Hospitals, Healthcare Providers to Save with New Premier Agreements for Disposable Anesthesia Products

CHARLOTTE, N.C.--(Business Wire)--
Premier Purchasing Partners, LP, today announced new agreements for disposable
anesthesia products have been awarded to Medline Industries, Inc. of Mundelein,
Ill.; Smiths Medical, ASD, Inc. of Rockland, Mass.; and Vital Signs, Inc. of
Totowa, N.J.

Effective August 1, 2009, the agreements are available to acute care and
continuum of care members of the Premier healthcare alliance.

About Premier Inc., 2006 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award recipient
The Premier healthcare alliance is more than 2,100 U.S. hospitals and
58,000-plus other healthcare sites working together to improve healthcare
quality and affordability. Premier maintains the nation's most comprehensive
repository of clinical, financial and outcomes information and operates a
leading healthcare purchasing network. A world leader in helping deliver
measurable improvements in care, Premier works with the Centers for Medicare &
Medicaid Services and the United Kingdom's National Health Service North West to
improve hospital performance. Premier has offices in San Diego, Charlotte, N.C.,
Philadelphia and Washington.

Premier Inc.
Alven Weil, 704-733-5797

Copyright Business Wire 2009