Chicago (March 27, 2006) - Initiate Systems, Inc., the recognized standard in enterprise master person index (EMPI) software, today announced that SureScripts®, LLC, the nation's largest network provider of electronic prescribing services is integrating Initiate™ software into the SureScripts Electronic Prescribing Network™ to support the rollout of two new SureScripts services: medication history and patient formulary and eligibility.

Beginning in 2006, SureScripts will provide physicians with a single view of a patient's medication history from community pharmacies. The service will be enabled by SureScripts' unique ability to connect to the nation's community pharmacies, regardless of retail brand or physical location, and present medication history data to physicians through software from a SureScripts Certified Solutions Provider™ (see http://www.surescripts.com/get-practice-connected.htm). And because this is data provided by pharmacies, physicians will now have access to more detailed, clinical information on a patient’s current and past medications.

For example, a patient's pharmacy record includes a more consistent view of the instructions that accompany prescriptions (known as "SIG" information). Pharmacists also capture data related to allergies and the dates on which medications are dispensed. The end result combines pharmacy data with medication data from existing sources to provide physicians a more complete, timely and clinically sound view of a patient’s medication history.

Initiate™ EMPI software supports the new medication history service by matching physician requests for a patient's medication history with the corresponding records across all connected pharmacies.

"A strong EMPI solution is essential to delivering a fast, reliable view of clinical information," said Bob Beckley, SureScripts' senior vice president of pharmacy relations and product strategy. "Initiate Systems software is an important asset in helping SureScripts to deliver important new services to physicians that will positively impact the safety, efficiency and quality of care."

As with medication history, SureScripts' eligibility and formulary services are designed to complement services from other healthcare stakeholders. SureScripts' new service increases the probability that a physician will receive a match to a patient benefit query in two ways: first, by making more eligibility and formulary information available at the point of care; and second, by using Initiate™ software to search that information in real-time. The higher the "match rate," the more "clean prescriptions" that are sent to pharmacies. The more clean scripts sent to pharmacies, the less need for follow-up phone calls from pharmacists and prescription benefit managers (PBMs).