ST. LOUIS, Nov. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- The Amerinet Board of Directors announced strong results for the fiscal year 2004, including delivering $310 million in contract portfolio savings and distributing $30 million in shareback funds to members. The board also reported that Amerinet member purchases topped $6 billion for the first time in fiscal 2004, which ended September 30, 2004. Highlights for the year included the acquisition of the group purchasing asset of Joint Purchasing Corporation (JPC), the successful introduction of the Amerinet Clinical Advantage(SM) initiative, the launch of the company’s Diagnostix(TM) subsidiary and the implementation of plans that included a reorganization of top management designed to ensure that Amerinet continues to provide valuable programs and services beyond traditional group purchasing contract development. Amerinet is one of the country’s leading health care industry group purchasing organizations (GPOs).
“During the past year, we have continued to expand and strengthen the depth and breadth of the network of solutions we provide to our members,” said Victor Samolovitch, chairman of the Amerinet board of directors. “We reorganized our leadership team so that we could take a more customer-focused approach to our business. We also invested in data and technology, introduced innovative cost savings programs and enhanced our group purchasing portfolio. We are proud of the progress we have made in evolving beyond a traditional group purchasing organization to deliver total spend management solutions that drive results for our members.”
The organizational changes Samolovitch mentioned included promoting Amerinet president Robert P. “Bud” Bowen to the position of CEO and appointing him to serve as a director on the Amerinet board. The changes also included promoting Amerinet executive vice president Todd Ebert to the position of president to lead the ongoing operational changes necessary to support membership across all areas of contracting, information resources and services and ensuring that Amerinet continues to offer a highly competitive portfolio of products and services. In addition, industry veteran Wayne A. Thompson was hired to fill the new officer position of president of Health Systems Integration, a new initiative that focuses on establishing unified, customer- centric strategies to help increase Amerinet’s presence in hospitals and with integrated delivery networks (IDNs).
In April 2004, Amerinet acquired JPC’s group purchasing assets, giving the company access to almost $500 million in annual purchases and a pool of more than 3,700 members. Founded in 1922, New York City-based JPC is one of the country’s oldest and most recognized GPOs. According to Thompson, former JPC president and CEO and now president of Health Systems Integration for Amerinet, “JPC considered many business partners, but ultimately determined that Amerinet represented the best fit for our organization. More than any other GPO, Amerinet demonstrated a strong practice of offering choice and collaboration with its membership. That was important to us for our members.”
One of Amerinet’s biggest successes in fiscal 2004 was the Amerinet Clinical Advantage initiative. Amerinet Clinical Advantage was designed to help health care providers improve their bottom line for procedures involving cardiology and orthopedic implants. It brings members of the C-suite and physicians together to take a collaborative approach to standardizing products and negotiating custom contracts. Amerinet members participating in Clinical Advantage report an average savings of 26 percent.
Amerinet also delivered on its promise of providing a network of solutions in fiscal 2004 with the introduction of Diagnostix, an Amerinet subsidiary led by Mary Beth Lang. The Diagnostix software delivers data-driven savings by improving a health care provider’s supply chain process. The Diagnostix team uses state-of-the-art tools to help health care providers identify cost savings opportunities, manage contracts, reduce supply chain expenses, pinpoint and eliminate pricing variances from contract rates and negotiate custom contracts.
Samolovitch also noted that Amerinet introduced a new contracting philosophy in fiscal 2004 that the organization plans to strengthen in fiscal 2005. “Our new philosophy gives members more and better cost savings and helps suppliers maximize the benefits of partnering with us,” said Samolovitch. “We are now focused on increasing member contract utilization, including quickly getting new members started on key contracts and programs.”
“The advances we made in 2004 allowed us to head into 2005 with a value proposition that is stronger than ever,” said Samolovitch. “We believe that we have the resources in place to be the best group purchasing organization at providing the tools and solutions to help health providers improve their margins by delivering targeted, quantifiable financial results. We want to be known as the best margin improvement company in the health care industry, and we believe we are in a strong position to deliver on our promises.”
About Amerinet
Amerinet is one of the most innovative and effective health care group purchasing organizations in the United States, focusing on helping members improve their operating margins. Amerinet leads the industry in flexibility with a 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 1,860 hospitals and 21,000 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.
A copy of Amerinet’s 2004 Industry Report is available online at http://www.amerinet-gpo.com/ .
Amerinet
CONTACT: Lisa DiMuccio-Conway of Amerinet, +1-724-772-8388, orlisa.conway@amerinet-gpo.com ; or Amy Mastrippolito, +1-412-377-3771, orpr@businesspartner.com , for Amerinet
Web site: http://www.amerinet-gpo.com/