Disease Management Association Of America (DMAA) Announces Its 6th Annual Disease Management Leadership Forum

WASHINGTON, Feb. 24 /PRNewswire/ -- The Disease Management Association of America (DMAA), the nation's premier association representing all stakeholders in the disease management (DM) industry, has announced the dates for its 6th Annual Disease Management Leadership Forum (DMLF). The conference, which had a record-high attendance of 1,240 in 2003, will be held October 20th-23rd, 2004 at the Orlando World Center Marriott. "We are very excited to be holding the 6th Annual Leadership Forum at the World Center," said Christobel Selecky CEO of LifeMasters Supported SelfCare, DMAA President Elect and 2004 DMLF Program Committee Chair; "This is certain to be a banner year for disease management as chronic care improvement programs make their way into the fee for service Medicare arena with the passage of the Medicare Prescription Drug & Modernization Act. At this year's conference, we plan to provide a forum for the DM community to discuss, among other topics, the challenges and opportunities we face in this new horizon for disease management."

DMAA's 5th Annual Leadership Forum, chaired by Samuel Nussbaum, MD of Anthem and this year's DMAA President, was held at the Hyatt Regency Chicago in 2003 and saw an increase in attendance of 25% over 2002. DM professionals from 43 states across the country came to Chicago to hear from DMAA's peer- reviewed faculty of over 120 speakers. In addition, 2003 marked DMAA's 1st Annual International Disease Management Summit. Over 65 attendees from 22 countries across the world convened in Chicago to discuss global strategies employed to manage chronic illness. "DMAA is pleased to host our international colleagues at this annual event," says Todd. "The International Summit was a great success in bringing together the thought leaders on disease management from around the world. The prevalence of common concerns and questions around managing chronic illness extends far beyond the borders of the US and DMAA is proud to be a pioneer in this area."

Another highlight of the 2003 Leadership Forum was DMAA's Recognizing Excellence in Disease Management Awards Banquet sponsored by American Healthways. Over 130 companies submitted nominations for DMAA's 11 awards categories, the highest number of submissions in the program's 5 year tenure. "The Recognizing Excellence Awards Program provides us with the opportunity to bring together the entire DM community and recognize some of the truly outstanding programs that are improving the health of chronically ill patients across the country" says Todd. "In addition, we were please to have the opportunity to present Congresswoman Nancy Johnson (R-CT) with the President's Award in recognition of her longstanding leadership and dedication to helping Americans suffering from chronic disease live better lives."

"The 2004 Disease Management Leadership Forum," continues Todd "promises to be the DM event of the year. DMAA's Exhibit Hall, showcasing today's leading DM programs and technologies, has expanded to house over 160 companies. And, in the coming weeks we will unveil new improved guidelines for our Scientific Poster Program and Recognizing Excellence Awards Program that reflect the growth of the DM industry. I am also proud to announce that DMAA will again be hosting an our international colleagues for the 2nd Annual International Disease Management Summit that is expected to expand to over 30 countries and 150 attendees in 2004."

DMAA's online Call for Abstracts for the 6th Annual Leadership Forum is currently available at http://www.dmaa.org/. DMAA encourages all parties interested in presenting at the conference to submit an abstract. DMAA's 2004 conference website is scheduled to launch before March 22nd.

For additional information on DMAA's 2004 conference contact us at 202-861-1490 or dmaa@dmaa.org.

DMAA is a nonprofit, voluntary membership organization founded in March of 1999, which represents all stakeholders of the disease management community. For more information please visit http://www.dmaa.org/.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20030114/DCTU013LOGO )

CONTACT: Warren E. Todd, Executive Director of the Disease ManagementAssociation of America, +1-202-861-1491, or wtodd@DMAA.org

Web site: http://www.dmaa.org/