Daily Business Report: Friday, July 9, 2021
UC San Diego Health first in nation
to implant new device for chronic back pain
By Jeanna Vazquez
UC San Diego Health has completed the first surgery in the nation to treat chronic back pain by implanting a device that uses neurostimulation in the form of electrical pulses to key nerves and muscles responsible for stabilizing the lower back.
“We are seeing incredible innovation in using neuromodulation to target chronic pain in a more personalized approach,” said Krishman Chakravarthy, M.D., director of clinical pain research at UC San Diego Health Center. “We have learned that over time patients with mechanical back pain experience degeneration of their multifidus muscle — a series of small, triangular muscle bundles located on either side of the spinal column. By targeting this muscle with neurostimulation, we can not only reduce pain but potentially restore function.”
Implanting the new device is performed in an outpatient setting, requiring no more than an hour. During the procedure, the device, roughly the size of a small pager, is placed in the lower back and a pair of stimulation leads are sited on the nerve that innervates the lumbar multifidus muscle responsible for stabilizing the lower back.
PHOTO: The ReActive8 Implantable Neurostimulation System, manufactured by Mainstay Medical, is placed in the lower back and a pair of stimulation leads are sited on the nerve that innervates the lumbar multifidus muscle responsible for stabilizing the lower back
The new IRS child tax credit
to be rolled out this month
As part of the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan that President Joe Biden signed into law in March, the new IRS child child tax credit begins its rollout this month. Qualifying households will be receiving $3,600 annually per child under age 6, and $3,000 per child between the ages of 6 and 17 years old.
The IRS will start issuing payments on July 15. Recipients will receive monthly payments of either $300 or $250 per child until December 2021, upon which they will receive the rest of their payment after filing their 2021 tax return.
The IRS estimates that 90 percent of families with children are eligible for the child tax credit. Individual taxpayers who earn up to $75,000 per year, heads of household who earn up to $112,500, and married taxpayers or widows/widowers who make up to $150,000 are all eligible for the tax credit. Eligible families who do not normally file a tax return can use the IRS’ new Child Tax Credit non-filer Sign-up tool to make sure they receive the payments they are entitled to.
Construction to start on 7-story off-campus
science and medical tower for UC San Diego
In a sign that UC San Diego is beginning to run out of space for big buildings, a private developer is about to break ground on a 7-story tower that the university will use to house health and medical programs across the street from main campus.
The $70 million La Jolla Innovation Center (LJIC) will be located at the corner of Villa La Jolla Drive and La Jolla Village Drive near the southwest edge of UCSD, whose enrollment could surpass 40,500 this fall.
Construction will begin next month on LJIC, which represents a public-private partnership between UCSD and GPI Companies, a Los Angeles real estate investment and development firm.
Bank of American wants out of contract
with state Employment Development Department
CalMatters
Just how dysfunctional is California’s unemployment department?
Apparently so dysfunctional that Bank of America, which since 2010 has had an exclusive contract with the state to deliver unemployment benefits through prepaid debit cards, wants to end the contract — even though the Employment Development Department just renewed it for another two years.
The news, first reported by ABC 7 in San Francisco, comes about a month after a federal judge — as part of a class-action lawsuit first reported by CalMatters— ordered Bank of America to stop using an automated fraud filter that blocked tens of thousands of legitimate claimants from accessing their benefits after they reported suspicious account activity. The bank said it received 230,000 claims of debit card fraud from October 2020 through March 2021.
Bank of America’s desire to end the contract is striking, given that both the bank and the state rake in merchant fees whenever an unemployment debit card is swiped. EDD has pocketed millions in fees amid the pandemic: It earned more than $47 million from March 2020 through April 2021, even though the claims of more than 1.1 million jobless Californians remain in limbo.
Veteran YMCA leader named president
and CEO of YMCA of San Diego County
Known for his 30 years of experience leading multiple YMCAs of increasing complexity and developing highly-effective community partnerships and social justice programs at Y’s across the country, Todd Tibbits has been named the new president and CEO of YMCA of San Diego County. He takes the helm on Aug. 11.
“The YMCA movement is my passion,” said Tibbits, outgoing president and CEO of the YMCA of Greater Charlotte, N.C. “Throughout this CEO search process, I recognized just how closely aligned my personal values and vision are with those of the YMCA of San Diego County.
In Charlotte, Tibbits led a strategic vision for one of the ten largest YMCAs in the United States. It had a pre-pandemic operating budget of $99 million and the highest membership revenue of any YMCA in the country throughout the pandemic. Prior to that role, Tibbits was chief operating officer of the YMCA of the Greater Twin Cities where he led day-to-day operations serving 300,000 people annually with 7,000 employees.
In 1992, he began his career in Lansing, Mich. before leading the YMCA and JCC of Greater Toledo, Ohio and executing strategic vision for Northwest Ohio’s largest social service organization covering four counties and two states.
Michael Pogrebinsky named an associate
of law firm Meyers Nave in San Diego
Law firm Meyers Nave has named Michael Pogrebinsky as an associate in its Labor and Employment Practice Group where he will advise clients on a wide range of labor and employment law matters in state and federal court.
Pogrebinsky has extensive experience drafting pleadings, arbitration proceedings, motions, and memoranda. His experience also includes conducting client and expert interviews, and researching employment, construction, insurance, and civil procedure issues in multiple jurisdictions, including California, Washington, Oregon, and Nevada.
Prior to joining Meyers Nave, Pogrebinsky served as an associate for an employment law boutique in San Diego that served local corporations and Fortune 50 companies headquartered throughout the U.S.
His experience also includes representing clients on insurance coverage litigation disputes stemming from underlying construction defect actions and serving as a law clerk where he advised on issues regarding business, tax, and bankruptcy litigation.
San Diego funders invest $2 million in
affordable housing at City Heights Transit Plaza
Bridgedeck Partners LLC has secured initial financing to build a $65 million, 190-unit affordable housing project on property next to the City Heights Transit Plaza at the corner of El Cajon Boulevard and 40th Street.
Bridgedeck Partners LLC—consisting of local affordable housing developers Naturally Affordable Housing and The Hampstead Companies—sought $2 million of debt capital for the acquisition of the final parcel of land on the edge of the Normal Heights neighborhood.
Mission Driven Finance, a San Diego-based impact investment firm, worked with Bridgedeck Partners to structure a collaborative $2 million investment. The San Diego Foundation approved a $1 million investment in this project, and Alliance Healthcare Foundation and Mission Driven Finance each invested $500,000.
The development will provide rental housing for very low and low-income individuals and families earning between 50 percent and 60 percent of area median income.
“To realize just, equitable and resilient communities, we need to increase access and resources for San Diegans facing barriers to realizing full and healthy lives,” said Mark Stuart, president & CEO of The San Diego Foundation. “Soon, 190 families will have stable, affordable housing thanks to community partners coming together to ensure the equitable flow of capital for social good.”
General Atomics completes first
MQ-9A Block 5 for The Netherlands
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. (GA-ASI) announced the completion of the first MQ-9A Block 5 Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) and Ground Control Station for the Royal Netherlands Air Force.
General Atomics and the Royal Netherlands Air Force commemorated the occasion with a special roll-out ceremony at corporate headquarters in Poway, and the event was simulcast to the Netherlands.
The aircraft will begin its acceptance testing later this year at GA-ASI’s Gray Butte Flight Operations Facility near Palmdale, Calif., and the aircraft will be delivered to the Netherlands before the end of 2021.
The total Foreign Military Sales agreement includes four MQ-9A Block 5 aircraft and four mobile Ground Control Stations, along with associated support equipment.
“We are proud to begin this new relationship with the Royal Netherlands Air Force,” said Linden Blue, General Atomics CEO. “With millions of hours of proven performance under its wings, the MQ-9 is ideally suited to support their nation’s ISR needs. The Netherlands now joins the United Kingdom, Italy, France and Spain as NATO countries operating our advanced RPAs, with Belgium coming online in the next few years.”
Howard Healthcare Academy awarded national accreditation
Howard Healthcare Academy, the only school in San Diego strictly dedicated to dental programs, founded by the creators of The Super Dentists, was recently granted its accreditation by the Commission of the Council on Occupational Education (COE).
Announcement of the action was made by Dr. Lois Gackenheimer, commission chair, following the June commission meeting of the Council on Occupational Education on June 10, 2021.
The award of accreditation status is based on an evaluation to demonstrate that the institution meets not only the standards of quality of the commission, but also the needs of students, the community, and employers. The commission’s evaluation process includes an extensive self-study by the institution and an intensive review by a visiting team of professional educators representing the commission’s member institutions from other states.
Physician Retraining and Reentry program
marks milestone with 150 graduates
Physician Retraining and Reentry Inc., a San Diego-based program that educates and trains physicians to practice as primary care doctors, announced that it has graduated its 150th physician. Each PRR graduate brings communities one step closer to having their medical needs met — which is critical because of the nationwide physician shortage.
PRR’s educational program consists of 15 online modules that cover a wide range of critical subject matter, such as cardiology, dermatology, medical record management and more. At the end is a final examination and a one-day, in-person practicum. Upon completion, graduates receive credits from the UC San Diego School of Medicine and a Certificate of Completion from PRR.
Dr. Bharathi Gowda, one of the most recent PRR graduates, said she enrolled in PRR after she closed her ob/gyn practice. The Maryland physician wants to continue to practice medicine and make a difference in the community, but she realized she was at a point in her career where she didn’t want the stress of running her own practice.
