Newsletter Sign-up

Senior Vice President
Marsh
Atlanta

Although there was obvious discord between Marsh's former CEO and some board members this year, Marsh's brokers continue to gamely slug it out on the street.

Winning ample praise from a Georgia-based healthcare risk manager was the Atlanta office of Marsh's healthcare practice and in particular one Andrew Pickle. The 12-year Marsh veteran was described by the hospital risk manager this way: "It's so much nicer when I know that Andrew will not let me down. That it's going to get done."

As the risk manager for a growing nonprofit organization, this person has to watch every penny, and she said she appreciates the backbone that Pickle and his team members displayed in continuing to go back to underwriters with more information backing up their client's desire to get lower premiums.

"I have had brokers that went out once and said, 'Here's your deal,' " the risk manager said.

Pickle was also producing for healthcare organizations farther south in 2007. A year's worth of work for a Florida client, for example, resulted in an alternate risk structure for the client's 2007 renewal that resulted in a 30 percent reduction in premiums.

Senior Vice President
Marsh
San Francisco

In his role as an insurance broker in the U.S. healthcare industry, Chad Follmer isn't playing the role of the dilettante. Both his parents and three of his siblings are involved in either the provider or service side of the healthcare industry.

And his collegiate preparation for the career is nothing less than sweet. Follmer picked up a bachelor's degree in risk management from the University of Georgia, and then an M.B.A. from Wake Forest in management and finance.

He also took an Executive Education Series course from the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business on exotic risk management. He's been a star for Marsh and before that at Gallagher, winning performance awards from both organizations.

In 2007, Follmer was able to save a national healthcare provider that was getting into a new line of business more than $1 million in premium by pushing a general liability underwriter to take another look at the client's existing coverage plan, even though a previous broker had recommended a multimillion-dollar coverage tower that the client had never needed previously.

Follmer has been able to save that healthcare client an additional $1 million and provide for still broader coverage terms. And finally, Follmer combined that client's seven property and cargo placements into two and saved the client yet more money.

Managing Director
Marsh
Nashville, Tenn.

Holly Meidl did double duty for Marsh in 2007. While continuing to serve the company as its South Zone healthcare practice leader, Meidl also stepped into the role of interim leader for Marsh's national healthcare practice.

One of Meidl's chief goals in 2007 was to bring together more of Marsh's resources to provide yet more consulting services to Marsh's clients. What Meidl was able to produce is substantial. She led a team that developed and published a healthcare benchmarking report covering 357 facilities in 41 states covering 25,000 claims.

The report was released at the annual American Society for Healthcare Risk Management conference in Chicago in October. But that's not all. Meidl developed an internal communications system over the Web for information sharing among Marsh offices to provide faster answers for Marsh clients.

She also provided oversight for the development of coverage programs for the American Hospital Association and the Assisted Living Federation of America. Both of those programs launched in September of 2007.

Meidl also met with more than 30 clients across the country and worked with teams at Marsh and its MMC sister companies to develop data security review and gap analysis for medical records retention, and protocols for assessing data breaches.

Principal
Integro
Boston

If there was a team prize for healthcare insurance brokerage in 2007, it would go to Integro Insurance Brokers.

"I'm not surprised," said the risk manager for a major academic medical center when she was told that Integro's healthcare team was getting lots of kudos this year.

And one of the Integro flag bearers would be James DeCourcey, who was able to win over the chief financial officer of a substantial New England health system with his performance this year.

In the same season, DeCourcey and his Integro team identified a major vulnerability in their healthcare client's coverage and converted a streamlined reinsurance placement for an executive staff that, on the one hand, really didn't have time to micromanage the process but, on the other hand, was depending on their broker for enhanced coverage at a reduced premium.

"I have no complaints, and that is unusual for me," said this CFO.

DeCourcey, who handles several major New England accounts, said he takes a wonkish approach to serving his customer's needs. He spends a lot of time analyzing claim trends and suggesting changes to the structure of the coverage.

DeCourcey's healthcare expertise is homegrown. He studied healthcare administration at Stonehill College in North Easton, Mass., before a summer internship at Johnson & Higgins opened the door to his present occupation.

Principal
Integro
San Francisco

Larry Reback brings nine years experience as a litigator to his work with Integro, in addition to demonstrating an appreciation of the importance of customer service.

"He's provided me with a level of expertise beyond what I could have hoped for," said the in-house counsel for a healthcare system based in California. The attorney went on to say that she used Reback to help her unravel a very complicated, high-stakes coverage battle with her underwriter in 2007.

"Our company had coverage counsel involved, and I'd like to think that we outstepped them quite a bit and had a very favorable outcome."

Reback, who spent five years with Marsh as a senior vice president before bolting to Integro two years ago, earned his bachelor's degree in economics from the University of California at Santa Barbara and his law degree from the University of San Francisco School of Law.

"Post-renewal servicing is an often overlooked broker function," said Reback. "However, how a carrier responds when a claim is presented is as critical as pricing and terms."

The "favorable results" that Reback helped his California healthcare client win in 2007 also included the "significant reimbursement" of disputed defense costs.

"What I like about Larry is he gets excited. He still has the fire in the belly about insurance," said a healthcare risk manager based in Arizona.

Managing Principal
Executive Broker
Integro
Boston

In every all-star lineup, there's the bookish one, that team member with the list of degrees who is able to put all that learning into practice in an effective manner.

Integro's healthcare team for 2007 includes Bill McDonough, the holder of a doctorate in law and policy from Northeastern University in Boston who serves as a senior advisor on Integro's healthcare accounts in New England and across the country.

In 2007, McDonough had a hand in designing and developing voluntary attending physicians programs for three clients. Of the seven existing Massachusetts VAP programs, McDonough has helped develop five of them. In addition to his degrees, McDonough brings to bear experience as a practicing healthcare risk manager.

McDonough is also active in the healthcare risk management community. He serves on the board of the Massachusetts Society for Healthcare Risk Management, sits on the editorial review board of the Journal of Healthcare Risk Management and contributes to the Monograph Series of the American Society of Healthcare Risk Management.

In addition to his doctorate, McDonough holds a certificate in advanced management from Harvard University, a master's degree from Suffolk University in Boston. Oh, yes, and he also has several risk management certificates and is studying for his CPCU. Sometimes, you have to give education its due.