Opinions Heading ‘Up the Ladder’ in Miami: Florida-based CityGrader allows citizens to review public service workers

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Everyone has an opinion, especially when it comes to political leaders and representatives in the public sector. Have you ever had an outstanding experience with a police officer and wanted to let others know? Maybe you’ve had a not so great encounter with the local librarian and needed to express how you feel? A South Florida startup, appropriately named CityGrader, has recently developed kiosks that can help you with that itching desire to express opinions about public service employees.

CityGrader is a simple and effective platform dedicated to increasing the quality and accountability of local governments through reviews and feedback that comes directly from the public. According to the company website, through the CityGrader platform, taxpayers play a meaningful role in making positive change in local government by increasing the quality and accountability of public employees. To give you a taste of CityGrader, take a peek at the video below.

Via the app’s Public Partner Dashboard, local governments can work to improve public services and make adjustments to policies. All Public Partners of CityGrader pledge an oath to monitor feedback in an effort to improve accountability, transparency and public services. If you are a member of the public, all that is required is to enter your email address and basic contact information, then provide a grade and review. Once completed, you will submit the information, which will be reviewed by your local government representatives.

The CityGrader experience was conceived by a husband and wife duo after working with various building department employees. “We’ve had some rather remarkable experiences, both positive and negative. I find it’s hard to do anything about those experience, to give credit where credit is due and to give criticism where criticism is due,” said CityGrader founder Tony Newell. The most recent kiosks can be found at Miami’s City Hall and Miami Riverside Center. “Miami’s decision to join CityGrader as its first Public Partner demonstrates forward thinking and a continued commitment to improving the level of services it brings to residents,” Newell said.

“Miami residents are our bosses and we need their input to better serve them,” Miami Mayor Francis Suarez said. “Time and time again, we are witnessing how technology, like what CityGrader offers, continues to help us create a stronger connection between our government and residents.”

The app can also be used as a data-mining tool. This will allow governments and public-sector employees to track issues across the city via keyword searches. Action can then be taken in relation to the keyword complaints. The startup also released CityGraderGO, an app where citizens can rate employees from a smartphone or tablet. For more information on CityGrader, please click here.

Are you developing technology to aid democracy? Creating an application that connects people with services? Did you know that you can receive up to 14% back on your research expenses with the R&D Tax Credit? To find out more, please contact a Swanson Reed R&D Specialist today or check out our free online eligibility test.

Who We Are:

Swanson Reed is a Specialist R&D tax advisory firm, offering tax credibility assessments, claim preparation, and advisory services to the state of Florida. We manage all facets of the R&D tax credit program in Florida, from claim prep & audit compliance to claim disputes. 

Swanson Reed regularly hosts free webinars and provides free IRS CE and CPE credits for CPAs.  For more information please visit us at www.swansonreed.com/webinars or contact your usual Swanson Reed representative.

“Alexa, schedule a video call with Dr. Smith”: Austin-based startup Medici advances telehealth

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Doctor visits are a pain, and not because of that irritating chest infection or scorching fever. Wait times in the U.S. have increased 30 percent over the past four years, and that percentage is likely to rise over time, according to an article by Medscape. There is good news, though. Medici, a telehealth startup based in Austin, Texas, wants to make your doctor visits more efficient and less stressful by way of your mobile device.

Apart from doctors being overloaded, “they are buried with regulatory requirements, administrative hurdles and downward pressure on their own costs to run their practices. This burden is increasingly taking time away from doctors’ ability to focus on what really matters: providing great care for patients,” a statement from the Medici website said. “We are driven by a singular purpose. To change the doctor-patient relationship. The world is changing and healthcare must come along, too.”

The Medici application, referred to as the “WhatsApp of healthcare”, combines five principles: speed, harmony, ambition, resourcefulness and excellence. The app allows patients to contact doctors, be it physicians, dentists, therapists, even veterinarians, via text message or video call; all from a single platform. A diagnosis can be made over the app, which in return can reduce the number of patients in the waiting room. Patients can ask their doctors to join the app, or doctors can invite their patients to use it. For more context, check out the video below.

“Patients also face a growing burden, carrying more of their own healthcare costs and spending an average of 121 minutes on each medical visit they have,” the Medici website continued. “Our goal is to make global, innovative technology that will transform and truly inspire the world of healthcare.”

Are you developing new technologies to improve healthcare? Did you know that you can receive up to 14% back on your research expenses with the R&D Tax Credit? To find out more, please contact a Swanson Reed R&D Specialist today or check out our free online eligibility test.

Who We Are:

Swanson Reed is a Specialist R&D tax advisory firm, offering tax credibility assessments, claim preparation, and advisory services to the state of Texas. We manage all facets of the R&D tax credit program in Texas, from claim prep & audit compliance to claim disputes. 

Swanson Reed regularly hosts free webinars and provides free IRS CE and CPE credits for CPAs.  For more information please visit us at www.swansonreed.com/webinars or contact your usual Swanson Reed representative.

Surviving Hurricanes and Hopelessness: App to ‘rescue’ those in need, post-natural disaster

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The frequency of natural disasters is on the rise in the United States. From Hurricane Katrina, to the more recent Hurricane Irma, the need for efficient, temporary resettlement for displaced persons will, arguably, also rise. The good news? There may be an app for that!

Adam Huminsky and Brian Hilinski, founders of the Charlotte-based startup, Harmany, were tired of watching evacuees struggle to find places for temporary shelter in the wake of catastrophic events, such as hurricanes. Huminsky said, “People have grown tired of watching disasters unfold, with no way to help until much later […] Harmany was created to give everyone the ability to make a difference in the moment.” The application connects the profile of an evacuee (person with needs) with a host (person with offerings). In an article featured on techstartups.com, “After completing a series of security measures, profiles are visible on an interactive map. Harmany believes secure matches can be made in as little as two hours.”

The app will offer other benefits, such as less crowding on roads, specifically evacuation routes, which translates to safer highway conditions. There is hope that the application will also reduce surge pricing for essential needs, such as hotel rooms.

Developing an app that will improve the lives of others? Did you know your R&D experiments could be eligible for the R&D Tax Credit and you can receive up to 14% back on your expenses? To find out more, please contact a Swanson Reed R&D Specialist today or check out our free online eligibility test.

Who We Are:

Swanson Reed is Texas’ largest Specialist R&D tax advisory firm, offering tax credibility assessments, claim preparation, and advisory services. We manage all facets of the R&D tax credit program in Texas, from claim prep & audit compliance to claim disputes. 

Swanson Reed regularly hosts free webinars and provides free IRS CE and CPE credits for CPA’s.  For more information please visit us at www.swansonreed.com/webinars or contact your usual Swanson Reed representative