NBA Hall of Famer Earvin “Magic” Johnson is a major advocate for the disease, which he has had since 1991. Since retiring for good in 1996, Johnson has been involved in multiple business ventures. That includes the recent purchase of the Los Angeles Dodgers and a deal to acquire the Intracoastal Mall in North Miami Beach in a deed in lieu of foreclosure.
Now he’s a minority investor in and board member of Simply Healthcare, which runs Medicaid, Medicare and Healthy Kids managed care plans with more than 65,000 members.
Simply Healthcare Chairman Mike Fernandez, who also heads Simply Healthcare majority owner MBF Healthcare Partners, said his relationship with Johnson started about six months ago. Fernandez said he was telling his friend Pat Riley, president of the Miami Heat Miami HeatLatest from The Business JournalsFollow this company , about his plans to launch a managed care plan for Medicaid beneficiaries with HIV. Riley recommended that he speak with Johnson, whom Riley coached when he played for the Los Angeles Lakers Los Angeles LakersLatest from The Business JournalsFollow this company .
“Within three days, we had a conference call and, within a month, we knew that the personalities were right for this,” Fernandez said. “This deal is put together for a reason. We could both retire, but we both choose to stay active, and we both want to make a difference.”
Simply Healthcare launched Clear Health Alliance to better manage the treatment of HIV patients in Medicaid, where, Fernandez said, they currently do not receive efficient treatment. His company worked with the University of Miami University of MiamiLatest from The Business JournalsFollow this company Miller School of Medicine to develop protocols for treating HIV patients, and UM will review the performance of the program. Aside from health services, it also includes transportation, psychological care and case managers that review treatment plans.
“SHP is creating programs that will make an impact on improving the quality and access to care for individuals in urban areas and I am hopeful that the community, providers and hospitals embrace these efforts,” Johnson said in a news release. “Clear Health Alliance is just one example of how SHP is developing innovative programs that provide a comprehensive care approach to many Latinos and African-Americans disproportionately affected by HIV/AIDS that currently are not afforded access to such programs. I have always been a true believer that effective treatment of HIV/AIDS requires a comprehensive and holistic approach and Simply Healthcare Plans, through Clear Health Alliance, not only provides its members with all the traditional health care benefits you expect from a health plan, they also provide many additional benefits that I have found to be extremely important to support the treatment of HIV and AIDS.”
Fernandez said there are about 62,000 people in Florida with HIV, and about one-third of them are on Medicaid. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act would shift even more HIV patients to Medicaid in the coming years, he noted. Fernandez said that making their care more efficient should save the state money and improve their health.
Clear Health Alliance opened for enrollment in Miami-Dade County on Monday. Fernandez said it would launch in Broward and Palm Beach counties within 60 days, then expand to other large markets in the state.
Fernandez noted that Miami-Dade has the most new HIV cases per capita in the nation, with Broward second and Palm Beach sixth.
Fernandez said the inspiring story of how Johnson is thriving, despite contracting HIV, shows that there is hope for patients, as long as they manage the disease well.
“They are living very much a normal life,” Fernandez said. “There is no magical medicine or drug. [Johnson] is taking same medications every other HIV patient is taking.”
