Dispatch. The site is called Ohio Hospital Compare and will feature more than 100 quality measures, including mortality and infection rates and how often specific medical procedures are performed at a hospital. There is even information about whether a hospital has a hand-washing program for its health workers.
“This bill is an important step toward strengthening Ohio’s middle class families,” U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, an Avon Democrat, said Saturday about improvements to his chamber’s health care reform bill. “When it comes to health insurance, this bill would help those with insurance, those without, and those who fear they won’t have coverage tomorrow. It would immediately reduce insurance premiums for small businesses and over time would reduce the $1,000 hidden tax that every family with insurance now pays to make up for uncompensated care provided to those without insurance.”
Researchers in the molecular genetics, biochemistry and microbiology department at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine have received $358,323 in federal stimulus funds to upgrade a high-powered spectrometer used in structural biology research, according to a university press release. The National Institutes of Health grant will be used to replace the console for one of the department’s five nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometers, which allows scientists to determine the three-dimensional structure of molecules and obtain detailed structural pictures of complex proteins.
Lake Health System has named Dr. David Rollins, a vascular surgeon at West Medical Center, and Dr. John Baniewicz, an internist at TriPoint Medical Center, as Physicians of the Year for 2009.
A Personalized Approach to Medication Nonadherence
At the Abarca Forward conference earlier this year, George Van Antwerp, managing director at Deloitte, discussed how social determinants of health and a personalized member experience can improve medication adherence and health outcomes.
Mark A. Smith, pathology professor at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine has been awarded the distinction American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellow. Election as a fellow is an honor bestowed upon AAAS members by their peers.
