Latest news with #Brien
West Australian
4 days ago
- General
- West Australian
Worn playground removed as City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder begins audit of parks and play spaces
An aging, worn playground has been removed from a Hannans park as the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder conducts as audit of local parks and play areas. The play equipment — aside from a set of swings — at the park in Compton Court, near Hannans Primary School, has been removed after the city identified it was worn and required replacing. Rather than investing in short-term repairs, city chief executive Andrew Brien said the city opted to remove the equipment and work on a full replacement. 'We're currently seeking quotes for new equipment, and we'll have a better idea of the timeline once those are received,' he said. 'The goal is to replace it with a new playground that better meets current standards, is fun and suited to the space.' Mr Brien said the work was part of a city-wide audit of playgrounds to ensure they aligned with Australian Standards. He said a full report on future playground upgrades and replacements would go before council in August, and the city would keep the community updated. 'We know how important parks and playgrounds are for local families, and we're committed to ensuring they remain safe, well-maintained, and enjoyable for everyone,' he said.
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Who's afraid of Big Pharma? Not the R.I. House's lone independent
Rep. Jon D. Brien, a Woonsocket independent, is seen on the floor of the Rhode Island House of Representatives on April 29, 2025, waiting for the day's session to begin. (Photo by Alexander Castro/Rhode Island Current) When Big Pharma lobbyists came to the Rhode Island State House April 10 to oppose legislation that would hurt drugmakers' profits, Woonsocket independent Rep. Jon D. Brien was ready for them. Brien, the sole independent in the 75 seats of the House of Representatives, was there to introduce his bill that would shield a federal drug pricing mandate from manufacturer intervention. 'They've come from far away to tell you, 'The sky shall fall in the state of Rhode Island if you pass this legislation,'' Brien told the House Committee on Health and Human Services. 'And I assure you … it will not.' H5634 aims to stop drugmakers and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) from controlling patient access to discounted prescription drugs under the 340B Drug Pricing Program. Congress created the program in 1992 to help safety net clinics and hospitals 'stretch scarce federal resources as far as possible,' according to program overseer, the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). Under 340B, providers buy drugs from manufacturers or wholesalers at a federally set minimum discount of 23.1% off the average retail price, although the discount for providers is typically 25% to 50%. Providers are then reimbursed for the drug's standard price by insurers, and the clinic's savings are reinvested in more patient services. The feds don't pay the difference — the manufacturer eats the discount. Drugmakers continue to participate so they can have their drugs covered by Medicaid and Medicare, but some have recently tried to block providers from contracting with multiple pharmacies to fill 340B prescriptions. Outsourcing dispensing, manufacturers argue, is the latest example of how providers are profiting off a system designed to reduce customer costs for outpatient drugs. 'This legislature needs to fight back,' Brien told the committee. 'Pharmacy benefit managers, insurers and drug manufacturers are bleeding our safety net providers dry with discriminatory, profit-driven tactics. They're slashing reimbursements, clawing back funds, and steering prescriptions to their own pharmacies, crippling health centers and hospitals that serve our most vulnerable residents.' When Rhode Island Current caught up with Brien a week later, he remained firm on his bill's importance for protecting Rhode Islanders. 'Who are we going to prioritize this legislative session: Big Pharma or the people of Rhode Island?' Brien asked. 'It'll be hard to go back to them and tell them why this didn't pass, because I sure as hell am not going to sugarcoat it if it doesn't.' He was glad to see testimony supporting the legislation far outweigh opposition at the hearing. The bill was held for further study, which happens to every bill upon its debut. But what makes Brien's bill unique is the list of strange bedfellows backing it. Co-sponsors include two Republicans, Reps. Marie Hopkins of Warwick and David Place of Burrillville, and two Democrats, Reps. Megan Cotter of Exeter and Jacquelyn Baginski of Cranston — a rare show of tripartisan teamwork. 'Without question, the most consensus building piece of legislation that I've ever submitted,' Brien tweeted about the bill on April 29. Brien, who sports an image of Tulsi Gabbard being sworn in as director of national intelligence as his X header, won his House District 49 seat in 2022. Like Gabbard, Brien was once a Democrat. An attorney who specializes in personal injury, criminal defense, DUIs and expungements, Brien held the Rhode Island House District 50 seat from 2007 to 2013 when he lived in Woonsocket's Globe District, before moving to the city's North End. (The District 50 seat now belongs to Democratic Rep. Stephen Casey.) 'We are all of vast and varying ideologies, but we all believe the same thing,' Brien said over the phone. 'And the same thing is we got to get this bill passed.' Last year, Brien introduced the same legislation, which died in committee. It's why Cotter, whose western, rural Rhode Island district spans 100 square miles of Richmond and most of Exeter, sought him out this year. Brien's bill, she said, could help local health clinics survive, especially those in the state's rural and underserved areas. 'This bill could be the difference between some of them staying open and some of closing,' Cotter said. Across the rotunda, however, the Senate version of the bill remains firmly partisan. S0114, sponsored by Democratic Sen. Bridget Valverde of North Kingstown alongside seven Democrats, most of them progressives, was held for further study after its hearing on March 20. Brien's fight for 340B comes from his own backyard. Thundermist Health Center in downtown Woonsocket in Brien's district is a federally qualified health center which serves over 63,000 patients annually, including low-income and uninsured people, and it participates in the 340B program. It then reinvests the savings into other services, like an onsite food bank. Last year, Thundermist had to lay off 130 workers and eliminate its tobacco cessation program after losing roughly $5.6 million in 340B revenue, Matthew Roman, the center's chief operating officer, told the House committee. The loss came even after Thundermist worked with a national firm to recover maximum revenue from the program. Thundermist staff said the patient experience has been affected by moves by manufacturers to refuse or heavily limit shipments of 340B discounted products to multiple pharmacies — a not uncommon request for providers, who will contract with multiple pharmacies so patients can fill their medicines closer to home. Some Thundermist patients now have to visit different pharmacies depending on which manufacturer made their medication, Chris Durigan, the health center's director of clinical pharmacy services, told lawmakers at the hearing. Peter Bancroft, CEO of WellOne Primary Medical and Dental Care which has four locations in Rhode Island, shared a similar story. About a year and a half ago, WellOne used to subsidize about 40,000 $5 prescriptions monthly in its discount program. Now, the center is writing around 10,000 of those prescriptions a month, because of manufacturer restrictions that steer the discounted drugs toward one pharmacy. 'We had to pick one that was quote, unquote 'centralized,'' Bancroft said. 'Well, if you think there's a central pharmacy between Burrillville and North Kingstown and Scituate and Foster. We ended up going to the pharmacy in Chepachet. Our patients from North Kingstown are not driving to Chepachet to get their $5 prescription.' Other community health clinics offered testimony in support of Brien's and Valverde's bills. Providence Community Health Centers lost $9 million in 340B revenue in four years. WellOne faces a $2.1 million deficit in fiscal year 2025, with $1.7 million tied directly to lost 340B earnings. Wood River Health, which has three locations across the state, reported a $1 million loss in revenue over two years. CharterCARE doesn't yet benefit from 340B at its for-profit, safety net hospitals, but it wants the program intact as its properties — Our Lady of Fatima Hospital in North Providence and Roger Williams Medical Center in Providence — transition to nonprofit, 340B-eligible status after a protracted but soon-to-be-concluded change in ownership. Jeffrey Dandurand, the health system's pharmacy director, submitted written testimony that 'a key aspect of our strategic transition plan…is dependent on participation in the 340B program.' The Hospital Association of Rhode Island supports the legislation and submitted written testimony, and the town of Burrillville passed a resolution in support. Pharmaceutical manufacturers, however, are unhappy with the use of contract pharmacies, which can be any third-party drugstore including chains like CVS and Walgreens. In 2010, HRSA allowed providers to use unlimited contract pharmacies, fostering abundant growth. Since then, the number of contract pharmacies has grown 12,000%, and there were more than 200,000 contract pharmacy agreements inked between 2013 and 2024 — numbers that come from a report funded by PhRMA, a major pharmaceutical lobbying and trade group. Brien's Republican co-sponsors on the House health committee were unmoved by the arguments of Brian Jordan, a lobbyist for PhRMA, that the root issue of 340B's problems 'always goes back to low Medicaid reimbursement.' 'It almost sounds like you just don't like the program, and you're trying to restrict the program as much as possible,' said Rep. David Place of Burrillville. First-term Rep. Marie Hopkins of Warwick dug into Jordan's assertion that facilities are using 340B for profit. These are places already operating on 'shoestring' budgets, she offered, and 340B is a way to recoup costs. 'It's not how the program was originally intended,' Jordan said. 'I mean, it's a revenue source. Why not increase the sales tax, something like that?' 'When I go to the mechanic, and I pay the $299 for tires, I know that he got them for $100,' Hopkins said. 'But there is a cost associated with his providing the service. That's how business works. I see this the same way, and you're trying to scoop out their revenue source.' Hopkins' arguments echoed those of hospital trade groups, like a 2024 American Hospital Association report that cited a $30 billion growth in the 340B program over five years, while the drug market grew $330 billion in that same time. Other sources like the Drug Channels Institute analyzed HRSA data to show that the 340B program grew $12.6 billion in a single year, accounting for $66 billion overall revenue in 2023. 'Everyone in the drug channel — hospitals, federal grantees, PBMs, pharmacies, plan sponsors, employers, insurers, wholesalers, technology vendors, consultants, and more — profits from the billions of 340B dollars that are sloshing around the system,' the institute's founder Adam J. Fein wrote in 2024. PhRMA's Jordan and Rep. Hopkins did agree there should be more rigorous oversight of 340B. As drafted, the Rhode Island legislation does not permit audits beyond those already performed by the federal government. Cara Sammartino, an associate professor at Johnson & Wales who chairs the school's public health program, urged lawmakers in written testimony to strike that clause, as vagueness in federal audit laws allows 340B entities to audit themselves or hire contractors to do it. 'When I go to the mechanic, and I pay the $299 for tires, I know that he got them for $100. But there is a cost associated with his providing the service. That's how business works. I see this the same way, and you're trying to scoop out their revenue source. – Rep. Marie Hopkins, a Warwick Republican, to a pharmaceutical lobbyist a House committee hearing Brien told Rhode Island Current the idea that 340B providers aren't audited is an industry 'red herring…All the legislation says is that these institutions can't be audited more than the federal government requires them to be.' In 2023, Minnesota became the first state to require annual reporting from 340B entities. A 2024 report found that 13% of providers — mostly large hospitals — earned 80% of 340B revenue, while safety net clinics earned the least. Meanwhile, $120 million went to contract pharmacies and third-party administrators, echoing drugmakers' assertions that the program is lucrative. Similarly, a 2021 white paper by the Schaeffer Institute for Public Policy & Government Service found that hospitals represented 60% of 340B sites in 2020. Unlike non-hospital entities covered by the program, 340B hospitals 'are not required to use 340B savings to serve vulnerable populations, nor are they required to report how 340B revenues are used,' according to the report. Johns Hopkins University Professor of Accounting Ge Bai wrote in a 2023 testimony before a U.S. Congressional subcommittee that 'many tax-exempt hospitals have been deviating from their original charitable pursuits to focus on expanding their market share and enhancing profitability,' a motive that also includes 340B, since 'eligible tax-exempt hospitals…can generate substantial profits by providing these drugs to well insured patients,' Bai wrote. Asked about the Rhode Island bill, Bai said over email, 'The bill, if passed, would represent a win for 340B hospitals in RI and a loss for pharmaceutical companies.' But, she added, 'the scale of the 340B program has been ballooning.' She pointed to an April 15 executive order from President Donald Trump likely to affect the program by requiring greater oversight and regulation of Medicare and Medicaid payments for drugs. Brien and Valverde want Rhode Island to follow in the footsteps of 33 states that have passed laws to defend contract pharmacy use or prohibit PBM discrimination against 340B entities. The legislation has invoked both specific legal challenges and broader ones. Judges in the D.C. and Third Circuits ruled that the 340B statute says nothing about where or how drugs must be dispensed — ultimately a blow against contract pharmacies. Conversely, it seemed as if the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services would resume the course set for HRSA under the Biden administration when, in March, HRSA continued litigation over drugmakers' Medicaid contracts if they offered alternative rebates in violation of 340B. An HHS spokesperson said via email that the agency does not comment on ongoing litigation, and would not provide an on-record comment about the future of the 340B program. States have already been sued for trying to enshrine 340B protections, Brien said at the hearing, and some emerged victorious. The possibility of defeat in court was not enough to deter Brien. He cited lawsuits against proposals for truck tolls and high-capacity magazine bans filed before the relevant bills even hit the House or Senate floor. Brien asked his colleagues: 'Since when does this institution not pass legislation for fear of a lawsuit?' Over the phone, Brien remained hopeful. 'I intend to do a full court press on this thing. It's my number one priority. It's the number one priority of a number of legislators,' he said. 'It comes down to, 'Will leadership stand with Big Pharma or the people of Rhode Island?'' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Malay Mail
24-04-2025
- Business
- Malay Mail
Chinachem Group Pioneers Asia's First Triple-Themed Syndicated Loan
Accelerating Green Buildings & Socially Inclusive Urban Development Chinachem Group seals a key financial partnership with Bank of China (Hong Kong) Limited, DBS Bank Hong Kong, Hang Seng Bank Limited, and The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited at the Signing Ceremony of the HK$8,000,000,000 Green, Social and Sustainability-Linked Syndicated Loan in Hong Kong on 24 April 2025. Mandated Lead Arrangers and Bookrunners Mandated Lead Arrangers Lead Arranger Arrangers Facility Agent Sole ESG Coordinator HONG KONG SAR - Media OutReach Newswire - 24 April 2025 - Chinachem Group ("CCG") announced today the successful closure of an HK$8 billion syndicated loan facility ("the Facility"), marking its debut syndicated loan and establishing a new benchmark for sustainable finance in Asia. As the region's first syndicated loan to combine green, social and sustainability-linked components, the Facility garnered exceptional market reception, with final commitments from 12 leading international, regional and local banks, oversubscribed by over 2.5 times the initial overwhelming responses reflect CCG's exceptional financial position and strong corporate governance, which secure unwavering support and confidence from our banking partners despite the prevailing cautious market environments and geopolitical tension. With the new financing secured, CCG's financial and liquidity position is further bolstered, enabling it to continue investing, driving growth, and delivering sustainable long-term to the enhanced financial strength, the innovative financing structure of the Facility also reinforces CCG's position at the forefront of responsible development while creating a replicable model for aligning financial instruments with sustainable urban Brien, Chairman and Independent Non-Executive Director of Chinachem Group Holdings Limited, says, "This triple-themed Facility exemplifies our vision of building sustainable legacies – where environmental stewardship, social responsibility and financial performance converge. It directly accelerates our CCG 3050+ carbon reduction roadmap, which commits by 2030 to reduce carbon intensity by at least 51.8% from our 2020 baseline. By aligning financing with measurable sustainability outcomes, we're institutionalising responsible development at every level of our business."Andy Cheung, Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of Chinachem Group, says, "The overwhelming support from our banking partners demonstrates our shared commitment to future-proofing Hong Kong's development. The Facility provides both the capital and accountability framework we need to deliver lasting value – for our stakeholders, our communities and our urban environment."The Facility operates under CCG's enhanced Sustainable Finance Framework, fully aligned with the "Hong Kong Taxonomy for Sustainable Finance" published by the Hong Kong Monetary Facility is backed by:1. Bank of China (Hong Kong) Limited2. DBS Bank Hong Kong3. Hang Seng Bank Limited4. The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited5. Fubon Financial Holding Co., Ltd.6. Bank of Communications (Hong Kong) Limited7. Industrial Bank Co., Ltd., Hong Kong Branch8. OCBC Bank (Hong Kong) Limited9. Bank of East Asia10. China Everbright Bank Co., Ltd., Hong Kong Branch11. Chiyu Banking Corporation Limited12. Nanyang Commercial Bank, LimitedHang Seng Bank LimitedThe Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation LimitedHashtag: #ChinachemGroup The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. About Chinachem Group Founded in 1960, Chinachem Group ("CCG") is a leading private real estate company in Hong Kong. CCG manages a diverse portfolio of investment and development properties with a footprint of over 9 million square feet. Leveraging its extensive expertise in real estate development, CCG delivers high-quality residential spaces and maintains a robust pipeline of commercial projects, while its property services business creates value by managing assets for sustainable, long-term growth. CCG is also a hotel owner and operator, managing and operating properties under the Nina Hotels and Lodgewood by Nina Hospitality brands. The acquisition of Pine Care Group marks CCG's expansion into elderly care services, underscoring its commitment to delivering pristine care for the elderly. With a workforce of over 4,000 employees, CCG is dedicated to making better places to live, work and raise future generations in Hong Kong and beyond. Please visit
Forbes
18-04-2025
- Business
- Forbes
11 Months To Land His First Client Before Leveraging Local Connections To Grow A $30k/Month Digital Marketing Agency
For new entrepreneurs the rate of success isn't that great: about one in five business owners fail in their first year, and half will fail within the first five years. And I've seen that first hand as someone who's helped thousands of people start online businesses. I wish I could say that every single person who has come through one of my programs has been successful, but the truth is that it takes a certain kind of attitude to succeed. That might sound overly simplistic, but you have to believe that failure isn't an option, and then prepare yourself to fight every day against a pretty high rate of failure. When I look at the people who have succeeded with my programs, they have that attitude – tenacity, grit, determination, whatever you want to call it. Brien Gearin is one of those people, and he joined the Facebook Side Hustle course back in 2017 as one of our first students. He calls himself a 'late bloomer' and 'terrible employee,' who realized pretty quickly that he was better suited for entrepreneurship. We recently caught up to talk about his journey to entrepreneurship, how he's designing the life he wants, growing your business to meet your client's needs, where he's headed, and more. Hey Brien, I'm really excited to talk more about where you're at with your agency these days, but one of your client acquisition strategies in the beginning was leveraging your local Chamber of Commerce really early on – can you tell me more about that? Yes, besides my very first client who came from LinkedIn, joining the Chamber of Commerce in my town changed the game for me. After about six months of pretty much striking out with all other methods or being too afraid to really give them a fair shake, I called myself out for hiding behind the computer. I have always been an outgoing person and could hold a conversation with anyone, so I figured maybe it was time to figure out how to meet people in my area and see if it might be easier to do business in person. So I forced myself down to the local Chamber office, inquired about membership and at that meeting, the president of the Chamber said they'd love to have me and that they always get questions about Facebook ads and had no one to refer people to. She then asked if I'd lead a lunch-and-learn the following month. I said yes, did a Facebook ads 101 presentation for 15 people, booked eight meetings, and sold my next three clients. That's incredible. Are you still involved with them now? My Chamber participation is near zero now because my business has expanded beyond it. But for those two to three years that I was active in multiple Chambers, I honed my relationship and networking building skills that are still the backbone of my client acquisition. In just the past year or so my business, Ricochet Digital Marketing, has nearly tripled and it is due in very large part to the relationships I've been cultivating for two plus years now as well as becoming close with more and more influential people. Congrats, man! I remember you really struggling to find your first client. What is it like when you look back on trying to land your first client? It's kind of weird looking back, but I never did truly consider quitting. In the 11 months it took me from learning Facebook ads to getting my first dollar, I was all sorts of frustrated but knew I had burned the boats. There were literally no other options, and I refused to consider getting a real job again. Could I have gotten a job doing something somewhere if I needed to? Sure, but I was so afraid of the anger and shame I'd feel if I quit that I never even considered it. Yeah, I remember that feeling when I quit teaching to blog full time. It was that failure wasn't an option. Can you tell me more about that feeling for you? I had been completely unhappy with where I was in my professional life and dreading the thought of 'this must be how life is, reporting to other adults who I don't even like.' I knew I couldn't live a happy life that way. What was going through my head was an unshakeable belief that I could do it. It was a 'now or never' type of feeling, so I burned the boats and said there's no looking back, only option is to succeed, somehow. Though I had no clue how to do so at that time. One of the things I've loved about watching you grow as an entrepreneur, and it's probably because of your 'there's no looking back' attitude is that you've done a great job of matching your client's service needs even if they're outside of your current offerings. Did you have an approach to expanding your services beyond Facebook ads? I knew I needed to add more services if I intended to grow beyond my own capabilities so that's exactly what I did. I was a one man band only doing Facebook ads until around 2021 when I was introduced to a guy who ran a business only doing Google ads in my area. At about the same time, I received a referral to someone looking for Google ads. So I brought on the guy needing Google ads, and I then contracted out my new Google ads expert with him fulfilling the account under my agency. We've been working together ever since. I have since added Google business profile management (using AI), email newsletter management, SEO management, web development, and direct mail. And by my experience, I've become a strategist as well since nearly each account requires guidance, strategy, and budget management. That's such a smart way to build your business, and by that I mean your team too. So I have to ask, where does your business stand right now? As in how much are you making, what's your team size like, etc? Business is booming! Monthly recurring revenue is just a tick under $30k, and we're due to cross that barrier in the next 30 days with incoming projects. I currently have five contractors that work with me, one of which is in the process of working towards partnership in the business. We have huge plans for 2025! I can't wait to see what the rest of this year brings for you. As we wrap up, tell me where you see your business in five to ten years? We are in the process of building out our flagship webinar series that will build new relationships and develop new business opportunities with home service provider companies. This will grow our roster of full-service clients exponentially while providing unmatched value, even for those who may not even end up working with us. This will be the springboard to seven figures in ARR. Within five to ten years my presumption is this business will have been acquired at a large multiple or be a massive acquisition target. Who knows what the future holds but we're building this business to be a big target, whether or not we even intend to sell. I will be anxiously following along to see how things go, and it's truly an honor to be part of your journey. If you want to follow along with Brien's entrepreneurial journey and agency, you can find him here on LinkedIn and check out how he's helping other budding entrepreneurs with Millionaire University.
BBC News
13-04-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Glasgow go top after Hibs lose and Celtic hold Rangers
Glasgow City moved to the top of the Scottish Women's Premier League after Hibernian lost to Heart of Midlothian, while Rangers and Celtic fought out a 1-1 draw in Sunday's other big started the day two points clear at the summit, but a 2-1 home defeat in Edinburgh gave City the chance to go top - and they took the opportunity with a convincing 4-0 win over would have ended the afternoon on top with a victory in the final game of the day, but Kirsty Gallagher's second-half equaliser leaves them a point behind while reigning champions Celtic are fourth, only ahead of Hearts now on goal difference. Rangers swept into the lead after just 10 minutes at Broadwood, with forward Kirsty Howat firing into top corner against their Glasgow striker Amy Gallacher fired the equaliser after the break moments after coming on as a substitute to rescue a point, but it now leaves Celtic eight points adrift of the also made a swift start at Meadowbank as Kathleen McGovern's clever backheel put the hosts ahead after 12 Lisa Robertson smashed in the equaliser after the break and, after McGovern's header hit the crossbar, Emma Brownlie fired what turned out to be the visitors' winner after a fine took half an hour for Glasgow to break the headlock at home to sixth-top Motherwell through a Brenna Lovera header, but the striker smashed home another to quickly doubled the lead then almost immediately set up Katie Lockwood to fire the slotted her second after the break to put the 16-time champions in pole position with seven games the other end of the table, Dundee United, who have taken only four points all season, had their relegation confirmed after a thrilling 4-3 defeat by Partick Thistle that lifts the visitors to the top of the bottom six on goal difference above Aberdeen, who lost 4-2 at home to Thomson fired Aberdeen ahead, but Zara Andrews equalised after missing a penalty and Olivia Chomczuk put the visitors ahead before the Beattie equalised for the Dons, but Mya Bates restored the lead shortly after and Erin Rennie secured the points that lift Spartans to within a point of their hosts and ease their relegation Brien gave United the lead against Thistle after only 30 seconds, but goals from Tiree Burchill levelled, before Carla Boyce, Demi Falconer and Cara Henderson put the Glasgow visitors in control by half-time. Kaela McDonald-Nguah and Brien reduced the deficit after the break, but United could not find an Montrose have fallen eight points behind Spartans after a 0-0 draw away to second-bottom Queen's Park.
