Top government contractors are chomping at the bit to help
recipients cash-in on the stimulus package. Industry heavyweights like
Accenture, EDS and IBM, are focusing efforts on multiple areas such as
smart electricity grids, intelligent transportation, health IT, tax
administration and state welfare initiatives.

Other companies like Microsoft, Deloitte and CSC also have offerings
to help state and local agencies keep pace with the torrent of
reporting requirements associated with Recovery Act funds. And just
recently, Unisys launched a Reporting Solutions tool and Perot Systems
released ARRA Readiness Assessment - a solution aimed at electronic
health records.

In yet another way to catch part of the stimulus action, and in an
effort to help Recovery Act recipients get projects off the ground,
some IT companies are offering cheap finance options.

IBM and Perot Systems will finance projects aimed at IT
infrastructure projects, particularly in health IT, broadband and
“smart grid” technologies, to help hospitals and utilities put stimuls
dollars to work.

IBM will will use its in-house Global Financing segment to bankroll
up to $2 billion in Recovery Act IT initiatives in key stimulus areas,
for credit-qualified clients. Some of the financing will be available
through enhanced low rates and flexible payment options, deferred
payment plans and special project financing that allows IBM clients to
align their payment streams throughout the life of the project and
anticipated benefits.

“In order to fast track our nation’s recovery, there needs to be an
increased focus on public and private partnerships,” said John Callies,
general manager of IBM Global Financing. Vice president of Global
Financing Joyce Blackwell concurred indicating that IBM looks to their
partners as an extended sales team. “The $2 billion is offered to any
credit qualified customers whether they come through our partners or
our sales team,” she said.

Three areas of the Recovery Act IBM hopes to capitalize on include health IT, US power grids and rual access to broadband.

IBM is working with Mayo Clinic to leverage an analytic data
warehouse containing clinical data on more than six million patients in
IBM’s DB2 database system. And according to the company, IBM is working
with nearly fifty Smart Grid projects around the world. As for rural
broadband access, IBM is working to develop Broadband over power lines
(BPL) networks that would transmit voice and internet data over
electric utility power lines.

Perot Systems, the Dallas-based provider of information technology
services and business solutions, announced plans to offer financing
options through Dell Financial Services last week. Whereas IBM was
looking at projects in three main areas, Perot Systems and Dell will
focus their efforts on clients looking to develop electronic health
records and other health IT initiatives.

“The stimulus plan can have a far-reaching, positive impact on the
quality of healthcare in our nation, and these financing options will
help some clients bridge the gap between current investment needs and
meeting the requirements necessary to take full advantage of the funds
that become available in 2011,” said Chuck Lyles, president of Perot
Systems’ healthcare group in a statement.

The financing options are similar to those offered by IBM except
that they’ll be focused almost exclusively on credit-qualified
hospitals, physician groups and other healthcare organizations that are
seeking stimulus funding. Dell and Perot Systems recently announced a
strategic alliance to provide fully-integrated IT solutions, combining
their best-in-class technology and services solutions to help
healthcare organizations improve patient care, reduce costs and achieve
the standard of “meaningful use” for electronic health records
established in the Recovery Act.

In an interview with Tim Quigley, Perot Systems executive vice
president in charge of marketing and sales for their health group, Mr.
Quigley said they haven’t decided to put a cap or a floor on how much
they’ll finance. “It will be dependent on client demand. Our focus will
be on multiple players who are eligible for funding - first hospitals
and physician groups,” he said.  Mr. Quigley said most of their
customers focused on stimulus funds are looking to set up private  HIEs
(health information exchanges) that could communicate to different
partners, but not necessarily be dependent on statewide or broad-area
offerings run by someone else.

“If there are customers who come to us asking for funding, and
they’re credit worthy, we’ll be able to work with them through the Dell
partnership. It doesn’t matter if there’s five of five-hundered.”

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