New Data-Driven Health Management Tools Are Expected to Help Offset Rising Healthcare Costs for Health Plans and Members

Verilet Inc., a leading provider of web-portal and electronic business transaction products and services, and Health Ink & Vitality Communications, a leading provider of custom online and print health communications and member of the StayWell Company, which also includes Krames and Staywell Health Management, recently formed a strategic alliance to create member-targeted Data-Driven Health Risk Assessment (DDHRA) and Data-Driven Personal Health Record (DDPHR) tools.

These powerful online tools are expected to help offset the rising costs of healthcare and insurance for both health plans and their members by improving the quality of life for individuals through health promotion and intervention. The expected result will be healthier living and money saved by reducing overall health costs.

Jim Ribelin, VP product management for Verilet, announced the tool in his keynote presentation at the 2004 Amisys Synertech Inc. Customer Conference, explaining that “The result of this alliance is a sophisticated and comprehensive tool that is highly valuable to both health plans and individual employers, and offers both Verilet and Health Ink’s core customer base a great cost-saving benefit.”

The DDHRA and DDPHR combine the information historically gathered from traditional self reported Health Risk Assessment tools, and creates a system in which members can receive a better overall assessment of their health, should they opt-in for such services. Depending on participants’ unique scores, relevant information regarding their current health will be made available to assist them in proactively evaluating, monitoring, and educating themselves about their individual healthcare options.

Trent Sterling, president and CEO of Health Ink & Vitality Communications is enthusiastic about the value of these tools because, “The DDHRA and DDPHR will allow us to more accurately distribute our award winning health and behavior change content and tools. Providing individuals with helpful educational materials directly regarding their personal health situation enables them to take better control of their health by identifying risks and working to reduce them.”

The joint marketing and sales agreement provides for integration of Health Ink’s healthcare content and self-reported health risk assessment (SRHRA) tool with Verilet’s @bovehealth Web portal application.

About Verilet Inc.

Verilet is a healthcare technology company based in San Diego that Web-enables health plans. Its @bovehealth suite of products can be deployed quickly, on a private label basis, and connects employer groups, plan members, brokers and medical providers to the health plan via the Web. @bovehealth replaces costly phone, fax and paper driven transactions, with instantaneous access to the health plan’s administrative system. The @bovehealth suite also offers a data warehouse solution and member health risk assessment component. For more information, visit the company’s Web site at www.verilet.com .

About Health Ink & Vitality Communications

Founded in 1984, Health Ink & Vitality is a leading provider of custom health communications that enable health care organizations to reach and influence their target audiences. Through an unparalleled combination of custom publications and sophisticated online solutions, we leverage the most comprehensive repository of consumer health content to support the unique messages of our clients. Health Ink & Vitality has headquarters in Yardley, Pa.

About StayWell

StayWell is the Consumer Health Division of MediMedia USA. The companies that comprise StayWell represent the premier brands in consumer health publishing and include Health Ink & Vitality, Krames, CancerSource, StayWell Health Management and Harvard Health Publications. For 30 years, clients have been using StayWell’s consumer health information products and services to reach their target audience in support of a wide range of business objectives. Through multiple channels, it is estimated that StayWell touches over 50 million lives annually.

StayWell combines unparalleled content with the ability to reach your target audience at home, at work, and when engaging the health care system — in print and online. To discover the wide range of products and services StayWell provides, visit www.staywellsolutions.com 

About Amisys Synertech Inc.

Amisys Synertech Inc. (www.asihealth.com ) advances health plan business through its industry-leading products and services. The company delivers comprehensive, mission-critical information management software products and Web capabilities that meet the needs of nearly every healthcare payer model. Amisys Synertech also provides leading business process outsourcing and application hosting for health plans, supporting a multimillion-member base through its claims processing and consumer-directed services. Amisys Synertech has offices in Rockville, Md., Harrisburg, Pa., Dubuque, Iowa and Alpharetta, Ga.