IN BRIEF: Former Blue Cross CEO Endows USC Center; Kaiser Sponsors Digital Startup Incubator; Sutter Health Donates $500,000 Toward Storm Relief
Former Blue Cross CEO Endows USC Center With $25 Million
Former Blue Cross of California/WellPoint Chief Executive Officer Leonard D. Schaeffer has pledged $25 million toward the endowment of the Center for Health Policy and Economics at the University of Southern California.
Schaeffer, who helmed Blue Cross of California and its for-profit spinoff WellPoint Inc. between 1986 and 2004, originally endowed the center in 2009. It operates in conjunction with USC’s schools of public policy and pharmacy. It has received more than $45 million in external research funding grants from such institutions as the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
“Our nation faces grave health and fiscal challenges. I support this center because its rigorous, independent and interdisciplinary research provides the foundation for designing effective policies to address these issues in both the public and private sectors," Schaeffer said.
Schaeffer currently acts as an advisor to TPG Capital, a private equity firm, and teaches at USC.
Kaiser Sponsors Digital Startup Incubator
Kaiser Permanente has agreed to be a sponsor of Rock Health, a San Francisco-based accelerator for digital healthcare startups.
“We look forward to partnering with Rock Health to further explore how we can bring healthcare into the digital age in ways that enhance the patient-clinician relationship,” said Wendy Lee, a Kaiser senior vice president and chief information officer.
The Oakland-based Kaiser has been a champion of electronic health records, and two-thirds of its enrollees use digital health tools. Terms of the partnership were not disclosed.
“Kaiser Permanente’s broad and deep perspectives as a leading provider of health benefits and health services will be invaluable to the startups in our ecosystem,” said Rock Health Chief Executive Officer Halle Tecco.
Rock Health’s other partners include the Mayo Clinic, Harvard Medical School and UC San Francisco.
Sutter Health Donates $500,000 Toward Sandy Relief Efforts
Sacramento-based hospital chain Sutter Health has donated $500,000 to the American Red Cross as part of the relief efforts on the East Coast in the aftermath of superstorm Sandy.
“The damage caused by superstorm Sandy is indescribable," said Patrick Fry, president and CEO of Sutter Health. “Our thoughts go out to everyone affected. We hope our donation brings comfort to our fellow Americans in their time of great need.”
In addition to the donation for Sandy-related damage, Sutter also reported that its employees raised more than $661,000 this year that will be donated to the California chapter of the March of Dimes.
“Sutter Health physicians, nurses and staff inspire us with the creative ways they support March of Dimes in California—from community walks to engaging in our programmatic work and much more. Because of their vibrant spirit and our longstanding clinical partnership, more and more babies are getting the healthy start at life they deserve,” said Karyn DeMartini, director of the March of Dimes in California.
