J.D. Power and Associates Announces: Formation of New Health Care Division; CareData Brings the Voice of the Customer to the Health Care Industry

Business Wire, April 25, 2001

Business Editors & Health/Medical Writers

AGOURA HILLS, Calif.--(BW HealthWire)--April 25, 2001

Blending the experience of health care market analysts and research consultants, J.D. Power and Associates today announced the formation of a new health care division.

It will provide the health care industry with relevant and actionable information and services for managed health care plans, pharmaceutical companies, medical providers, hospitals and integrated delivery networks, employers and consumers.

The new division, with offices in White Plains, N.Y. and Scottsdale, Ariz., was formed through the acquisition of CareData Reports, a division of CareData.com Inc. providing syndicated and custom health care-related studies. These studies are based on actual customer experiences with health care products and services.

The division will also provide strategic consultation, training and implementation services by leveraging the experience of existing J.D. Power and Associates resources and through other strategic alliances. The division will conduct business as CareData, the Health Care Division of J.D. Power and Associates.

"We have been carefully working for several years to bring voice-of-the-customer information to decision-makers in the health care industry," said Steve Goodall, president and chief operating officer at J.D. Power and Associates. "With CareData Reports and our extensive experience conducting customer satisfaction research, we are anchoring our position as a well-respected third-party, independent evaluator of health care products and services."

The new CareData division will be led by Steven D. Wood, Ph.D., a researcher and consultant in the health care industry for more than 20 years. Dr. Wood has been recognized for his work in creating customer retention and loyalty strategies for health care organizations. Dr. Wood earned his BS and MA degrees in business from San Diego State University and a Ph.D. in quantitative business analysis from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

Other executive members of the CareData division team are David Stefan, director of operations and development, and Anthony Morgan, executive director of research. Stefan has worked for more than 15 years with hospitals, managed-care and pharmaceutical organizations in conducting customer research and developing customer satisfaction and retention strategies.

Morgan has more than 30 years of senior-level market research design and management and will continue his role of developing and managing the division's research products as he did for the former CareData Reports.

CareData's products include historical and trend information on health care customer satisfaction, pharmacy benefits, disease management and prevention, hospitals and medical group practices, dental and vision care. Issue-specific customer surveys for pharmaceutical companies, medical vendors, health plans, hospitals, physician groups, health-oriented professional associations and employers are also conducted.

CareData studies provide the most comprehensive and insightful information available about health plan performance. With findings on more than 150 issues ranging from plan selection to disease prevention, CareData reports are used by employers, purchasing coalitions, consultants, consumers and healthcare product manufacturers. CareData analyses provide extensive customer information about the service and product aspects of the treatment for more than 20 medical conditions.

The reports also help identify health plan strengths and weaknesses, provide insights as to what attracts members to a plan and improve member satisfaction and retention by understanding what drives consumer perceptions and decisions. Many employers use the CareData surveys to obtain their employees' input in making decisions about health plans and benefits.

With headquarters in Agoura Hills, J.D. Power and Associates is a global marketing information services firm operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting, consulting, training and customer satisfaction. The firm's quality and satisfaction measurements are based on actual responses from millions of consumers annually. J.D. Power and Associates press releases and media information can be accessed through the Internet at www.jdpa.com. Media e-mail contact: michael.greywitt@jdpa.com or john.tews@jdpa.com.