[Winona Online Democracy]
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Kathy Seifert
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New clinic caters to the uninsured
$48 fee to Green Bay facility buys discount care for routine ailments
By JOE MANNING
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Posted: Aug. 15, 2004
Green Bay - If Brenda Broberg is successful, her newly opened medical clinic catering to the uninsured may become the Sam's Club of health care.
When the Green Bay clinic's clients - don't call them patients - purchase an annual membership card for $48, they get up to half off on the price of care for common ailments such as earaches, sore throats and sinus infections.
The for-profit business, InformEd Technologies Clinic, opened this month, and it even offers a special introductory deal on memberships: $20.
Almost 9% of Wisconsin residents have no health insurance, and an even greater number have insufficient insurance, both factors driving the cost of health care. Free clinics are overloaded, and some hospitals are turning away patients because of rising debt caused by uncollected bills for the uninsured, the Wisconsin Primary Health Association in Madison reports.
None of these things bothers Broberg, who sees a potential moneymaking niche.
"My passion is to be part of the new health economy," said Broberg, a former health insurance executive.
Her InformEd Technologies Clinic will make money, she contends, because people will pay for care as they receive it - sort of cash and carry health care. Uninsured people often have jobs, but their employers don't provide insurance, Broberg said.
The number is growing as companies cut benefits to save money.
The proportion of Americans under 65 with employer health insurance coverage fell dramatically from 67% in 2001 to 63% in 2003, according to a new study released by the Center for Studying Health System Change.
The business idea behind the clinic, which also sees insured patients, is that it will make money by seeing a lot of patients, even though the margins will be thin. The clinic holds down costs by having services provided by nurse practitioners and licensed practical nurses, overseen by a physician. In all, InformEd employs 40 full- and part-time workers.
"I suspect they will make a killing off this," said Merrill Matthews, director of the Council for Affordable Health Insurance in Washington, D.C. "It's a good deal for the uninsured and it's a good business move that should increase profitability. As far as I can tell it's unique."
Uninsured people generally are charged full price when they seek care because they are not members of insurance plans that negotiate discounts. People will be drawn to a clinic where they can pay less, Matthews said.
"You can make money off the uninsured," he said. "They are often good for the bills, particularly when they have jobs."
Tammie Miller, who as vice president of the Milwaukee-based investment banking firm of Grace Matthews specializes in health care, agrees but has reservations.
"I think it is a great idea, especially in Wisconsin where access to primary care is expensive," Miller said. "It's taking care of the uninsured to a certain point, but it could still leave a load on the system for more serious illnesses to be treated in hospital emergency rooms."
Still, Miller lauded the idea. "Good for them for trying to service a population that is problematic in Wisconsin. They are doing something that other people aren't."
Broberg calls her clinic a prototype for a new type of health care provider, which she intends to expand.
The Green Bay native said her business plan calls for opening 40 clinics serving the uninsured within the next three to five years. InformEd plans to offer franchises for investors who want to run their own, she said.
"We are unique," said Broberg, 41, adding that she doesn't know of a similar business anywhere in the country.
InformEd plans to open a second clinic in October within a large national retailer that has its own pharmacy, Broberg said.
Negotiations are under way with other large stores to open medical clinics in their businesses, she said. Broberg won't disclose potential locations or store names.
Prices for services are discounted from typical medical service fees in the Green Bay area, said Broberg, who is chief executive and co-founder. She started the business with her husband, Kevin, who is president.
Eventually, InformEd plans to post prices for its services.
Broberg said her clinic should cut down on the inappropriate use of emergency rooms by people seeking primary care, and that will save hospitals money.
At the same time, her clinic encourages clients to purchase health savings accounts that include coverage for catastrophic illnesses that would be treated in hospitals.
While the walk-in clinic represents a new direction for InformEd, it's not a start-up business. The company has been providing employee health clinics for businesses for seven years, beginning with a Minnesota casino owner. It now works with four businesses, including the Horseshoe Casino in Tunica, Miss.
The Horseshoe is InformEd's largest client, with 2,000 employees and 2,200 family members. InformEd works as sort of a company doctor, treating patients at costs less than companies would pay for care through insurance plans, Broberg said.
InformEd also offers wellness programs and worker health evaluations to keep employees as healthy as possible and on the job, she said.
Because the health care market has experienced annual double-digit percentage increases in costs for the past several years, companies can't sustain those increases any longer, she said, projecting expanded growth in InformEd's business.
Broberg holds a master's degree in administration from the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay. Before starting InformEd, she worked for 10 years as director of managed health services and products for health insurer Humana Inc. in Green Bay. She said she developed her idea for InformEd while working there, and offered it to the company, which passed on it.
Feeling she had a concept worth pursuing, she left Humana. She and her husband, a home builder, began the business by pooling their money. Five months later, in May 1997, InformEd landed its first big client, the 12,000-employee casino.
She plans to move into the Milwaukee area.
"Studies show people will choose less expensive care," Broberg said. "We need to get this innovation to the marketplace." _______________________________________________
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