Congratulations to ABL's 2007 Innovations in Healthcare ABBY Award Winners Awards Honor Safeway CEO Steve Burd and Innovative Contributors to Value-Driven Healthcare

Congratulations to the winners of the Ninth Annual Innovations in HealthcareSM ABBY Awards, who were announced on June 6, 2007 at an awards event that drew over 100 top executives from healthcare services and information technology, med tech, wellness, hospital, physician group, Internet, biotech and professional services firms. And the winners are: Gary Lauer, Chairman and CEO of eHealth Inc.; Matthew Jenusaitis, President, Neurovascular Division, ev3, Inc; and Gordon Hunt, MD, Senior VP & Chief Medical Officer, Sutter Health.

Orange, CA (PRWEB) June 11, 2007 -- Congratulations to the winners of the Ninth Annual Innovations in HealthcareSM ABBY Awards, who were announced on June 6, 2007 at an awards event that drew over 100 top executives from healthcare services and information technology, med tech, wellness, hospital, physician group, Internet, biotech and professional services firms. And the winners are: Gary Lauer, Chairman and CEO of eHealth Inc.; Matthew Jenusaitis, President, Neurovascular Division, ev3, Inc; and Gordon Hunt, MD, Senior VP & Chief Medical Officer, Sutter Health.

This year's Innovations in HealthcareSM event was kicked-off by Lisa Kalustian, Governor Schwarzenegger's Chief Deputy Director, who introduced the Event's Keynoter, Steve Burd, Chairman, President and CEO of Safeway Inc. Burd was also honored with the 2007 "Leadership in Innovation" Award for his role in inspiring healthy behavior among Safeway's 28,000 non-unionized workforce, serving as a model for the nation. Under his direction, Safeway, a Fortune 50 company, has reversed the trend of rising healthcare costs by implementing a benefits plan that pays 100% of preventive healthcare, rewards good behavior, and allows employees to take more control of their healthcare decisions. Participating employees have a better, more comprehensive health plan while their out-of-pocket costs have decreased 22% to 32% over a two-year period. More than 70% of eligible non-union employees participate.

"Steve Burd's keynote was a perfect introduction to the eight presentations by the innovative companies that followed, as he compellingly presented what may well be the most innovative trend to emerge from a major healthcare payer: market-based universal healthcare," noted Mimi Grant, President of the ABL Organization, which hosted the event in Newport Beach, California. "Clearly the incentives for healthy behavior that Steve addressed, if universally adopted, could make our country healthier - both physically and fiscally."

Burd's keynote was followed by the eight Finalists in the healthcare IT, medtech and "delivery approach" categories, who made presentations to the audience of healthcare CEOs and senior executives. The audience then voted for an ABBY Award winner in each of three categories.

In the "Innovative Healthcare Information Technology" category, Mountain View-based eHealth Inc., where Gary Lauer is CEO, was given the ABBY Award for its online process that organizes and presents 5,000+ health insurance products, offered by over 150 carriers, in an unbiased format, empowering individuals, families, and small businesses to research, analyze, compare and purchase their coverage. Gary shared that of the more than one million individuals who have purchased their healthcare insurance from eHealth, over 40% of them were previously uninsured.

In the "Innovative Medical Technology" category, Irvine-based ev3 Neurovascular, where Matthew Jenusaitis is President, won the ABBY for its Onyx material to treat arterio-venous malformations in the brain. These potentially fatal anomalies are safely and reliably treated with this novel liquid polymer material that is injected into the cerebral vascular system and polymerizes to isolate the affected area.

In the "Innovative Approaches to the Delivery of Healthcare" category, Sacramento's Sutter Health, where Gordon Hunt, Jr., MD, is Chief Medical Officer, was awarded the ABBY for its eICU® patient-safety system that monitors patients - from hubs in Sacramento and San Francisco - in 359 ICU beds located throughout the system - as far as 425 miles away, supplementing the on-site medical staff and assuring greater outcomes for every hospital's most vulnerable patients.

About the Adaptive Business Leaders (ABL) Organization:
Since its founding in 1983, through its confidential, monthly Round Tables for healthcare services, life science and technology company CEOs, ABL Members have helped each other capitalize on market trends and opportunities, assuring that they are well positioned for corporate and personal success. ABL's annual Innovations in HealthcareSM Awards Event honors organizations that are reducing the cost of providing quality, accessible healthcare.

Contact:
Mimi Grant, President
Adaptive Business Leaders (ABL) Organization
(714) 245-1425

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