DC to VC Summit Outlines the Future of Health Information Technology

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 2, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Venture capitalists, executives, startup founders, CEOs and leaders from Washington gathered at the DC to VC: Investing in Healthcare IT Summit held in San Francisco on October 6, 2010 to outline the future of health IT. Aneesh Chopra, chief technology officer of the US, spoke on strategies for growing the pace and scale of innovation of healthcare IT through adopting practices from Silicon Valley. Similarly, CEOs of fast-growing startups expressed excitement for government catalysts to improve public health and increase communication between providers and patients.

(Logo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20091118/PFLOGO)

(Logo:  http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20091118/PFLOGO)

The event was hosted by Morgenthaler Ventures, Venrock and Silicon Valley Bank with participation by the Office the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) and Practice Fusion as part of Health Innovation Week.

"We are not your mother's HHS," said Todd Park, chief technology officer of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) while presenting at DC to VC. "We are committed to fueling the emerging 'open health data' ecosystem with data and through work as a facilitator and catalyst which create value for consumers, providers, employers, governments, helping them make better decisions and get better outcomes."

"The energy during Health Innovation Week was palpable," said Brian Ascher, partner at Venrock. "We seem to have a perfect mix of opportunity, passion and necessity that makes healthcare IT an exciting area for entrepreneurs and investors alike. Events like DC to VC and Health 2.0 are a great way for us to come together, share ideas and foster continued innovation."

"The DC to VC Summit opened the eyes of many entrepreneurs and VCs to how the government is spurring innovation in health IT," said Rebecca Lynn, partner at Morgenthaler Ventures. "Creative programs such as the Open Data Initiative and 20 billion in stimulus dollars motivate and empower company founders and investors to transform the healthcare system in the US."

Resources from the DC to VC Summit are now available to the public:

• Videos of presentations by Aneesh Chopra and CEO panelists
• Official speaker headshots, company logos and live photos from the conference
• Speaker slide presentations from DC to VC

Other speakers during the half-day summit included:

• David Cerino - General manager of the Health Solutions Group, Microsoft
• Marc Owen - Executive vice president of Corporate Strategy and Business Development, McKesson
• Stephen Gorman - Global strategy officer,  GE Healthcare IT
• Melinda Buntin, Ph.D. - Director of the Office of Economic Analysis and Modeling, ONC
• Founders and CEOs of high-growth healthcare technology startups - Practice Fusion, Vocera, Castlight Health, American Well and RedBrick Health
• Participating "Rocket Demo" startup companies-Voalte, Palantir Technologies, HealthTap, Independa, Critical Systems (CritSys) and Posit Science

Event sponsors included Gunderson Dettmer, one of the nation's leading business law firms for entrepreneurs, emerging growth companies and VCs, and TriNet, the country's largest private provider of human resources outsourcing solutions to small businesses.

About Morgenthaler Ventures

Morgenthaler Ventures is a premier venture capital firm, dedicated to helping entrepreneurs build valuable companies for more than 40 years. Today, the firm has nearly $3 billion under management, including $400 million in its ninth fund, capitalized in November of 2008. Morgenthaler has invested in more than 300 companies in the information technology and life science sectors. Representative portfolio companies in the IT space include: Practice Fusion, NexTag, Siri, Lending Club, Sezmi, Nominum, JasperSoft, MuleSource, Synopsys, VeriFone, Nuance Communications, Apple and NEXTEL. Representative life science companies include: IPC – The Hospitalist Company, Ardian, OncoMed, Satiety, Catalyst Biosciences, Transcend, GlobeImmune, Moximed, SetPoint Medical, Promedior, Symphony Medical, Perclose, Intergrated Vascular Systems and Medaphis. Morgenthaler has offices in Menlo Park, CA, Boston, MA and Boulder, CO. www.morgenthaler.com

About Venrock

Venrock is a premier venture capital firm with offices in Palo Alto, CA; New York, NY; and Cambridge, MA.  Originally established as the venture capital arm of the Rockefeller family, Venrock continues an eight-decade tradition of partnering with entrepreneurs to establish successful, enduring companies.  Having invested $2.5 billion in 450 companies resulting in 127 IPOs and 129 M&As over the past 40 years, Venrock's investment returns place it among the top tier venture capital firms that have achieved consistently superior performance.  Venrock focus is on technology, healthcare and energy companies, and has been a major investor in healthcare IT for well over a decade.  Past investments in this area have included athenahealth (ATHN), Relay Health (acquired by McKesson) and Neoforma (acquired by GHX), and current portfolio companies include Castlight Health, Vocera, Coderyte and Awarepoint.  For more information, please visit Venrock's website at www.venrock.com and follow us on Twitter @venrock.

About Silicon Valley Bank

Silicon Valley Bank is the premier commercial bank for companies in the technology, life science, venture capital, private equity and premium wine industries. SVB provides a comprehensive suite of financing solutions, treasury management, corporate investment and international banking services to its clients worldwide. Through its focus on specialized markets and extensive knowledge of the people and business issues driving them, Silicon Valley Bank provides a level of service and partnership that measurably impacts its clients' success. Founded in 1983 and headquartered in Santa Clara, Calif., the company serves clients around the world through 26 U.S. offices and international operations in China, India, Israel and the United Kingdom. Silicon Valley Bank is a member of global financial services firm SVB Financial Group, with SVB Analytics, SVB Capital, SVB Global and SVB Private Client Services.  More information on the company can be found at www.svb.com.

Silicon Valley Bank is the California bank subsidiary and the commercial banking operation of SVB Financial Group. Banking services are provided by Silicon Valley Bank, a member of the FDIC and the Federal Reserve System. SVB Private Client Services is a division of Silicon Valley Bank. SVB Financial Group is also a member of the Federal Reserve System.

Available Topic Expert(s): For information on the listed expert(s), click appropriate link.

Ryan Howard

http://www.profnetconnect.com/ryan-howard

SOURCE Practice Fusion