[share] Last week GREDF celebrated our partners in economic development at our 2013 Annual Meeting.

We saluted and thanked the people, organizations and businesses that are involved in projects and efforts that drive economic development in our region. We thought it was appropriate to highlight many of the partnerships Jim Mentesti spent his career building on the night we celebrated his retirement.

Below is a link to a pdf of GREDF Board Chairman, Tim Finlay’s, speech, as well as a link to the visual presentation. Just click the arrow at the bottom of the screen every time you see an *asterisk* in the pdf to follow along.

Tim talked a lot about partners in his remarks, but there are so many more. Too many for him to mention by name. Please know that it has been our pleasure to work with all of our partners over the years. It is their hard work and dedication that makes the Quincy and Adams County area a great place to live, work and raise a family.

As Tim said in closing, “We all know that 2013 is likely to be a challenging year. We also know that based on our track record, our resources and our people, we will rise to the occasion, view challenges as opportunities and grow… together.”

Annual Meeting Speech

Annual Meeting Presentation

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[share]Heritage Foundation Fellow to Speak at Industrial Association of Quincy Annual Meeting

Edmund Haislmaier, an expert in health care policy and markets at The Heritage Foundation, is the featured speaker at the Industrial Association of Quincy 2012 Annual Meeting on Tuesday, October 2nd. The breakfast will be held at 7:00am at Town & Country Inn and Suites, 110 North 54th Street. Tickets to the continental breakfast are available by calling Great River Economic Development Foundation at 217.223.4313 or downloading this registration form.

Mr. Haislmaier will give a speech entitled, “The Implications of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act”.  The continental breakfast begins at 7:00 am with remarks beginning at 7:20 am. The cost is $15 per person. Tables of eight are available.

In his role at The Heritage Foundation, Edmund F. Haislmaier frequently is asked to help lawmakers design and draft specific reforms to the health system. Haislmaier’s expertise includes health care tax policy, Medicare, Medicaid, foreign health systems, pharmaceuticals and health care price controls.

Haislmaier, who works on related bills with both state and federal legislators, developed innovative strategies for states to create consumer-centered health insurance markets by using their authority to regulate insurance.

Under his design, employers may opt to enroll workers in a state health insurance “exchange,” through which each worker then buys coverage of his or her choice. Employers avoid the difficulties of administering a traditional “one size fits all” group plan, while employees pick their own coverage and take it from job to job. No one loses current tax preferences or other benefits of employer-sponsored insurance.

This approach is a key element of Utah’s health care reforms, adopted in 2009. And in recent years, 15 other states have asked Haislmaier and his colleagues in Heritage’s Center for Health Policy Studies to help develop consumer-focused solutions for their troubled health systems.

Haislmaier is in demand as a speaker at conferences on health policy and has testified before numerous federal and state legislative committees. A frequent guest on radio and television news and talk shows, his commentaries have been published in The Washington Times, New York Post and National Review Online among many others.

Before rejoining Heritage in 2005 as a research fellow, Haislmaier worked as a health policy consultant from 1998-2004 and was director of health care policy in Pfizer Inc.’s Corporate Strategic Planning and Policy division from 1994-1997.

He originally came to Heritage in 1987 as the think tank’s first policy analyst for health care. He was named senior policy analyst in 1994. He was promoted to senior research fellow in 2007.

Haislmaier is a member of the board of directors of the National Center for Public Policy Research. He holds a bachelor’s degree in history from St. Mary’s College in Maryland.

Industrial Association of Quincy

• Industrial Association of Quincy has been in existence since 1945.
• IAQ membership has remained constant and includes both large and small industry, transportation, utilities and the financial and medical sectors.
• IAQ’s number one priority is to ensure the voice of industry is heard. IAQ continues to be an advocate for business and industry both in Springfield and Washington D.C. This has become more important as the cost of doing business escalates.
• IAQ is proud of the continued strong alliance with the AAIM Employers’ Association and the Workforce Investment Board of Western Illinois.
• IAQ continues to have a strong voice in workforce development and infrastructure issues throughout the region.
• Through The Quincy Entrepreneurship Center, IAQ uses the resources of the Illinois Office of Trade and the International Trade Center to assist local businesses in international markets.
• IAQ partnership with GREDF remains strong. GREDF has acted as IAQ facilitator for the past 10 plus years and together the organizations support the Tri-State Summit and Mid America Intermodal Port project among other initiatives.
• IAQ Executive Committee includes: Jack Sharkey, Sharkey Transportation, president; Harry Marcionetti, Knapheide Manufacturing, vice president; and Tim Finlay, ADM Alliance Nutrition, secretary/treasurer.

Reservations for the October 2nd breakfast at Town & Country Inn and Suites may be made by contacting GREDF, which serves as IAQ facilitator, at 217-223-4313 or gredf@gredf.org. Here is the registration form. The registration deadline is September 27th.

[share] Dr. Bob Graboyes, Senior Fellow for Health and Economics, NFIB Research Foundation, gave a speech entitled “Healthcare Reform: How High’s the Water, Mama?” at the 2011 Industrial Association of Quincy Annual Meeting on August 15th.

PDFs of his presentation, supplemental materials and 2 recent articles are below. For more information and writings from Dr. Graboyes visit www.NFIB.com/DrBob and www.robertgraboyes.com.

2011 IAQ Annual Meeting Dr. Robert Graboyes Presentation – Healthcare Reform: How High’s the Water, Mama?

Employer Mandate Penalties: Calculations

PPACA: Endless Problems for Small Business

NFIB Healthcare Bulletin – Essential Health Benefits: The Secretary’s Joystick (5/3/11)

NFIB Healthcare Bulletin – The HIT Hit: PPACA’s Health Insurance Tax (6/14/11)

[share] Dr. Robert F. Graboyes, a Senior Fellow for Healthand Economics at the NFIB  Research Foundation in Washington, DC., is the featured speaker at the Industrial Association of Quincy 2011 Annual Meeting on Monday, August 15th. The luncheon will be held at noon in the Hall of Fame Room at the Quincy University Health and Fitness Center. Tickets are available by filling out and returning this reservation form or calling Great River Economic Development Foundation at 217.223.4313.

Dr. Graboyes will give a speech entitled, Healthcare Reform: How High’s the Water, Mama?. “The 2010 healthcare law is washing across American business and will profoundly complicate the relationships between employer, employee, and government,” said Dr. Graboyes. “I will talk about sandbags and high ground for the years ahead.”

In his role at the NFIB, Dr. Graboyes analyzes federal and state healthcare legislation from the perspective of small business. He also teaches health economics in master’s and doctoral programs at Virginia Commonwealth University, the University of Virginia, and George Mason University.

Previously, Dr. Graboyes was Chase Manhattan Bank’s economist for sub-Saharan Africa, economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, and associate professor at the University of Richmond. In 2000 and 2007, he was Visiting Scholar at the Kazakhstan School of Public Health in Almaty, Kazakhstan.

He has a Ph.D. in Economics from Columbia University, master’s degrees from the College of William and Mary, Columbia University and Virginia Commonwealth University, and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Virginia. His recent writings can be found at NFIB.com/DrBob.

Reservations for the August 15th luncheon at the Quincy University Health and Fitness Center Hall of Fame Room may be made by filling out and returning this reservation form or contacting GREDF, which serves as IAQ facilitator, at 217-223-4313 or gredf@gredf.org. The cost is $15 per person. Tables of seven are available.