Relationship Delivers Powerful Electronic Remittance and Payment Solution To
Healthcare Industry
DENVER and FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., July 7 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- First
Data Corp. (NYSE: FDC), a global leader in electronic commerce and payment
services, and ProxyMed, Inc. (Nasdaq: PILL), a leading provider of electronic
healthcare transaction processing services, today announced the two companies
will leverage their individual strengths to work together to bring innovative
and cost-efficient electronic payment processing to the healthcare industry.
By leveraging ProxyMed's deep payer and provider connectivity with First
Data's financial transaction expertise, the two companies will begin jointly
marketing FirstProxy, a new suite of innovative solutions that streamline and
expedite healthcare claim, payment and settlement processes. The first
offering, FirstProxy ERA/EFT, will transform the remittance advice and payment
process from paper-based to electronic.
"First Data continues to identify ways to grow an open and flexible
payments system to foster competition and innovation to the benefit of
consumers and businesses for all types of financial transactions," said First
Data Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Charlie Fote. "We're leading the
way as the world moves from paper-based to electronic-based payments. The
relationship with ProxyMed will allow us to bring our payment expertise to
healthcare, resulting in innovative new payment solutions to improve
efficiencies and reduce costs for healthcare providers and insurance carriers
by electronically consolidating administrative and financial tasks."
Together, ProxyMed and First Data will allow healthcare providers and
insurance companies to rapidly convert existing paper-based checks and
explanation of benefits into secure, HIPAA-compliant electronic ERAs with
electronic funds transfer. The processing and settlement of the financial
transactions and payments will start and end within the First Data processing
system. FirstProxy ERA/EFT will also ensure that insurers and providers are
compliant with upcoming HIPAA regulation deadlines that require standards for
health information security and privacy as well as the implementation of
electronic data interchange for ERAs.
"Today's announcement will allow us to bring to the healthcare industry
products that leverage the strengths of our two organizations," said Michael
K. Hoover, chairman and CEO, ProxyMed, Inc. "By combining First Data's
payments transaction processing superiority and financial market expertise
with our established relationships and connectivity with healthcare providers
and insurers, we will make a real difference in terms of overall payment
effectiveness as well as regulatory compliance."
Additionally, in connection with this strategic relationship, First Data
will have the right to purchase shares of ProxyMed common stock pursuant to
performance based revenue thresholds of the FirstProxy offerings in the
future.
As the world's leading payment processor, First Data has built a world-
class processing infrastructure and merchant processing network, supporting
1,400 card issuers and 3 million merchants worldwide. ProxyMed is the
nation's second largest medical claims processor with direct connectivity to
over 140,000 healthcare providers and all-payer connections in 46 states, and
is an EHNAC certified organization maintaining direct connectivity to one of
the industry's largest lists of payers, the largest list of chain and
independent pharmacies and the largest list of clinical laboratories.
About ProxyMed, Inc.
ProxyMed is the nation's second largest physician-based electronic
healthcare transaction processing services company providing connectivity
services and related value-added products to physicians, payers, pharmacies,
medical laboratories, and other healthcare providers and suppliers.
ProxyMed's electronic transaction processing services support a broad range of
both financial and clinical transactions. To facilitate these services,
ProxyMed operates ProxyNet(R), its secure, proprietary national electronic
information network, which provides physicians and other primary care
providers with direct connectivity to one of the industry's largest list of
payers, the largest list of chain and independent pharmacies and the largest
list of clinical laboratories. More information on ProxyMed is available on
its home page at http://www.proxymed.com .
About First Data Corp.
First Data Corp. (NYSE: FDC), with global headquarters in Denver, helps
power the global economy. As the leader in electronic commerce and payment
services, First Data serves approximately 3 million merchant locations, 1,400
card issuers and millions of consumers, making it easy, fast and secure for
people and businesses to buy goods and services using virtually any form of
payment. With 29,000 employees worldwide, the company provides credit, debit,
smart card and stored-value card issuing and merchant transaction processing
services; Internet commerce solutions; Western Union(R) money transfers
services; money orders; and check processing and verification services
throughout the United States. First Data also offers a variety of payment
services in the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, Japan, Mexico, Spain, the
Netherlands, the Middle East and Germany. Its Western Union and Orlandi
Valuta money transfer agent networks include approximately 159,000 Agent
locations in more than 195 countries and territories. For more information,
please visit the company's Web site at http://www.firstdata.com .
Contacts:
Donna Pennington, First Data, 402-222-6178,
donna.pennington@firstdatacorp.com
Judd Schmid, ProxyMed, Inc., 954-473-1001 ext. 353,
investorrelations@proxymed.com
SOURCE First Data Corp.
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Related links:
http://www.firstdata.com
http://www.proxymed.com
CONTACT:
Donna Pennington of First Data,
+1-402-222-6178, donna.pennington@firstdatacorp.com , or Judd
Schmid of ProxyMed, Inc., +1-954-473-1001 ext. 353,
investorrelations@proxymed.com
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