Daily Business Report — July 2, 2012
Health Care Law Means More Money
For San Diego County Hospitals
Representatives for the more than 35 hospitals in San Diego and Imperial counties support the health care reform law upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court last week. KPBS reports. Medical providers anticipate reimbursement for an estimated 200,000 uninsured patients that would qualify for insurance under the Affordable Care Act. County health officials said about 600,000 people in San Diego County are uninsured; nearly 70,000 are children. Current law requires that medical providers — including hospitals — provide care for patients even if they don’t have insurance and can’t pay for services. Because providers are not typically reimbursed for care rendered to the uninsured, the county and private hospitals typically absorb the cost of their care. The new law would ease that financial burden, said Steve Escoboza, CEO and president of the trade organization, Hospital Association of San Diego and Imperial counties. “The hospitals, physician offices and clinics, basically the entire provider network, will benefit in terms of having some reimbursement for the cost of care that until now has been uncompensated,” said Escoboza. County health officials said they’re working on modernizing eligibility operations to implement the law locally.
Bristol-Myers Squibb Announces Acquisition
of Amylin Pharmaceuticals for $5.3 Billion
Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. is acquiring San Diego-based Amylin Pharmaceuticals Inc. — which is developing drugs for the treatment of diabetes — for $5.3 billion. The total value of the transaction, including Amylin’s net debt and a contractual payment obligation to Eli Lilly & Co., together totaling about $1.7 billion, is about $7 billion. The board of directors of Amylin has recommended that Amylin’s stockholders tender their shares into the tender offer. Bristol-Myers Squibb and AstraZeneca announced that, following the completion of the acquisition of Amylin, the companies will enter into collaboration arrangements regarding the development and commercialization of Amylin’s portfolio of products.Amylin recently launched Bydureon, a once-weekly therapy for patients with type 2 diabetes.
Legacy Apartment Homes in Mira Mesa
Sold to Partnership for $91 Million
Legacy Apartment Homes, a 22-building complex at 9320 Hillery Drive in the Mira Mesa area, has been sold for $91 million to a partnership managed by R&V Management Corp. Cushman & Wakefield, which facilitated the transaction between the seller, Garden Communities, and the buyer, said it was the largest multifamily sale so far this year in San Diego County. Legacy Apartment Homes sits on nearly 18 acres and has 412 one-, two-, and three-bedroom units. Amenities include two poos and spas, recreation room, fitness center, movie theater, business center and garages. Last year, R&V Management purchased the Missions at Rio Vista, a 316-unit development in Mission Valley.
San Diego County Water Authority OKs
Higher Wholesale Water Rates for 2013
The San Diego County Water Authority board has approved new wholesale water rates and charges for 2013. The total cost for municipal and industrial untreated water purchased by its 24 member agencies will rise to $1,003 per acre-foot on Jan. 1, 2013, up $88 per acre-foot, or 9.6 percent from the current rate. The treated water rate for 2013 will be $1,259 per acre-foot, up $111 per acre-foot, or 9.7 percent. (An acre-foot is about 325,900 gallons, enough to meet the needs of two average single-family households of four people for a year.) The agency said that actual changes to an individual’s water bill will vary, depending on the mix of water their local water agency purchases from the Water Authority and each agency’s own rate-setting decisions in coming months. The agency blamed part of the increased rates on increased costs from the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.
Alion Science and Technology
Receives $542 Million Navy Contract
Alion Science and Technology, a Virginia-based engineering company with an office in San Diego, has been awarded a contract valued at up to $542 million to provide technical and management expertise to support the U.S. Navy’s submarine force. The contract, issued by the Naval Sea Systems Command, covers a range of services to the Team Submarine Program Offices, including engineering, logistics, program management and business and financial management. The contract runs through 2017.
DPR Construction Receives Contract
To Build Regenerative Medicine Facility
DPR Construction has been awarded a multi-million dollar contract to manage the construction of a regenerative medicine campus on behalf of Advanced Biohealing and Shire plc, the specialty biopharmaceutical company, with real estate partner BioMed Realty Trust Inc. and designers Ferguson Pape Baldwin Architects. The new campus in Sorrento Mesa will expand Shire’s regenerative medicine business, Advanced BioHealing Inc. Phase I of the site development will be in excess of 150,000 square feet and will house the company’s manufacturing and associated support operations, commercial operations, corporate, and administrative functions. Construction id scheduled to begin in 2013 and occupancy is targeted for 2014.
Grossmont Hospital to Receive
New Co-Generation Equipment
The Grossmont Healthcare District board of directors has approved plans to improve energy efficiency and reliability at Grossmont Hospital in La Mesa. The action will result in the replacement of decades-old equipment with state-of-the-art cogeneration energy equipment at the regional medical facility. Estimated to cost $18 million to install, the hospital’s cogeneration project is projected to save millions of dollars in energy costs and provide a reliable source for up to 95 percent of the hospital’s electricity needs, GHD officials said. Built by Solar Turbines of San Diego, the hospital’s cogeneration equipment will feature emergency generators, chillers powered by both steam and electricity, a heat recovery steam generator, related cooling towers, boilers, and medical gas equipment.
General Dynamics Acquires Ship Repair Business
General Dynamics has entered an agreement to acquire the Ship Repair and Coatings Division of Earl Industries, an East Coast ship repair company that supports the U.S. Navy fleet in Norfolk, Va., and Mayport, Fla. The Ship Repair and Coatings Division will become part of the shipbuilding, maintenance and repair operations of San Diego-based General Dynamics NASSCO. Earl Industries is a privately held company. The Ship Repair and Coatings Division employs 575 workers in the Norfolk and Mayport areas.
Attorney Elected President of Downtown Rotary
Jenny Goodman, an attorney at local law firm Sullivan Hill Lewin Rez & Engel, has been elected president of the Rotary Club of San Diego Downtown Breakfast for 2012-2013. Goodman has been active in Rotary since 2004 and has been on the board of the club for the last two years. Goodman formerly served as the chair of the San Diego County Bar Association’s Animal Law Section, was a former president of the Indiana University Alumni Club-San Diego chapter and served two terms on the board of San Diego Coastkeeper.
Law Firm Partner Heads SDSU Alumni Association
William “Bill” Earley, partner in the law firm of McKenna Long & Aldridge, has been elected president of the San Diego State University Alumni Association. Earley, a 1986 alumnus, succeeds Jeff Marston, president of Marston & Marston, whose one-year term ended June 30. Earley, a practicing labor and employment attorney, received his undergraduate degree in business sdministration from SDSU in 1986 before earning his J.D. from Georgetown University. He was president of the Aztec Athletic Foundation (currently Aztec Club) from 1995 to 1996. Earley also previously served as president of the Associated Students at SDSU from 1985 to 1986.
New Incubator Program is Launched
By Procopio, Cory, Hargreaves & Savitch
Procopio, Cory, Hargreaves & Savitch has formed a new incubator program to assist entrepreneurs and start-ups in the growth of their companies. The incubator is housed in Procopio’s new Del Mar Heights office and will provide a basic legal start-up package, collaborative workspace, specialized mentoring, counseling and contacts for entrepreneurs to grow their company and secure funding so they can take their business to the next level within six to 12 months. “We are pleased to be able to provide these highly motivated individuals not only free workspace, but also valuable internal and external resources that are crucial to promoting long-term sustainability, success and fundability of their burgeoning companies,” said Tom Turner, Procopio’s managing partner.
The Daily Business Report is produced by SD METRO. Contact: Manny Cruz (619) 287-1865. manny@sandiegometro.com.
