Even as the health reform debate continues on Capitol Hill, reform is happening on both the local and national level through industry efforts.

During Healthcare Trends in 2010: Marketplace and Health Reform Drivers, a 90-minute webinar on October 29, 2009, now available as a CD-ROM, via On Demand Web access or as a training DVD, William DeMarco, president and CEO of DeMarco and Associates and Jim Knutson, risk manager and human resources director, Aircraft Gear Corporation, examined how the healthcare industry fared in 2009 and what trends will drive the industry in 2010, looking at how the industry is transforming itself with value-based purchasing initiatives and the potential impacts of reform in the coming year.

DeMarco provided an overview of the current status of health reform and the industry’s move toward value-based purchasing and performance-based medicine.

Knutson shared his organization’s experience in participating in the PROMETHEUS payment pilot, which allows Aircraft Gear Corporation to negotiate the purchase of high-quality, evidence-based care from providers and incentivize them to avoid potentially avoidable complications.

Part of an annual webinar series that provides healthcare executives with a look ahead to help shape strategic plans, this session will cover:

• What healthcare opportunities exist;
• Industry developments;
• How the current economic climate is impacting the healthcare industry;
• How healthcare organizations can position themselves to take advantage of current opportunities; and
• The prospects of health reform and the potential impacts.

Have questions on our webinar and/or webinar formats? Visit our webinar FAQ.

You can listen to this program right in your office and enjoy significant savings – no travel time or hassle; no hotel expenses. It’s so convenient! Invite your staff members to gather around a conference table to listen to the CD, DVD or the On Demand version.

Here's what participants said about previous sessions:

"This conference was very useful from a trends perspective," according to a product marketing manager at Siemens.

"The conference had excellent handouts and was useful as background knowledge about the state of the healthcare industry and to grasp current and future trouble spots," according to a senior research analyst with an information solutions company.

"Good overview of industry dynamics," said Robert Mars with Siemens.

"Provided a broad overview of directions that IT and HCPs are taking," said Pamela Garbarino with Columbia Multiservice Market Management Office.

"Good concise overview of challenges, issues, and trends," said one participant.

WHO WILL BENEFIT FROM THIS CONFERENCE?

Presidents/CEOs, CFOs, chief operating officers, vice presidents, medical directors, analysts, business development executives, consultants, directors, executive directors, financial/business managers, marketing executives, principals and strategic planning executives.

ABOUT OUR PANELISTS:

William DeMarco

We'll have a new (healthcare) deal for Christmas — complete with a Rose Garden ceremony — predicts DeMarco.

William J. DeMarco is president and chief executive officer of DeMarco & Associates, Inc. He created the firm based upon 20 years experience in health plan development and management and earned his credentials working with several health plans in the competitive St. Paul /Minneapolis marketplace.

In 1975, DeMarco led the development of the first Medicare and Medicaid health plans in Minnesota as well as commercial programs for large and small employers working for SHARE Health Plan.

In 1980, DeMarco was hired as the lead marketing and development executive in the formation of Clinicare, a locally-owned health plan founded by Rockford Clinic Ltd, the largest multi-specialty medical group in Northern Illinois. The plan grew to over 100,000 members employing 350 people and earned a Triple-A rating as an outstanding insurance company in the state. In his consulting work, DeMarco has dealt with large and small medical groups, hospitals and assisted many employers and insurers in developing better relationships with managed care and advanced their understanding in being a better purchaser of care.

In addition to his knowledge of provider networks, community-based health plans and physician/hospital joint ventures, DeMarco’s experience in new product design combined with his broad national exposure to public payers and employers’ needs, offers providers and employers an up-to-date perspective on more effective ways to stimulate better care system performance, thereby creating improved value to purchasers and consumers.

Based upon this work, DeMarco formulated Pendulum HealthCare Development Corporation, a separate but affiliated company devoted to health data analysis and management of complex infrastructures to support pay-for-performance arrangements between employers and providers.

DeMarco holds undergraduate degrees in Behavioral Science and Management planning and received his master’s in Organizational Development from DePaul University.

DeMarco is a past visiting instructor at Loyola School of Law and holds affiliations with several universities as guest speaker and contributor to various forums and workshops including the Healthcare Financial Management Association where he has been appointed to several local and national committees. He was recently awarded the Follomer Bronze award for outstanding community service.

Jim Knutson

Jim Knutson has been risk manager and human resources director of Aircraft Gear Corporation in Rockford, Ill., a manufacturer of components for the aviation and auto industries, since 1989. He is responsible for all corporate risk management, compensation and benefit programs. Knutson’s areas of interest include developing programs that seek to link employee performance to profitable business operations and, in healthcare, to improve the alignment of coverage criteria with provider payment.

Knutson has been a long-time member of the Midwest Business Group on Health, and is a current member and past chairman of the board of directors. He is also a member of the National Business Group on Health and serves on the committee on Evidence-Based Benefit Design, the Business Advisory Group to the Joint Commission for the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, and a board member and treasurer of PROMETHEUS Payment ® Inc. Knutson is also a member of the data committee of the Employers Coalition on Health, a Rockford, Ill. healthcare purchasing coalition.

Knutson received his bachelor’s degree from Marquette University and his law degree from Northern Illinois University.