Study: Medicaid expansion may save state money




















Florida would save money over the next decade — not lose billions as Gov. Rick Scott has argued — by accepting Medicaid expansion under federal healthcare reforms, according to a detailed economic study.

Miami-Dade legislators and healthcare industry leaders, getting together on Monday, heard about the report by Georgetown University — the most positive yet on a highly debated provision of what is often called Obamacare.

Jack Hoadley, a senior researcher with the Georgetown Health Policy Institute, said the study was the first to calculate spin-off savings in other state programs if Florida accepted the expansion, which over the next 10 years could bring $26 billion in federal funds to provide insurance to an estimated 815,000 to 1.3 million Florida residents who are now uninsured.





In Miami-Dade, expansion would cover an additional 150,000 to 225,000, according to the Georgetown projections. That reduction in the uninsured would bring huge relief to the county’s hospitals, which by federal law must treat anyone who comes to the emergency room, regardless of ability to pay.

The top-level meeting, at the United Way of Miami-Dade headquarters, was convened by United Way, Health Council of South Florida and Health Foundation of South Florida.

At the very least, the Georgetown findings and other recent analyses have some critics reconsidering opposition to the 2010 Affordable Health Care Act.

State Sen. Rene Garcia, R-Hialeah, who previously was an “absolute no” vote against Medicaid expansion, said after the meeting that he was now “open to the thought” that expansion makes sense.

State Rep. Eddy Gonzalez, R-Hialeah, said he was still concerned about the debt-ridden feds’ ability to fund Medicaid over the long term, but “we are looking at all the options.”

Estimates about the real costs of expansion have varied wildly based on the law, which requires the federal government to pay all costs of the expansion for the first three years. Starting in 2017, the state will start paying a small share, which will reach 10 percent of the expansion costs for 2020 and beyond.

Gov. Scott, who has long been critical of Obamacare, contended in December that expansion would cost Florida taxpayers more than $26 billion over 10 years. Opponents and healthcare experts criticized that estimate as way too high, and earlier this month the state’s Agency for Health Care Administration gave a much lower estimate of $3 billion for the decade.

That was lower even than a report by the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured, a Washington research group, which in November estimated that expansion would cover an additional 1.2 million residents at a cost to the state of $5.4 billion over 10 years.

Georgetown’s Hoadley said Monday that the Kaiser study used only rough data for all 50 states, while the Georgetown study, funded by two Florida nonprofit foundations, looked in detail at how Medicaid expansion would save money in other areas. The Georgetown study found that the state would have to spend less for safety-net hospitals such as Jackson Health System, mental-health and substance-abuse programs and the medically needy program.

Hoadley said the savings calculations were “a very cautious estimate.”

The Georgetown report projected that the state would save $300 million in 2014, the first year of Medicaid expansion, and $100 million in 2020, when the state would be paying for 10 percent of the expansion costs.

The Georgetown study found that expansion was especially important in Florida, where almost one in three — 30 percent — of nonelderly adults are uninsured, compared to 18 percent nationwide.

In South Florida, the figures are even higher for uninsured non-elderly adults: 57 percent in Hialeah, 50 percent in the city of Miami, 48.5 percent in Deerfield Beach and 31.2 percent in Kendall.

Hospitals strongly support the expansion. On Monday, Phillis Oeters, an executive with Baptist Health South Florida, told legislators that hospitals have already seen their Medicare and Medicaid payments reduced greatly in other areas.

“Enough is enough,” she said. “Hospitals can’t take it anymore.”

A study done for the Florida Hospital Association estimated that the infusion of federal funds from Obamacare would add 56,000 jobs to the state.





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Power suit: Monroe County sued by Keys residents for $10 million over no electricity to island




















Four No Name Key residents filed a $10 million discrimination lawsuit against Monroe County Thursday in Circuit Court.

Jim and Ruth Newton, along with Robert and Julianne Reynolds, allege the county has for years willfully denied the Lower Keys island commercial power without proper cause. Currently homes there are powered by solar and generators.

"The county has a long history of discrimination against that island and the residents and its very flagrant. And if it's not discrimination, it's ignorance," Reynolds said Friday.





The crux of the plaintiffs' argument is Chief Circuit Court Judge David Audlin's ruling in 2011 that the state Public Service Commission has jurisdiction over the matter, not the county.

That ruling came about from a county filing asking Audlin to decide whether county law allows commercial electricity on No Name. County officials say the law doesn't allow it and that it can't issue permits for it.

The suit concentrates on Monroe County fighting the installation of 62 Keys Energy Services power poles last year, as well as a 2001 county ordinance creating a coastal barrier overlay district prohibiting commercial utilities in federal coastal barrier areas.

Congress created the Coastal Barrier Resource System in 1982, and updated it in 1990, to protect undeveloped coastal barrier areas.

The lawsuit also addresses the Newtons' controversial application last year for an electrical building permit from the county. Originally granted, it was revoked when county officials realized their home is on No Name.

In addition to the $10 million in damages -- which Reynolds called a "low" number-- the plaintiffs want Audlin to void the county's coastal barrier overlay district law and grant homeowners electrical permits.

"If you knew what this has done to the friendships and relationships there ... it's pretty much the only thing they think about and talk about. I don't know what the value of my peace of mind is, but in my mind it's pretty significant," Reynolds said.

He's owned a house on No Name since 2005.





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Siemens picks banks for two disposals: sources






FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Siemens AG has picked banks to organize the sale of two units as part of its efforts to streamline operations and stay competitive in a weak global economy, people familiar with the matter said.


Goldman Sachs Group Inc will advise the German conglomerate on the sale of its Water Technologies units, while Rothschild will oversee the divestment of its smaller security products arm, which makes access card readers and technology for intruder detection and surveillance, the sources said on Monday.






Siemens, Goldman and Rothschild all declined comment.


Siemens, which ranks as Germany’s second-most valuable company and which makes products ranging from trains to hearing aids, late last year announced the plan to divest several units in a bid to focus on its most profitable businesses.


It also aims to put itself in a better position to compete in core product areas with the likes of Switzerland’s ABB Ltd and U.S.-based General Electric Co.


Since then, several possible bidders for the water unit – which has annual sales of about 1 billion euros ($ 1.4 million) and employs 600 – have approached the Munich-based group and investment bankers have started to work on the possible sale, the sources said.


HATS IN THE RING


Siemens built up its water technology operations through a flurry of acquisitions over the last decade, buying the water systems and services division of U.S. Filter from Veolia Environnement for instance for $ 1 billion in 2004.


Since much of Siemens’s water business is focused on North America, industry sources expect U.S.-based peers Xylem Inc and Pentair Ltd to take a look at the asset.


“Asian companies are also likely to throw their hats into the ring,” one of the people said.


The region is experiencing rapid economic growth, climate change effects, rising populations and stricter energy and water regulations and is therefore expected to see heavy investment in water treatment equipment in coming years, he said.


Kurita Water Industries Ltd, Hyflux Ltd, Hitachi Ltd and Marubeni Corp are seen as possible suitors, he added.


Big private equity groups like KKR & Co LP, Bain and Permira are also expected to show interest.


Permira in 2011 bought Israel-based Netafim, a maker of irrigation technology, for 800 million euros.


Siemens Water Technologies offers products ranging from conventional water treatment to emergency water supply and water disinfection systems.


A report published in 2010 by Global Water Intelligence, an industry journal, put the size of the global water market at more than $ 500 billion.


Siemens shares were down 0.3 percent by 8.25 a.m, backtracking from a five-month high set last week, compared with a 0.1 percent drop in the main German index.


(Additional reporting by Jens Hack; Editing by Hans-Juergen Peters)


Tech News Headlines – Yahoo! News





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Matt Damon Presents Ben Affleck with Modern Master Award

Ben Affleck might have been overlooked for a Best Director Academy Award, but he's having quite a winning season with Argo taking home countless awards, including The SAG for Best Ensemble and The Golden Globe for Best Drama. In addition to winning the Best Director Golden Globe, Affleck was honored with the Modern Master Award at this weekend's Santa Barbara International Film Festival, presented to him by longtime friend, Matt Damon.


RELATED - Go Inside Ben Affleck's Argo

"It's flattering and overwhelming," Affleck said before the event. "I'm shocked by it. I feel like they must have made some mistake in honoring me, but I'm not going to tell them. It's too much fun."

And that also applied to his on-stage interaction with Damon, who delivered quite a heartfelt introduction, but left Affleck puzzled because, as the honoree admits, he'd have gone the roast route had the tables been turned. Watch!

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SI soldier who lost all 4 limbs has double-arm transplant








Army Sgt. Brendan Marrocco

Chad Rachman

Army Sgt. Brendan Marrocco



The first soldier to survive after losing all four limbs in the Iraq war has received a double-arm transplant in Baltimore.

His father says Brendan Marrocco had the operation on Dec. 18 at Johns Hopkins Hospital. Marrocco is 26 and lives in Staten Island. He was injured by a roadside bomb in 2009.

He also received bone marrow from the same donor who supplied his new arms. That novel approach is aimed at helping his body accept the new limbs with minimal medication to prevent rejection.

It is the seventh double-hand or double-arm transplant done in the United States. The military is sponsoring operations like these to help wounded troops. About 300 have lost arms or hands in the wars.




Surgeons plan to discuss the transplant Tuesday.

Marrocco was a high school student on Staten Island on Sept. 11, 2001, when the terrorism attack on the World Trade Center set in motion historic events that would define his life in devastating ways.

"Being a New Yorker, it's just great to see it," Marrocco said this past Independence Day while sitting in a wheelchair at the lip of one of the two mammoth reflecting pools that dominate the site where the twin towers once stood.

The disabled soldiers' visit to ground zero was organized by the Gary Sinise Foundation — started by the actor who played the amputee character Lieutenant Dan in the film "Forrest Gump" — and by The Stephen Stiller Tunnel to Towers Foundation, named after a New York City firefighter who died responding to the 9/11 attack. The charities are working together to build so-called "smart homes" that allow the wounded veterans to lead more independent lives.

"It's just a relief to not have to rely on other people so much," Marrocco, whose arms and legs were blown off by a roadside bomb in April 2009, said of moving in with his brother.

Marrocco said at the time he has no regrets.

"I wouldn't change it in any way. ... I feel great. I'm still the same person."

Marrocco "totally rejects that hero stuff," said his father, Alex. "In his mind, he was just doing his job."










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Miami Herald Business Plan Challenge opens for entries




















Entrepreneurs, please don’t let the name of our contest scare you.

As we launch our 15th annual Miami Herald Business Plan Challenge today, we are putting out our annual call for entries. But we aren’t looking for long, laboriously detailed business plans. Quite the contrary.

More and more, today’s investors in very early stage companies want to see a succinct presentation of your concept and how you plan to turn it into a success. We do, too.





If you have a business idea or an operating startup that is less than two years old, you can enter the Challenge, our annual celebration of South Florida entrepreneurship. Sponsored by the Pino Global Entrepreneurship Center at Florida International University, our contest has three tracks — a Community Track, open to all South Floridians; an FIU Track, open to students and alumni of that university; and a High School Track, co-sponsored by the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship.

Your entry may be up to three pages and you may attach one additional page for a photo, rendering, diagram or spreadsheet if you wish. Think of it as a meaty executive summary. Experts in all aspects of entrepreneurship — serial entrepreneurs, executives, investors, advisors and finance specialists (see judge bios on MiamiHerald.com/challenge) — will judge your short plan. In doing so, they will be looking at your product or service’s value to the customer, market opportunity, business model, management team and your marketing and financial strategies. See the rules on page 22, which also include tips on preparing your entry.

Your entry is due by 11:59 p.m. March 11. Entries should be sent to challenge@miamiherald.com, fiuchallenge@miamiherald.com or highschoolchallenge@miamiherald.com.

Don’t worry, we’re here to help!

“Frame your business from your customer’s perspective and not yours. Rather than diving into a detailed explanation of your product or service, a more compelling way to tell your business story is to clearly share the problem that you are solving for your customers and how your business is different, better, faster, cooler, cheaper, smarter,” says Melissa Krinzman, managing director of Venture Architects and a veteran Challenge judge.

On Feb 26 at 6:30 p.m. at Miami Dade College, we’ll host a free Business Plan Bootcamp, where you can bring your working plan with you for advice from experts, including Krinzman. Find the sign-up link on MiamiHerald.com/challenge.

And each week in Business Monday and on MiamiHerald.com/challenge, we’ll be bringing you advice and answering your questions. You can post your questions on the Q&A on MiamiHerald.com/challenge or email your questions to me at ndahlberg@miamiherald.com. Follow @ndahlberg on Twitter.

The top six finalists in the Community and FIU Tracks will present their 90-second elevator pitches for our popular video contest. Last year our People’s Pick contest drew more than 18,000 votes.

On May 6, in a special section of Business Monday, we will profile the winners — the judges’ top three selections in each track plus the People’s Pick winners. Along the way, we will unveil semifinalists and finalists to keep the suspense building.

Today, though, we are looking back on the entrepreneurial journeys of our 2012 winners. Funding was a nearly universal challenge, and many faced setbacks in developing their platforms. Throughout the entry period, we’ll also look back on other winners from the past 14 years.

Show us what you’ve got. Let’s make this the best Challenge yet.





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Marian Cline Krutulis, founder of Gulliver Schools, dead at 89




















Marian Cline Krutulis, the founder and head of the prestigious Gulliver Schools in Coral Gables, died Saturday night. She was 89.

Known on campus as “Mrs. K,” Krutulis taught or shaped thousands of young people during her 60-year tenure at Gulliver, which has with four campuses in Coral Gables, Pinecrest and Miami, serving more than 2,200 students from pre-kindergarten through high school.

“Mrs. Krutulis has left a major impact on education in Miami,” said Emilio Nuñez, chairman and president of the Gulliver Schools board and a 1983 graduate. “Her vision went beyond academics, the arts, foreign languages and athletics. She created an environment of caring, trust and intellectual enrichment for all students.”





Krutulis bought Gulliver Academy in 1953, with a small number of students in one building in Coconut Grove. She served as director of the school from 1954 through 2007, when her son John Krutulis became head of schools. She remained involved with the programs as director emeritus.

When Krutulis stepped down, Gulliver was the largest independent school in Miami-Dade, with more than 30 advanced placement courses, honors and college preparatory classes and dual enrollment programs at Miami Dade College, Florida International University and the University of Miami. Last year, Gulliver graduates enrolled at Harvard University, Yale University, the University of Pennsylvania, Duke University, Emory University and Johns Hopkins.

Marian Cline was born Aug. 23, 1923. Her family moved to South Florida two years later.

Krutulis graduated Miami Edison High School at the top of her class, and studied math and finance at the University of Miami. That’s where she met football player Joseph Krutulis, whom she married in 1942. As a young woman, Krutulis took a job as a substitute teacher at Shadowlawn School, and began raising her five children.

In the early 1950s, Krutulis began teaching full-time at St. James Lutheran School, and, later, Riviera Day School. Krutulis opened a small school for youngsters 3- to 5-years old at the St. Phillips Church school.

Krutulis reopened Gulliver Academy with close to 150 students in September 1954, nine months after she bought it from Arthur Gulliver.

“Words cannot begin to describe the sadness that thousands of students and alumni feel,” said Jeff Bartel a founding member of the board, current vice-chairman.

She is survived by her children: Barbara Holliman of Hiawassee, GA; Virginia of Evergreen, CO; Joseph J. of Anaheim, CA; Sharon Smith of Amelia, VA; and John W., in Miami.

Administrators at Gulliver are planning a “celebration of life” for Krutulis. The details have yet to be announced.





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Exclusive: JJ Abrams Confirms Bradley Cooper in Talks For Lance Armstrong Biopic

Shortly after Bradley Cooper expressed interest (publicly) in portraying disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong in J.J. Abrams'upcoming biopic about the athlete, the producer/director confirmed to ET exclusively that he is indeed in talks with Cooper for the role.


Pics: Stars Take On Real-Life Roles

When asked about Cooper's interest in tackling the part backstage at the Producers Guild Awards in Los Angeles, Abrams told ET's Christina McLarty "[Cooper] sent me an email and we've been talking."

Said Cooper to BBC News on January 22, "I would be interested in [playing Armstrong]. I think he's fascinating. What a fascinating character."

Paramount Pictures & Bad Robot (J.J. Abram's production company) secured the rights to Cycle of Lies: The Fall of Lance Armstrong, a book proposal penned by Juliet Macur, in mid-January just after Armstrong admitted publicly to doping during all seven Tour de France wins. The author, a sports reporter from The New York Times, has covered the athlete over the span of a decade throughout Armstrong's struggle with cancer, years of doping allegations and ensuing lawsuits.

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Long Island man shot to death by armed intruders: cops








Authorities say a Long Island man was shot to death in his home after armed men broke in.

Suffolk County police were looking for the suspects who fled after the attack early Sunday morning in the hamlet of Flanders.

The shooting was reported by a 911 caller.

When Southampton town police responded, they found 21-year-old Demitri Hampton with a gunshot wound to the chest.

He was pronounced dead at Peconic Bay Medical Center in Riverhead.











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Miami Lakes company growing its brand of skin care products




















For decades, Vivant Skin Care has formulated creams, serums, cleansers and tonics to treat such dermatological conditions as acne, aging and hyperpigmentation.

Family owned and linked to Dr. James E. Fulton, who co-developed the anti-aging formula Retin-A, the company built its reputation with medically tested therapies aimed at improving skin.

Now, like a complexion that has undergone the metamorphosis of time, Vivant is altering its manufacturing and sales structure and adding products, emerging from the economic downturn with a new plan for the future.





“Now we’re stabilized and looking forward to growth,” said Fulton’s daughter, Chief Executive, Kelly Fulton-Kendrick.

Founded in 1990, Vivant produces a line of 30 skin care products, all formulated in-house, and priced from $15 to $100. The products target both females and males, ages 13 and up.

“Our target market is people who have serious skin care problems and need solutions,” Fulton-Kendrick said. “Vitamin A is the best for affecting change in the skin.”

The clinical skin care products, packaged simply in white bottles and amber glass containers, have remained the company’s mainstay, as the business has transformed.

In mid-2011, Vivant decided to adjust its sales structure, to sell, for the first time, to online retailers like DermStore.com, SkinCareRX.com and amazon.com, as well as to make its products available on its own website, vivantskincare.com. It was a major change in course after more than 20 years of having its products sold only at spas and doctors’ offices.

“So now, we’re a mix of wholesale to skin care professionals and Internet retailers, and we’re selling directly to consumers through our own website,” Fulton-Kendrick said.

Mike Nelson, marketing manager at SkinCareRx.com, said Vivant, which it has sold since November, has “done very well for a new brand to our site,” surpassing some brands that have been on its site for over a year. He declined to provide figures.

SkinCareRX took on only 5 percent of the brands that approached it last year, he said, and had undertaken a rigorous review of Vivant.

“They have a good loyalty base and get great reviews,” Nelson said.

Along with changes in its sales system, in January 2012, Vivant moved from Medley to Miami Lakes, doubling its space to 11,000 square feet to accommodate manufacturing, which it brought in house to reduce costs. It had outsourced manufacturing to a lab in Costa Mesa, Calif., that it had previously owned and later sold.

Inside its warehouse space in a commercial business complex, a small staff handles manufacturing, shipping and packaging. All orders are taken by customer service and fulfilled onsite. A room used as an educational center allows vendors and aestheticians to learn about the products.

Martina Echeveria, international trade specialist at the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Miami U.S. Export Assistance Center, who is helping Vivant get a distributor in the Dominican Republic, said she recently nominated the company for a South Florida Manufacturer of the Year award. The awards are given by the South Florida Manufacturers Association.

“Their products are good and 100 percent U.S. made,” she said.

At Vivant’s offices, a lab area is used by Dr. Fulton for research and development. He also maintains a practice at Flores Dermatology in South Miami.





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