N@N

No-Cost Electronic Prescribing Service Now Available to Kentucky Physicians

^{Published on 2010-08-23 10:10:22 - Market Wire}
 

LOUISVILLE, Ky.--([ BUSINESS WIRE ])--[ Humana Inc. ] (NYSE: HUM) and Availity, LLC today announced the deployment of CarePrescribe, an electronic prescribing service, at no charge to eligible physician practices in Kentucky. Following the successful introduction of Availity CarePrescribe in Florida and Texas a" where approximately 2,000 physicians are using the system a" Kentucky physicians now have access to the free service as a valuable tool in improving efficiency, safety and quality, while reducing patient costs.

"CarePrescribe solves many of the inefficiencies of prescribing while promoting quality"

Designed to ensure greater patient safety, savings and convenience, Availity CarePrescribe allows Kentucky physicians to view information that will help them select the most clinically appropriate and cost-effective medications, access a patienta™s network pharmacy list, and then transmit prescriptions electronically to the patienta™s retail or mail-order pharmacies of choice.

The service also offers physicians real-time access to patientsa™ medication history, drug and allergy interaction checks, and benefit eligibility, formulary and copayment information.

CarePrescribe is just one of the industry-leading tools offered by Humana Pharmacy Solutions to enhance membersa™ pharmacy benefit experience.

aWea™re going to continue driving the adoption of e-prescribing technology because there is a tremendous opportunity to reduce medication errors, improve medication adherence, and impact overall costs,a said William Fleming, vice president of Humana Pharmacy Solutions. aWea™re also improving generic drug usage and formulary compliance as well as service at the point of care by having more informed doctors and members. And most importantly, this technology is helping provide a simpler, more positive experience for health care consumers.a

CarePrescribe is a Medicare-qualified e-prescribing service, meaning physicians prescribing electronically via means such as CarePrescribe are able to receive incentives from the federal Medicare program through 2013.

aAvaility is committed to making e-prescribing a success, improving patient care and enhancing overall efficiency in our health care delivery system,a said Julie Klapstein, Availitya™s chief executive officer. aWea™re able to simplify this process for Kentucky prescribers by delivering a comprehensive, fully managed solution that offers everything they need to enable fully informed e-prescribing without the costly investment. When combined with Availitya™s other services, like electronic health records and health insurance information, CarePrescribe provides an improved overall experience for physicians and patients alike.a

For eligible Kentucky prescribers with high Humana script volume, the CarePrescribe service will include a mobile handheld device that is custom-installed and configured to work with the practicea™s patient scheduling system. The handheld devices work in tandem with a desktop e-prescribing solution, already available to all practices in Kentucky currently using the Availity Web portal. Deployment of the handheld device to eligible physicians throughout Kentucky is in progress. The handheld device has specific utilization requirements to remain a no-cost solution.

aCarePrescribe solves many of the inefficiencies of prescribing while promoting quality,a said Dr. Bryan Loy, market medical officer for Humanaa™s Kentucky market. aWe are delighted to be a part of this initiative that partners with doctors and provides them with this valuable tool at no charge.a

CarePrescribe can be used for both Medicare and commercial Humana members. It can also be used for the physiciansa™ non-Humana patients so the physicians can write all of their prescriptions from one comprehensive e-prescribing system.

The CarePrescribe technology is powered by Prematics, a care-communication company serving the health plan industry. Prematics will provide all installation, training and ongoing support on behalf of Humana and Availity at no charge to eligible practices.

For more information on CarePrescribe, visit: [ http://www.availity.com/about-availity/what-is-availity/products-services/careprescribe/ ].

About Availity, LLC

Availity optimizes information exchange between multiple health care stakeholders across the United States through a single, secure network. The Availity Health Information Network encompasses administrative, financial, and clinical services, supporting both real-time and batch electronic data interchange (EDI) via the Web and business to business (B2B) integration. For more information, including an online demonstration, please visit [ www.availity.com ].

About Humana

Humana Inc., headquartered in Louisville, Ky., is one of the nationa™s largest publicly traded health and supplemental benefits companies, with approximately 10.3 million medical members and approximately 7.3 million specialty members. Humana is a full-service benefits solutions company, offering a wide array of health and supplemental benefit plans for employer groups, government programs and individuals.

Over its 49-year history, Humana has consistently seized opportunities to meet changing customer needs. Today, the company is a leader in consumer engagement, providing guidance that leads to lower costs and a better health-plan experience throughout its diversified customer portfolio.

More information regarding Humana is available to investors via the Investor Relations page of the companya™s Web site at [ http://www.humana.com ], including copies of:

• Annual reports to stockholders
• Securities and Exchange Commission filings
• Most recent investor conference presentations
• Quarterly earnings news releases
• Replays of most recent earnings release conference calls
• Calendar of events (includes upcoming earnings conference call dates and times, as well as planned interaction with research analysts and institutional investors)
• Corporate Governance Information

About Humana Pharmacy Solutions

Humana Pharmacy Solutions^SM (HPS) offers traditional pharmacy benefits management with member-focused strategies to yield savings in pharmacy and total health expense. Providing prescription coverage for both individuals and groups, HPS strives to give members access to the medicine they need while offering guidance on clinically proven, therapeutically equivalent drugs that bring better value to the member and the customer.