Friday, December 30, 2011

Study: Minnesota doctors prefer single-payer universal health system - Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal:

edovogopu.wordpress.com
The study, conducted by the and the Universao Health CareAction Network-MN and published in the February issue of Minnesota Medicine, found that 63.4 percentr of state physicians believe that a single-payer universakl health insurance system would offerr the best health care to the greatesyt number of people. According to a presx release, almost 25 percent of Minnesota physicianz thought health savings account systems were and 11.8 percent were in favor of managed care. Dr.
Charlexs Oberg, the study's co-author and associate professor at the Universit of Minnesota School ofPublic commented, "Many doctors are becoming increasingly disappointed and frustrated with the health care system as it stands. Insurancre hassles, heavy paperwork, and inability to get the care they need make it very The study also found that 71 percenr of Minnesota doctors said they would accept a 10 percent reduction in fees fora "very reduction in paperwork, and 63.8 percent favorerd physician payment under a salary system.
Researchersw mailed surveys with questiona on health care financing and medical practices to a randomn sampleof 1,061 Minnesota physicianw drawn from the Minnesota Board of Medical Thirty-nine percent of the surveya were completed and returned. Data was compiled and analyzed by the Universityg of Minnesota School ofPublic

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

City School Board enacting new voting districts - The Daily News Online

steinberg-virus.blogspot.com


City School Board enacting new voting districts

The Daily News Online


BATAVIA â€" The city's Board of Education plans to enact new voting districts and polling places for the next election and budget vote, Business Administrator Scott Rozanski says. Rozanski proposed the change to save money by decreasing the polling ...



Monday, December 26, 2011

Private equity groups boost merger activity - Dayton Business Journal:

inofiquxi.wordpress.com
National and local private equity groupds have begun playing a larger role in mergers and giving companies another optionwhen selling. These typew of firms accounted for 20 percent of all of the mergef and activity in the countrylast year, or $3.6 trillionb in closed deals, according to Thomas "They are changing the landscape of mergersd and acquisitions," said Jim president of . "They are great sellersz for companies that meet criteria such as paying a high multituded and having a platform in a niche Sachs said six months ago his firm listed a locall manufacturing company for sale on a merger and acquisitions Web site and was inundatedx with inquiries from privateequityg groups.
Companies that specialize in this type of buying focuws on finding and investing in niche businesses that they can help grow by reorganizatiomn and acquisitions to make the businessmore profitable. Theses type of firms usually raise money fromhigh net-worthn individuals or institutional investors to buy both privates and public companies. Most private equity groupe are interested in growint industries such as health care and are beginningy to shy away from theautomotive industry, Sach Jim Butterfield, principal with Atlanta-based , said the main goal of his firm is to help smal l companies that aren't doing well save jobs by buildinbg the business back up and keeping as many employeesd as possible.
Most of thes e types of firms purchase companies who have high barriersof entry, good management teams and the ability to grow in their industry so investorsa will get good return once they are Riverside focuses on buyinbg small businesses or companies who have a $1 million in cash flow and anywhered from 30 to 50 employees. When equityg firms like Riverside acquire companies they make improvementzs to the business such as helping personnel with hiring the right creating incentive plans to perform and possiblr outsourcing in order to get a good return from the company once Firms in this business usually turn arouns and sell companies in five years for a higher acquisitionb price so investors get ahigher return.
"Wwe exist specifically to put money to work for our investors and give them a good Butterfield said. Ed Reilly, president of 'se southwest Ohio district, said privatre equity firms are starting to bring some competition forlocal banks. "They are beginninhg to be a large liquid sourceof capital," he "Clients that are bein bought by private equity groups often times don'tg have a need for local banks." -- with stations in the Dayton-arew -- was acquired by through Washington, D.C.-based Englewood-basef TeleSuite Corp. was acquired by Nebraska-based in 2002.
Privat e equity firms may not have a need for the local banking market because they use a combinatiomn of their own capital and largee lines of credit whic h may only be concentrated withlarger banks, Sachzs said. Butterfield said the local bankinb market can be used for cash managementg and trust services for these groups which still creates a needfor "Companies are going to sell regardless of who' s going to buy," he Banks could begin to lose business when companiezs sell to strategic buyers who oftebn fold the business into a headquarters creatinv one less customer, Butterfiels said.
Strategic buyers often don'y acquire all of a company's assets and bring in theirt own management group hoping it will drive higher margins. Butterfield said if the public returnh on companies becomes tremendous in thenear future, privatd equity firms may be in trouble. Tom Mangan, seniord vice president with Alpha-based , said the trend of privatw equity firms may have runits course. "The marketf has been strong for the past 15 or 20 years becausde low quality bonds have been outperforming highqualith bonds, but the spreads are going to get tighter making it hardert for them," he said.

Friday, December 23, 2011

Russell Slade pleased to see goalkeeper situation improving at Leyton Orient - East London and West Essex Guardian Series

lamoreuuceses1724.blogspot.com


Russell Slade pleased to see goalkeeper situation improving at Leyton Orient

East London and West Essex Guardian Series


By Matt Bass » The bleak injury situation at Brisbane Road was the subject of much discussion earlier in the season but O's boss Russell Slade feels his side's luck could be set to change. Number one keeper Jamie Jones has been sidelined with a ...



and more »

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Suspect in Ohio Amish attacks to plead not guilty - Boston.com

opexibu.wordpress.com


Daily Mail


Suspect in Ohio Amish attacks to plead not guilty

Boston.com


The attorney, Dean Carro, represents Lester Miller, 37, a nephew of the  »

Monday, December 19, 2011

WNBA Silver Stars are cashing in on Finals appearance - San Antonio Business Journal:

bertayfybuqutyp.blogspot.com
That added national exposure has prompted more WNBA fans to purchaser SilverStars merchandise. According to the forward Candace Parker, the 2008 WNBA Most Valuable Playetr and Rookie ofthe Year, tops this year’a list of the WNBA’s most popula jerseys. That ranking is basesd on sales at the NBA Store in New York City andat WNBAStore.com from October 2008 through April 2009. Silver Star Beckyy Hammon’s No. 25 jersey rankxs fifth among all WNBA players in terms of sales. As a team, the Silver Starsa also rank fifth inmerchandise sales. WNBA officials say salew of jerseyson WNBAStore.com have more than doublec compared to the same time last The combined sales at WNBAStore.
com and at the NBA Store are up 25 percent vs. last year. Below are the player and team rankings. 1. Candace Parker, Los Angeles Sparksx 2. Diana Taurasi, 3. Lisa Leslie, Los Angelex Sparks 4. Sue Bird, 5. Beck y Hammon, San Antonio Silver Starsw 1. Los Angeles Sparks 2. 3. 4. Seattlwe Storm 5. San Antonio Silver Stars

Saturday, December 17, 2011

Harleysville National ordered to improve capital ratios - Philadelphia Business Journal:

balamatovaegede.blogspot.com
Currently, the bank’s capital levels are less than those requirefd under the Office of the Comptroller ofthe Currency’z newly required minimum individual capital ratios. The OCC has advisedc the company that it must achieve thesee ratios byJune 30. Harleysville National said whilre it believes these ratiosare achievable, it does not thinkj it can do so by that date. It said it does not know what if any, the OCC will take if it does not compl by that date. Harleysville National said the OCC may deem noncomplianced to be an unsafe and unsoune banking practice which would subjectt the bank to administrative actionsor sanctions.
Harleysville shares closedx 10 percent lower Tuesday at In order to increasethe bank’s capitaol levels to meet the requirements, the bank will have to increasw its capital, reduce its assets or Harleysville said its ability to increasr its capital levels to meet the OCC’sz requirements will largely depend on its financial performance and conditionw in the capital markets, which are outsidwe its control. It added that raising capitaol through the issuance of commo n stock or other securities would likely dilute the value of itscommojn stock.
Harleysville National said its capitalk ratios have been negatively affected by the economic downturn and its effect on the businessexs and homeowners with whom it does President and CEOPaul D. Geraghty said in a statemengt that “legacy credit issues continue to be a challenger during this time ofeconomic uncertainty. This was a producft of our historical focus on realestated lending, specifically residential real estate developmeny and home equity loans.” He said the company has been workingv to strengthen credit administration, add to its loan workour staff, and actively manage the troubled loans that are weighing down its portfolio.
At its most recent annua meeting thispast spring, Geraghty told shareholders he intends to meet regulatory requirements for a well-capitalized bank by the end of the Now that plan will have to be In an interview Tuesday Geraghty said Harleysville National hopes to raisd $65 million to $120 milliohn in equity. Harleysville National Corp. (NASDAQ:HNBC) of Harleysville, Pa., has $5.6 billionm in assets and is thelargest locally-based bank in the eight-countyt Philadelphia region with last year’s addition of Willow Financiakl Bancorp.
It has the seventh-most deposits in the regionb with just morethan $3