DATA WARBUCKS. The legal feud between Guidant Corp. and MedAssets’ Aspen Healthcare Consulting group may have been resolved with an undisclosed settlement over the row about contractual pricing confidentiality clauses but Public Citizen convinced a federal judge to unseal many of the case filings for interested parties to stitch together some context. In fact, in an era when hypocrisy seems to permeate the American cultural, political and religious zeitgeist it seems curious that Guidant would slap one company for doing something it allowed another to do under contract.

However, there’s a larger issue at stake here that’s seemingly being overlooked and needs to be addressed. Yes, the only solution for hospitals at this point is to not sign confidentiality clauses and walk away from any deals that require such signatures. But that’s not the point. While some may construe Guidant’s actions of nailing one company for gaining access to its pricing but allowing another to do it without penalty as hypocrisy (and on the surface it is), those actions indicate something else much greater that needs to be debated and solved…quickly. It’s simple: Guidant acts like it owns the data. Hence, it can control who can get it and use it and who can’t.

This court case should raise an issue that the industry has been tiptoeing around for years – certainly since the rise of the dot-com bubble back in the late 1990s. Who really owns data? Whose data? Can data be owned? Should it be owned? If not, then this case should have been tossed out. If so, then who owns the data? Who determines who owns the data? You get the idea.

Honestly, there are certain private data that any given company owns. But giving pricing to a facility means just that. You don’t own it any more. It’s like sharing a secret. Once you do, it’s technically not a secret anymore because you’ve just incurred the risk that someone will spill the beans. Healthcare facilities should have the right to disclose what they want, within reason, of course. Technically, they do, but it’s not always a good business decision internally from a competitive perspective. But that decision should be free of financial or legal repercussions levied by an external source – namely, a vendor.

Someone has to take a public stand and declare – with legal backing – that sellers don’t own pricing data any more than buyers do and leave it at that. It may not be public, and they don’t have to share it, of course, but no one should be penalized Guidant’s way for doing it.

CHEESE TEASE. With the Democrats assuming control of Congress next month one has to wonder what the group purchasing industry may be thinking. With the ouster of mildly GPO friendly Sen. Mike DeWine (R-OH), the chairmanship of the Senate Antitrust Committee "investigating" GPOs most likely will revert to Sen. Herb Kohl (D-WI), who has been more critical of group purchasing activities and even supports federal regulations to make GPOs behave. But with so much on the Democratic agenda, including payback time for President Bush (get your war on terrorism and impeachment hearing tickets now) will he "stay the course?"

PAY BACK. A new national survey found that employee healthcare costs are rising twice as fast as inflation – a whopping 7.7 percent – and ahead of worker compensation increases. Sounds like an 8 percent reduction in pay for members of Congress – regardless of political party – is in order to maintain a proper checks and balances. And while we’re at it, let’s reduce Congressional income (for representatives and senators) and Executive income (for the president and Cabinet heads) each year the equivalent of healthcare cost increases until someone figures out how to restore logic and order.

GAP FILLER. To help stabilize New York’s fiscally bleeding hospital industry, the Bush Administration agreed to pay the state $1.5 billion over five years. Meanwhile, New York hospitals must start cutting costs substantially across the board – even if it means closing hospitals. One of the first items on the excise list? All White House officials needing or seeking medical attention while visiting New York will be bussed, flown or shipped down to New Orleans.

PANDERING. A Congress-created citizens group focusing on healthcare reform wants "protection for all from high medical expenses and guaranteed coverage for specific checkups and treatments." And you can find such a solution "second to the right, then straight on till morning."

Make haste, not waste, readers.