Shriners Hospitals Sign Exclusive Agreement With Amerinet Inc.

ST. LOUIS, Mo., June 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Amerinet Inc., one of the most innovative and effective health care group purchasing organizations (GPOs) in the United States, has renewed a two-year exclusive agreement with Shriners Hospitals for Children. The renewal extends a previous agreement until April 30, 2006. Shriners Hospitals, headquartered in Tampa, Florida, has been providing quality health care to children since 1922.

The national account agreement renewal provides Shriners Hospitals across the country with significant cost savings through Amerinet's comprehensive contract portfolio. "The success that we have now seen with our partnership with Shriners has been through the assessment and the implementation of product standardization in five key areas," said Brent Christianson, Amerinet national account manager. "The key areas include film, gloves, surgical packs and gowns, laboratory and office supplies, and the initiatives have resulted in more than $500,000 in cost savings after one full year of implementation."

"Shriners Hospitals have created a remarkable network of health care programs and services for children across our country by creating and fulfilling their philanthropic mission. We are very proud that they have chosen Amerinet as their group purchasing organization," said Robert P. Bowen, president of Amerinet. "We are also proud to have the opportunity provide value to their organizations and contribute to their vision of delivering free care to children."

About Shriners Hospitals for Children

Shriners Hospitals for Children is a network of pediatric specialty hospitals, founded by the Shrine, where children under the age of 18 receive expert medical care free of charge. Shriners Hospitals are located throughout North America with 20 in the Unites States, one in Mexico and one in Canada. These "Centers of Excellence" serve as major referral centers for children with complex orthopedic injuries, burns and spinal cord injuries. For more than 80 years, Shriners Hospitals for Children have provided some of the best medical care in the world, totally free of charge, to approximately 735,000 children. Today, more than 450,000 members of the International Shriners Fraternity support the network.

About Amerinet

Amerinet is the most innovative and effective health care group purchasing organization in the United States, leading the industry in flexibility with Amerinet's commitment to providing supplier choice for its members. Amerinet's national network of companies -- Amerinet Central, Intermountain Health Care and Vector -- has set the standard for customer service for nearly two decades. More than 1,850 hospitals and 19,300 non-acute care facilities find cost savings and value-added services through Amerinet's comprehensive contract portfolio. Members trust Amerinet to deliver proactive information and integrity and to help them save more through special programs and custom contracting opportunities.

CONTACT: Lisa Conway, Director, Corporate Communications and PublicRelations of Amerinet, +1-724-772-8388, or lisa.conway@amerinet-gpo.com

Web site: http://www.amerinet-gpo.com/