Leading Healthcare
Innovation in healthcare is a constant. And what we see in Arizona is some of the most cutting-edge advances on both the patient and administrative sides — making Arizonans healthier and the workplace a better place.
Innovation in healthcare is transforming the lives of Arizonans. This edition highlights some of the top innovators shaping the future of healthcare — but innovation can only thrive on a strong foundation. That foundation is built on a robust healthcare system, and, right now, our healthcare system is at risk with Congress eyeing cuts to Medicaid.
Medicaid in Arizona is called AHCCCS — the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System — and it is foundational to Arizona’s healthcare system by providing critical access to care for more than two million vulnerable Arizonans. The potential reduction in AHCCCS funding could result in more than 700,000 Arizonans losing healthcare coverage. Losing this coverage has a direct impact on the uncompensated care provided by hospitals and a profound impact of the economic viability of hospitals across the state, leading to reduced healthcare services and job cuts. Protecting Medicaid is essential for hospitals, communities and the future of healthcare innovation in Arizona.
By maintaining a strong healthcare foundation, we empower our hospitals, providers and innovators to deliver groundbreaking solutions that improve lives. Arizona’s healthcare professionals are driving remarkable advancements, and with the right support, their impact will only grow.
For this month’s cover story, In Business Magazine invited eleven top leaders in the healthcare industry here to share how their and their companies’ innovations are impacting Arizona’s economic picture.
Two other of today’s hottest topics are explored in this April edition. Yolanda Slan addresses some of the confusion that permeates a lot of discussion of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion as she offers an analysis of DEI in practice, in “The Truth about Diversity, Equity and Inclusion: DEI Is Not about Replacing Merit – It’s about Revealing It.”
And Kate Zabriskie weighs in on the “where to work” debate in “Go Home, Go Home, Go Home; Now Let’s Make ‘Come Back’ Work.” Coordinating with this, the Feedback feature asks local businesses to describe the workplace arrangement that works for them.
DEI — also known as IE&D — issues surface in varied facets of business and affect the actual efficacy of some businesses. In “The Landscape of Businesses’ Inclusion, Equity and Diversity Commitments,” attorneys Jeanine Conley-Daves and Kate Mrkonich Wilson note that companies largely maintain inclusion, equity and diversity commitments amid Trump anti-IE&D policies, though concerns about legal risks grow. And Dr. Heidi Jannenga taps into her extensive experience in physical therapy as she discusses “DEI Under Fire: What the Backlash Could Mean for Rehab Therapy in Arizona.”
Other content ranges from insights and examples of adaptive reuse in our community in “Adaptive Reuse – Creating Jobs and Saving History One Old Building at a Time” to “Semiconductors, Data Centers and the Power Strain” to thought leadership on management, philanthropy and more.
It’s been a pleasure helping bring you this April edition of In Business Magazine. I hope you enjoy the read.
Sincerely,
Ann-Marie Alameddin
President & CEO
Arizona Hospital and Healthcare Association
Ann-Marie Alameddin is the president and CEO of the Arizona Hospital and Healthcare Association. With more than 20 years of experience in healthcare, Alameddin brings together members to advance health and healthcare in Arizona. Under Alameddin’s leadership, AzHHA uses the statewide platform of a hospital association to help drive improvements in Arizona’s healthcare system. This includes policy and advocacy work, as well as grant-funded programs that support emergency preparedness, retain the nursing workforce and improve maternal health in Arizona.
