Health Grades plans credit card offering

Health Grades Inc. said Thursday it will introduce a co-branded credit card next year that will allow users to accumulate "health care points."

The Golden company (NASDAQ: HGRD), which rates hospitals, doctors and other health care providers, said the program will work similar to how someone using an airline-branded credit card can accumulate mileage points.

"This is a proven concept in other industries, but it's an absolutely new concept in health care," said Steven Wood, executive vice president of Health Grades.

Wood spoke during a conference call to investors.

He said a consumer using the credit card -- which could bear the brand of a hospital, health plan or medical practice -- could redeem health care points for discounts on prescriptions or lower co-payments, for example.

Wood said he was hired four months ago primarily to "create new things."

Health Grades, which operates online at healthgrades.com, intends to increase visibility and industry awareness of the company in 2007.

To accomplish that, Health Grades will introduce a series of new products. New in the first quarter will be ratings of oncology centers and ambulatory surgery centers. The company in February will release its first-ever ranking of the 50 best hospitals in the United States. And in the second quarter Health Grades will release its first ratings of dialysis centers.