Minister for Jobs, Enterprise & Innovation Mary Mitchell O’Connor today announced that US-based Fazzi Healthcare Services has established a new Irish based coding and healthcare services company in Limerick, creating 300 jobs over five years.
The project is supported by the Department of Jobs, Enterprise & Innovation through IDA Ireland.
Medical coding, a regulated process is the transformation of healthcare diagnoses, treatments, procedures, outcomes and services into universal medical alphanumeric codes, known as ICD. It is the international standard used for health information purposes in primary, secondary, tertiary and public health settings. The process is defined by the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) and overseen by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
Most countries, including Ireland, utilize the ICD process with the majority using the current ICD-10 edition. This latest edition contains codes for diseases, signs and symptoms, abnormal findings, complaints, social circumstances and external causes of injury or disease.
The new Irish company has already begun providing ICD-10 coding services to the US homecare and hospice sector. Additionally, expansion plans are in the works to add billing and distance learning offerings for International-based insurance companies and governmental healthcare entities.
Founded in 1978, parent company Fazzi Associates is headquartered in Northampton, Massachusetts. The company also operates in the areas of consulting, education, benchmarking and research. It operates through two additional sites in India.
Making today’s announcement, Minister Mary Mitchell O’Connor said “This is a very significant announcement for Limerick with the creation of 300 new jobs in a new and emerging business activity for the medical sector. I am very keen to pursue opportunities for investment and job creation in new sectors, these are increasingly possible with our infrastructure and talented workforce which enables companies like Fazzi to undertake work for customers in different parts of the world. It is also very heartening that such a large project has been secured for a regional centre which represents the ongoing success of the Government's Action Plan for Jobs initiative, particularly the new Regional Action Plan for the Mid West".
Speaking today the Minister for Finance, Michael Noonan TD said “It’s great to see Fazzi Healthcare Services grow their presence in Limerick which is proud to be host to such an innovative company that combines healthcare and software. There will be many more opportunities now to join this company which places great value in its employees. I’m sure that many people from Limerick will become valuable members of the team at Fazzi. This is further evidence that the Regional Action Plan for the Mid West is delivering for the people of Limerick.”
“We are absolutely thrilled to be here in Limerick. Our Irish employees are clearly smart, dedicated and incredibly talented. We are very thankful to the IDA and the Irish government for welcoming us and helping us to develop our business here. Without question, Ireland has proven to be a country strongly supportive to the creation of innovative and growth oriented companies.” said the company’s Founder & Managing Partner Dr. Robert Fazzi.
The Mayor of the City and County of Limerick Cllr Kieran O’Hanlon welcomed the announcement saying: “Another 300 highly skilled jobs being created in Limerick is an amazing boost to the economy of the city and county. Fazzi Healthcare Services are at the leading edge of medical coding and are already providing services to the homecare and hospice sectors in the United States.”
“It’s clear that following on from the launch of the Limerick Twenty Thirty company yesterday, the Newcastle West jobs announcement last week and the 300 jobs announced by Fazzi today that the level of co-operation between the various state agencies, regional and local stakeholders and Limerick City and County Council is paying huge dividends in securing Foreign Direct investment into Limerick,” he continued.
“Fazzi and Limerick are the perfect fit, in that we have the talent and the infrastructure needed for the company to prosper,” the Mayor added.
Conn Murray, Chief Executive of Limerick City and County Council said: “The Fazzi announcement shows the innovative way we are looking at bringing FDI here to Limerick. Fazzi Healthcare Services is the first ever medical coding company to establish a base in Ireland, and we are delighted they chose Limerick. I would like to repeat the words of Fazzi’s founder and Managing Partner Dr. Robert Fazzi who said the employees in Limerick are smart, dedicated and incredibly talented.”
“Limerick City and County Council would also see the addition of Fazzi in Limerick as a boost to encouraging even more companies in the Life Sciences sector to establish a base here,” he said.
“The location of Fazzi in the heart of the city on George’s Quay is another important stepping stone in attracting more companies to locate in the heart of the city as envisioned by Limerick 2030 Economic and Spatial Plan,” he added.
For more information/to apply for the new positions go to: FazziHealthcareServices.com or send e-mail to recruitireland@fazzi.com.