Drug Alerts Sent Instantly to U.S. Doctors via Email on New National Network

SAN FRANCISCO, CA, Mar 25 (MARKET WIRE) --
A new network to deliver drug safety alerts online to U.S. physicians was
launched today, replacing a widely criticized and decades-old system based upon
paper and U.S. mail. The Health Care Notification Network ("HCNN") is the
result of a three-year effort and an unprecedented collaboration between U.S.
medical society leaders, liability carriers, health plans, consumer advocacy
groups,government leaders and industry, including major pharmaceutical
manufacturers. The HCNN
will also be available for rapid communication with physicians in the event of
emergency public health or bio-terror events.

Recent surveys of practicing physicians reveal that well over 90% of
physicians want drug safety alerts sent immediately online instead of in
paper via U.S. mail, and well over half wish to have a copy of the alerts also
sent online to office staff. The network is free to all licensed U.S.
physicians, and is used solely for patient safety alerts, not for advertising
or promotion. It ensures the most rapid and effective delivery of important
alerts
to physicians, thereby improving patient safety and office efficiency while
reducing liability and paperwork.

"Relying on paper-based U.S. mail and weeks of delay to deliver
time-urgentpatient safety alerts to doctors in 2008 is indefensible and unsafe,"
explained
Nancy Dickey, MD, former AMA president and chair of the iHealth Alliance, the
not-for-profit board that governs the new HCNN service. "After a few years of
work
with the FDA and many other partners, we are finally moving from the Paper
Age into the Internet Age in terms of patient safety alerts. We encourage all
U.S. physicians to take 2 minutes and enroll today at www.hcnn.net.
Physicians and their patients will realize immediate benefit."

"The majority of U.S. liability carriers are asking their insured physicians
to
enroll today in the HCNN because delivering product recalls and warnings
immediately online has the potential to directly improve patient safety and
reduce malpractice claims -- and, ultimately, decrease malpractice insurance
premiums," said iHealth Alliance Board Member, David Troxel, MD, medical
director for The Doctors Company, the country's largest physician-owned
liability
carrier.

The iHealth Alliance credits FDA leadership for making the HCNN and
immediate
online patient safety alerts for physicians a reality, as the FDA recently
updated its guidance for the pharmaceutical and device industry, and now
actively
encourages the use of online networks for patient safety alerts.

"Letters to health care providers often are screened by one or more
'gatekeepers' and may not reach the intended recipients -- the providers who
need
the drug information for treating patients," explained Janet Woodcock, MD;
deputy commissioner for Scientific and Medical Programs, CMO, and acting
director Center for Drug Evaluation and Research U.S. FDA. "Gatekeepers often
discard these important paper-based alerts as 'junk mail.'

"We applaud the efforts of Dr. Dickey and her board to improve the
deliveryof important patient safety alerts to U.S. physicians."

"Rapid delivery of drug safety information is critical in order for us to
provide high quality care to our patients based on the latest data," said Jack
Lewin, MD, chief executive officer of the American College of Cardiology
(ACC). "We are confident that cardiologists will enroll and immediately
appreciate the benefits of the HCNN. By taking advantage of this network,
we can streamline care and save costs."

Manufacturers, led by Johnson & Johnson and the pharmaceutical industry
group
PhRMA, have lent their support and leadership to the HCNN, which is devoted
exclusively to communicating urgent patient safety alerts to physicians --
it includes no advertising. The HCNN is funded by manufacturers that use the
new online network and currently pay for U.S. mail delivery of paper-based
alerts.

"As part of our longstanding commitment to product and patient safety,
Johnson &
Johnson is proud to be a founding member of the Health Care Notification
Network," said Adrian Thomas, MD, chief safety officer and global head
Benefit Risk Management, Johnson & Johnson. "We believe this system will
provide a timely, effective and efficient system to distribute important medical
safety information to America's physicians."

"The entire pharmaceutical industry is united behind a commitment to patient
safety and improved speed and efficacy in delivery of alerts to U.S.
physicians," added Alan Goldhammer, PhD, associate vice president, Regulatory
Affairs for PhRMA.

Also joining the HCNN effort is the America's Health Insurance Plans
(AHIP)trade group, as well as numerous health plans including Aetna and Health
Care
Service Corporation (HCSC), the parent company of Blue Cross Blue Shield of
Texas, Illinois, Oklahoma and New Mexico.

"Making health care safer is critically important to improving the quality
of
life for patients. Success will depend on collaborative partnerships such as the
HCNN
and leveraging technology to deliver information in ways that enable doctors
to take more timely actions," said Troyen Brennan, MD, Aetna's chief medical
officer. "Aetna is pleased to support this effort and our ongoing focus on
patient safety by encouraging participating physicians to enroll."

"Improved patient safety and reduced drug risk impacts health, costs and
quality of care," explained Paul Handel, MD, chief medical officer of
HCSC."We are aggressively reaching out to our physicians to encourage their
enrollment in the HCNN."

Registration for U.S. physicians is available immediately at www.hcnn.net,
and tens of
thousands of physicians have already enrolled as a result of recent outreach
efforts from liability carriers.

For more information about the HCNN and online patient safety Alert
services,
visit www.hcnn.net.

About the HCNN

The HCNN is the new online service that delivers important patient safety
alerts
that are product-related and mandated by the FDA, to physicians and other
healthcare professionals via email. Currently, these alerts (also known as
"Dear Doctor letters") are sent to physicians on paper via traditional U.S.
mail -- a slow, error-prone process. The HCNN may also be used to notify
physicians in the event of national public health emergencies or bio-terror
events. The network is governed by the not-for-profit iHealth alliance with
network operations provided by Medem, Inc.

About the iHealth Alliance

The iHealth Alliance is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to
protect the interests of patients and providers as healthcare increasingly moves
online. The iHealth Alliance governs the Health Care Notification Network (HCNN)
and
ensures that the network is used only for patient safety alerts. The iHealth
Alliance is chaired by Nancy W. Dickey, MD, past President of the AMA,
President of Health Science Center and Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs for
Texas A&M University. The Board of Directors is comprised of industry
leaders from medical societies, liability carriers, patient advocacy groups and
others dedicated to protecting the interest of patients and providers.

Press Contacts
HCNN:
Jason Willett
(415) 644-3926
Email Contact

iHealth Alliance:
Nancy Dickey, MD
(979) 458-7204
Email Contact

The Doctors Company:
Suzanne Meraz
(707) 226-0261
Email Contact

American College of Cardiology:
Amy Murphy
(202) 375-6476
Email Contact

Johnson & Johnson:
Marc Monseau
(732) 524-1130
Email Contact

PhRMA:
Lydia Stuckey
(202) 835-3479
Email Contact

Aetna:
Karin Rush-Monroe
(215) 775-2132
Email Contact

HCSC:
Paul Handel, MD
Email Contact
(972) 766-3333

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