Emdeon Acquires eRx Network, LLC

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Map) - NASHVILLE, Tenn., July 2 /PRNewswire/ --Emdeon, a leading provider of revenue and payment cycle management solutions, today announced the acquisition of eRx Network, LLC ("eRx"), a premier provider of electronic pharmacy healthcare solutions. The transaction combines Emdeon's existing pharmacy operations with eRx's expanding customer base, reputation for product innovation, customer support and advanced pharmacy switching technology. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

Founded in 2001 by industry veteran Mark Lyle and pharmacy enterprise software provider PDX, Inc., eRx has established broad-based leadership in pharmacy claims management and ePrescribing, accompanied by innovative technology products and services. eRx is also a leader in the government sector, where it processes pharmacy-based claims for Medicare / Medicaid durable medical equipment (DME) and flu vaccinations. In connection with the acquisition, Emdeon, PDX, Inc. and eRx entered into a long term extension and expansion of the strategic relationship that has been in place between eRx and PDX since eRx's founding.

"We are delighted to combine our pharmacy business with eRx," said George Lazenby, chief executive officer of Emdeon. "The combination of their innovative suite of products and services and talented management team will serve to accelerate our efforts towards providing solutions to our pharmacy customers. Perhaps most exciting, the combined organization will enjoy a significant presence in ePrescribing, one of the fastest growing sectors in healthcare transaction processing."

ePrescribing connectivity (prescriber/pharmacy/payer) has emerged as a high priority healthcare industry initiative with a demonstrated ability to improve patient safety, reduce administrative costs and increase efficiencies. Recent federal initiatives promoting ePrescribing include significant financial incentives and grants to accelerate both physician utilization and the implementation of electronic health records with ePrescribing functionality(1). In combination with these initiatives and broader commercial recognition, industry sources project that ePrescribing will accelerate considerably in the coming years.

"This is an exciting time to be in the pharmacy services business and in healthcare overall," commented Mark Lyle, chief executive officer of eRx who has been named Senior Vice President of Emdeon's combined pharmacy services operation. "Our relentless focus on delivering value for our customers has enabled eRx to thrive as a standalone innovator, but this is the right time to align our pharmacy-centric platform with Emdeon's reach across all healthcare sectors. We are confident that Emdeon's resources will allow our combined operations to accelerate new product introductions that will continue driving greater efficiency for our customers and across healthcare."

The new combined operation, to be called eRx Network, an Emdeon Company, will provide pharmacies and healthcare constituents with integrated tools for managing efficiency and profitability through innovative claims management, business intelligence and network infrastructure. By leveraging the capabilities inherent in Emdeon's data and network assets, Emdeon will combine eRx's advanced technology and range of services with its existing suite of pharmacy solutions to form an expanded pharmacy services operation with the same reliability and customer service that is eRx's hallmark.

"By providing expanded pharmacy solutions at this crucial time for our industry, Emdeon is further demonstrating its commitment to making healthcare more efficient. We look forward to working with eRx, our customers and the rest of the industry to create meaningful improvements as the healthcare reform process continues to unfold," Lazenby said.

About eRx Network, LLC

eRx is a premier provider to the U.S. pharmacy industry of a secure, reliable and performance oriented network for electronic transaction applications. eRx provides a number of productivity enhancing services including fast, secure switching of third party claims, eligibility services, value-proven pre- and post-editing, claims reconciliation, resubmission services, electronic prescribing solutions, Medicare/Medicaid DME billing, Medicare Flu billing, Medicare denial management services, and Medicare/Medicaid eligibility verification.

About Emdeon

Emdeon is a leading provider of revenue and payment cycle management solutions, connecting payers, providers and patients in the U.S. healthcare system. Our product and service offerings integrate and automate key business and administrative functions of our payer and provider customers throughout the patient encounter. Through the use of Emdeon's comprehensive suite of products and services, which are designed to easily integrate with existing technology infrastructures, customers are able to improve efficiency, reduce costs, increase cash flow and more efficiently manage the complex revenue and payment cycle process. Emdeon is owned by General Atlantic LLC and Hellman & Friedman LLC. For more information, visit www.emdeon.com.

(1) The Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 (MIPPA) provides for a series of physician incentives and disincentives from 2009-2013 to accelerate ePrescribing. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) also provides significant grants and incentives for providers to implement electronic health records with ePrescribing functionality.