24A - Venture Concept No. 1

Opportunity: According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, 1 in 5 Americans suffer from mental illness. Currently, there aren’t enough resources to solve the mental crisis in America.

·        Forces: Several forces that have created this opportunity, is the lack of Psychiatrists and Psychologists in the industry. As a result, many primary care doctors are carrying the “burden” of attempting to treat illnesses outside of their expertise or discipline and failing. In addition, with the economic crisis and a lot of individuals unemployed, there are many uninsured patients that are unable to afford the out-of-pocket expenses for services. Lastly, insurances are becoming extremely restrictive with the services or medications they approve which in turn limits the care or services the patient receives.

·        Market demographics: Individuals (ages 7+) who need mental health services that can either not afford services due to lack of insurance or are limited to the services they can receive through their insurance. Also, patients that are currently experiencing

·        Customers: Currently, patients with insurance are seeing specialists in their network of coverage. For uninsured patients however, many of them are most likely going to hospitals and being Baker-Acted for services; this only provides a temporary solution, not maintenance.

·        This opportunity is huge considering the recent suicides of wealthy individuals who unfortunately, struggled with mental illness and could not receive help.

·        The window of Opportunity will always be open as long as patients need a mental health institution where they can be treated.

Innovation:

·        My organization will be multifaceted in that it will offer services to pediatric patients, as well as, adults. In addition, I will also have a drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility within the practice. Most mental health institutions don’t combine the use of both practices, but I believe these services go hand-in-hand for a successful recovery.

o   Self-Pay/Underinsured patients will be placed on the sliding scale and will have a copay ranging from $20-$100 depending on where they fall on the sliding scale fee.

o   Providers/Hospitals will be able to refer their patients. In order to build relationships with both the providers and hospitals, I will offer the first visit free to every new patient.

o   Insured patients will be required to pay their copays. If there is a service that is not covered by their insurance, they can apply for the sliding scale and pay for the service at a discounted rate.

Venture Concept:

·        Patients are willing to go anywhere necessary to receive proper care and attention. If they are currently at an organization that is providing these services, they will go elsewhere. Even if patients don’t completely abandon their current services, they might still benefit from services offered in my organization.

·        For my organization, the competitors will most likely be non-profit organizations that also offer sliding-scale discounts to their uninsured/underinsured patients. One of the weaknesses I can easily note is that such organizations will most likely have longer waiting periods, which will direct patients to my organization. Also, if their poverty guidelines are different, they may not be offering affordable copays which again, will send more patients my way.

Location:

·        My organization will be placed in low-income communities in order to meet the need for the underprivileged. Also, it’ll have to be stationed in an area with local bus routes for those who don’t have transportation.

Price points:  

The average office visit for patients range from $110-$220 depending on diagnosis and services offered at the time of the visit. My organization will offer a sliding-scale fee for uninsured/underinsured patients which will allow patients to pay for services at a discounted rate based on the household income. In order for patients to qualify for the sliding scale fee discount, they must be at a poverty scale of 100%-200%. The slides will be projected as follows:

Household Size	Annual Household Income
Slide Fee	$20 Copay	$40 Copay	$55 Copay		$70 Copay		$100 Copay
1	$0 - $   12,140	$12,141 - $16,146		$16,147 - $20,152		$20,153 - $24,280		$24,281	and up
2	$0 - $   16,460	$16,461 - $21,892		$21,893 - $27,324		$27,325 - $32,920		$32,291	and up
3	$0 - $   20,780	$20,781 - $27,637		$27,638 - $34,495		$34,496 - $41,560		$4,1561	and up
4	$0 - $   25,100	$25,101 - $33,383		$33,384 -$41,666		$41,667 - $50,200		$50,201	and up
5	$0 - $   29,420	$29,421 - $39,129		$39,130 - $48,837		$48,838 - $58,840		$58,841	and up
6	$0 - $   33,740	$33,741 - $44,874		$44,875 - $56,008		$56,009 - $67,480		$67,481	and up
7	$0 - $   38,060	$38,061 - $50,620		$50,621 - $63,180		$63,181 - $76,120		$76,121	and up
8	$0 - $   42,380	$42,381 - $56,365		$56,366 - $70,351		$70,352 - $84,760		$84,761	and up

 Customer Service:

·        Case workers will be assigned to each patient to monitor patient progress and ensure everything is running smoothly for the patient. Patient care coordinators also follow up and maintain contact with patient once they leave the office and schedule them as needed.

Employees:

·        Clinical/Medical

o   Psychiatrists

o   Psychologists

o   Registered Nurse/Licensed Practical Nurse

o   Medical Assistant

·        Clerical

o   Patient Service Representative

o   Patient Care Coordinator

o   Case Workers

·        Executive

o   Medical Director

o   Executive Director

o   Human Resources Director

o   Compliance Officer

o   Operations Director

o   Accountant

o   IT

Unfair Advantage: As mentioned previously, my unfair advantage is my social capital because I have a lot of people I can easily contact for information or referrals. Also, I am well-versed in how the business operates and how to apply for government funding to secure the funding I need to maintain operations.

What’s next: After operating for five years, I am hoping to expand my business. This will require me to start a budget, seek new opportunities and conduct research on prospective areas I’d like to target.

For me: I hope that after my successful expansion, I can partner up with a coffee shop or deli so that I can generate revenue without solely depending on government funding.