Issue link: http://www.insightdigital.biz/i/107253
As health care reform creates questions for business, Dr. Dean Gruner of ThedaCare and other industry leaders look for answers Se ekers H SOLUTION Health care reform. It's the No. 1 topic for business leaders, from entrepreneurs to chief executive officers with thousands of employees. Dr. Dean Gruner, chief executive officer of ThedaCare, finds himself in the crosshairs of all discussions. He's not only CEO of the region's largest employer – ThedaCare employs more than 6,000 – but also the head of the health care organization that runs five hospitals and dozens of clinics. Gruner sees the effects from all sides of the nation's largest health care legislation overhaul since the creation of Medicare and Medicaid in 1965. The Affordable Care Act (ACA), passed by Congress and signed by President Barack Obama into law in 2011, presents changes and challenges to employers and health care providers alike. For health care organizations it means the loss of millions in reimbursements from Medicare, the nation's largest insurer. But change was inevitable, says Gruner, who worked as a family practice physician in a clinic for 17 years before becoming a member of ThedaCare's administration team and CEO in 2008. "When I was in medical school, we learned that if something didn't work for a patient, you tried something else," says Gruner, sitting in his office at ThedaCare's B y M a r y B e t h M a t z e k PHOTOGRAPHS BY SHANE VAN BOXTEL, IMAGE STUDIOS F e b r u a r y 2 013 • Insight | 25