Jim Alender has been CEO of Howard Regional Health System in Kokomo since 1997. He recently negotiated a letter of intent to merge the hospital with Indianapolis-based Indiana University Health. He spoke about the major factors that led to that decision, and the benefits he hopes to come from it. The deal, which still requires approval from Howard County officials, could close before the end of this year.
A federal judge blocked parts of Indiana's new immigration law, saying the law was the latest failed effort of states to deal with a primarily federal issue.
A 10-member commission told city leaders to turn the defunct 115-acre General Motors metal stamping plant site into a hip, funky neighborhood with an eye-catching bridge across the White River for easy access to downtown.
The bankruptcy filing of an electric car manufacturer has clouded the future of a northern Indiana factory that was touted as an economic boost for an area hit hard by job losses in the recreational vehicle industry.
Tomisue Hilbert quietly settled a 3-year-old lawsuit last month over whether a controversial life insurance policy issued in 2006 on her mother, Suzy Tomlinson, was valid, and whether the beneficiary of the policy, J.B. Carlson, committed fraud.
The city plans to tap a taxing district downtown to help pay for the Bush Stadium renovation, rekindling concern among some elected officials and taxing experts that the Mayor’s Office is using the massive district to fund whatever special city needs crop up.
The recently announced 16 Tech District adds a new tool to Indianapolis’ strong life sciences arsenal.
What we gain by having the Colts and Pacers is mainly a psychological benefit. We feel that we are big league because we have big-league teams carrying our name.
Entrepreneurship is a grand game and money is simply a means of keeping score. The essence of entrepreneurship is the joy of the game.
Save for a bust in the lobby of the City-County Building, you would never know he had ever been around.
The North of South mixed-use project in downtown Indianapolis is just the latest development for Brad Chambers, who started out in the landscaping business.
Wishard Health Services will change its name to Eskenazi Health after receiving a $40 million gift from Indianapolis real estate developer Sidney Eskenazi and his wife Lois, the county-owned hospital announced Wednesday morning.
Anthem Blue Cross, an affiliate of WellPoint Inc., has agreed to settle a lawsuit that accused the health insurer of manipulating policies and forcing patients into higher deductible policies with fewer benefits.
Indiana University Health named Lisa M. Brandt vice president of IU Health Orthopedic Services. Most recently, Brandt served as senior vice president at Strategic Healthcare Group. Brandt graduated from Indiana University with a degree in health education and earned her master's in health care management from Ball State University.
Warsaw-based DePuy Orthopedics named Andrew Ekdahl its new CEO, replacing David Floyd, who resigned in March amid a damaging recall of one of DePuy's hip replacement lines that's already cost the company nearly $1 billion in legal expenses. Ekdahl, a 20-year veteran of the subsidiary of New Jersey-based Johnson & Johnson, was the franchise vice president for DePuy Europe, Middle East and Africa.
Tim Leman has been promoted to CEO of Gibson Insurance Agency Inc., a South Bend-based broker of employee benefits. Leman replaces Greg Downes, who is stepping down as CEO, but will remain chairman of Gibson's board. Downes had been CEO since 2005. Leman joined Gibson that same year and had been president of the firm since 2009. Leman began his insurance career with Aon Consulting in Indianapolis. He holds a bachelors degree in insurance and risk management from Indiana State University.
Say what? “Excessive hospitality” while promoting its drug Byetta got Eli Lilly and Co. dinged by the U.K.-based Prescription Medicines Code of Practice Authority, a self-regulatory group. And what exactly counts as “excessive”? Seven pints of beer, two gins, two whiskies, seven whisky liqueurs and three large glasses of red wine—oh, and a taxi fare afterward, according to a summary of the case posted by the practice authority. The booze was purchased at an Indian restaurant for three Lilly sales reps and two diabetes nursing specialists. The occasion was the endocrinologist speaking about off-label uses of Byetta. The practice authority asked Lilly to look into the complaints of an ex-employee, but Lilly said there was no case to answer. The authority determined otherwise, which is why it gave Lilly its public flogging.
Indiana University Health has pulled a prominent practice of cancer physicians into its fold. Central Indiana Cancer Centers sold its five facilities to IU Health and transferred its 150 employees to the Indianapolis-based hospital system. The 16 physicians in the practice will remain independent, but they have signed a service agreement with IU Health. Financial terms of the deal, which closed June 1, were not disclosed. But it is a big win for IU Health, as Central Indiana Cancer Centers has a well-established presence in Carmel, Fishers, Greenfield, Greenwood and the east side of Indianapolis. Cancer services are key financially for hospitals because of the growing prevalence of the disease, and also because cancer patients often need surgery. IU Health now has more than 60 medical oncologists, not counting any of its radiation oncologists or cancer surgeons. Central Indiana Cancer Centers, established near Community Hospital-East in 1976, also had discussions with the three other major hospital systems in Indianapolis: Community, St. Vincent Health and Franciscan St. Francis Health. A partnership with a hospital became essential for Central Indiana Cancer Centers as hospitals have spent the past three years gobbling up physicians of all stripes—both primary care doctors and specialists. IU Health Physicians now employs more than 500 doctors and Community Health Network has more than 550.
City officials on Thursday unveiled a long-term plan to redevelop an industrial stretch northwest of downtown with the goal of attracting hundreds of residents and dozens of high-tech companies to the area. The ambitious urban renewal effort, dubbed the 16 Downtown Technology District, builds from a strategy discussed over more than a decade to turn the corridor between IUPUI and 16th Street into a life-sciences research hub. The idea is to create a trendy urban district where residents can live within blocks of work. The project could require $15 million to $20 million in public investment and hundreds of millions of dollars in private investment. It is expected to take 10-20 years to complete. Officials said a final agreement is near for the redevelopment of the historic Bush Stadium site, which is wedged between 16th Street and the White River near Harding Street. The city is contributing about $5 million to the $23 million project, including tax dollars generated in the area and more that will be transferred from the consolidated downtown tax-increment financing district. Developer John Watson said he also is seeking a federal loan to help finance part of the project. Indianapolis also will invest another $3 million in public money to renovate Indiana Avenue from roughly 10th Street to 16th Street with new landscaping, walking paths, bike lanes and other streetscape elements designed to brand the area. That funding will come from initial proceeds from the sale of the city’s water and sewer utilities to Citizens Energy Group.
The Cosmopolitan on the Canal, a 218-unit upscale apartment complex in downtown Indianapolis that cost more than $33 million to build, has been put on the market by Flaherty & Collins Properties.
The latest physician recruitment survey from Texas-based Merritt Hawkins shows three-quarters of all physician searches include a performance bonus for the doctor. Fewer than 10 percent of those bonuses are tied to something other than volume of procedures.
Battered by stagnant population growth and blue-collar job loss, Howard Regional Health is merging with Indiana University Health—a deal that reflects the challenges faced by hospitals in Indiana’s outlying cities.
Merchants’ Square shopping center, built in 1970 as the enclosed Keystone Square Mall and redeveloped into an open-air center and renamed in the mid-1990s, is riddled with vacancies and bracing for another high-profile departure, despite its prime location.
Community Health Network has embarked on a strategy to become a low-cost, high-output machine in order to survive the coming harsh economic environment that an aging population and expanded health care coverage promises for hospitals.
