Richard Palarea

I am currently the CEO and co-founder of PA & Associates Healthcare, which probably sounds boring – but is quite revolutionary. I have combined nearly 30 years of spend management expertise in supply chain with specific knowledge from the implantable medical device industry to address a growing problem in healthcare; the unsustainable environment of rising costs for procedures, declining reimbursements and increasing profits for device manufacturers and distributors.

I’m so compelled to fix this that I spent 15 months with just one hospital working on the problem. Even after securing over $500,000 in savings per month – a savings of 35% of their total historic spend – I could not deem the project a success. Inefficiencies in billing, reporting, analytics and the lack of involvement from surgeons in managing the spend category propelled me and my partners unwittingly toward the software business.

But I believe we now have the solution: Kermit® (can you believe the government issued us a trademark on the name?) is our patent-pending, cloud-based application that is the first of its kind. Kermit is hugely innovative, highly disruptive and unapologetic in what it accomplishes and provides. A radical and extremely effective approach that is well ahead of where the industry is today and enables collaboration between surgeons, supply chain folks and senior executives. It is the future of managing medical device costs and, quite possibly, other healthcare costs. I literally feel like I wear a superhero cape daily with a big K on it.

Just as important as what I do, is who I am. A committed husband, an involved father, a dedicated ministry director. After losing my father to illness in his 60’s, I began a journey to learn the truth about nutrition and exercise and the science behind why it works for some and not for others. This has totally transformed my life, my health and my future story. Since my kids could walk, I’ve been a part of their recreational and travel teams coaching soccer and baseball. Coaching is just a ruse to involve yourselves in the lives of kids and their parents and “do life together”.