You may not know it by name, but its footprints are all over the Internet.

WebMD, MSN, Yahoo and many of the nation's biggest health plans pay licensing fees for information in Healthwise's consumer-health database.

But a grim economy is forcing Healthwise, a nonprofit, to cut 15 full- and part-time workers from its work force of about 222, nearly all in Boise. The Healthwise board approved the layoffs, effective Dec. 2, at the recommendation of CEO and President Don Kemper.

The company also has created three new jobs and will recruit candidates to fill them, Kemper said Wednesday.

In 2008, Healthwise had total revenues of $28,124,556 and a modest surplus of $208,681.

The use of Healthwise's printed products, including the ubiquitous Healthwise Handbook, is declining, and the products are dragging down revenues for the current budget year, which began July 1, Kemper said.

The losses from books, pamphlets and other printed materials were projected to be "seven figure drops" by the end of the fiscal year next June 30, he said. The company will scale back its print-media products.

"A good bit is a refocus from print materials ... toward more of the electronic and interactive work we do," Kemper said. "The urgency of it was caused by the economy."

The biggest source of revenue for the company is its online Healthwise database of medical conditions and treatments.

The company has been branching out. The most promising area for growth, Kemper said, is to get information into the hands of patients through electronic medical records. It works like this: You go to your doctor and receive a new diagnosis, which your doctor enters into your electronic medical record, along with tests or medications he has ordered. Then, the medical record system spits out an "information prescription" you can take with you to help you learn about your condition.

The layoffs won't affect Healthwise's employee-friendly policies, Kemper said. Those include flexible schedules for parents, a gym with locker rooms and showers, and permission for employees to bring their pets to work with them.

"The culture will survive," he said.

Colleen LaMay: 377-6448