Iowa Health – Des Moines has named Dr. Stephen Stephenson as its new chief operating officer and executive vice president. He will oversee the operations of Iowa Health’s three Greater Des Moines hospitals: Iowa Lutheran Hospital, Iowa Methodist Medical Center and its new West Des Moines hospital under construction. He replaces David Stark, who left Iowa Health in January to become president and CEO of Lutheran General Hospital in Chicago. Stephenson, a pediatrician specializing in hematology and oncology, has been medical director of Blank Children’s Hospital since 2003. A nationwide search will begin for Stephenson’s replacement at Blank.

American International Group Inc. (AIG) will receive up to an additional $30 billion in taxpayer-backed bailout money after posting the worst quarterly loss in U.S. corporate history – news that drove Dow Jones industrial average below 7,000 for the first time since Oct. 28, 1997. AIG posted a $61.7 billion fourth-quarter loss, its fifth consecutive loss. For all of 2008, AIG lost nearly $99.3 billion, wiping out profits dating to the early 1990s, Reuters said. In September, the U.S. government gave AIG $150 billion in aid. The new funding gives AIG more lenient terms on existing financing and gives the government preferred stock in two AIG life insurance businesses. In defending the bailout, the U.S. Commerce Department and the Federal Reserve pointed out AIG’s role as insurer for 100,000 companies, municipalities and retirement plans, potentially affecting 100 million Americans, and as counterparty to some of the biggest financial companies, Bloomberg reported.

Consumer spending rose 0.6 percent in January, the first such increase in seven months, the U.S. Commerce Department said. The increase was larger than expected and followed a 1 percent decrease in December. Personal income climbed 0.4 percent, pushed by pay increases to government employees and cost-of-living adjustments to federal transfer payments, according to the report. Salaries and wages fell 0.2 percent, a third consecutive decrease. Disposable income, or the money left after taxes, increased 1.5 percent after adjusting for inflation, the most since May.

Iowa Telecommunications Services Inc. will participate in the Deutsche Bank Media & Telecom Conference in West Palm Beach, Fla., tomorrow. A live webcast of a presentation by Craig Knock, vice president, chief financial officer and treasurer, will be available at 2:35 p.m. Iowa time at www.iowatelecom.com under “investor relations.” A replay will be available for 90 days following the presentation.

Junior Achievement of Central Iowa’s Stock Market Challenge raised $90,000, which will go toward educating students in Central Iowa on how to be financially responsible. The challenge took place last Thursday. More than 100 high school juniors and seniors studying economics were divided into teams of four and given a list of 26 fictitious stocks and $500,000 in imaginary money. Teams competed to see who could have the biggest gains. A group of companies also participated in a corporate Stock Market Challenge. The event was sponsored by Knapp Properties Inc.