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MedAssets and Prodigo Solutions to Improve Efficiency, Contract Compliance in Hospital Purchasing

^{Published on 2010-08-24 08:16:39 - Market Wire}
 

ATLANTA & PITTSBURGH--([ BUSINESS WIRE ])--To improve efficiency and contract compliance for hospitals and other health care providers, Prodigo Solutions LLC today announced an exclusive agreement with MedAssets to offer its customers Prodigoa™s electronic-procurement marketplace solutions.

"UPMC has achieved significant savings, productivity gains and higher customer satisfaction since implementing Prodigoa™s solutions nearly two years ago"

The technology allows buyers of health care supplies to connect through a single online portal to multiple, disparate data systems for ordering everything from replacement knees to office furniture. At the same time, suppliers manage the online catalogs, freeing health care supply-chain employees to focus on sourcing and [ contract management ], rather than processing requisitions and updating prices and product descriptions in internal databases.

Prodigo, a subsidiary of UPMC (University of Pittsburgh Medical Center), combines its licensed abest of breeda procurement applications with UPMCa™s medical and technology expertise to streamline health care purchasing. Prodigoa™s solutions integrate with leading enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, such as PeopleSoft, SAP and Oracle. They also can be positioned with the Prodigo Buyer application for organizations without an ERP.

aAs the health care community seeks to produce the quality improvements and cost control that are the focus of national reform, we are pleased to help our provider customers reach those goals by offering Prodigoa™s e-procurement solutions,a said Rand Ballard, chief customer officer and chief operating officer, MedAssets. aMajor health systems, including UPMC, have demonstrated that Prodigoa™s tools can drive lower costs, higher efficiency and improved contract compliancea"an outcome that benefits patients and payors.a

Approximately 75 percent of UPMCa™s purchasing transaction volume, covering thousands of items, is now processed through Prodigoa™s system. Over 50 percent is fully automated, meaning that the contract-compliant orders go directly from an end usera™s desktop to the vendor, with no involvement from supply chain staff.

aUPMC has achieved significant savings, productivity gains and higher customer satisfaction since implementing Prodigoa™s solutions nearly two years ago,a said James Szilagy, UPMCa™s chief supply chain officer and Prodigo Solutions board member. aOur procurement process automation is driving significant improvement in contract compliance and is saving UPMC nearly $3 million annually. Prodigo Solutions has been critical to achieving these results. By working with MedAssets, we can bring similar efficiencies more quickly to other health care providers struggling with labor-intensive purchasing and compliance processes.a

About Prodigo Solutions

Prodigo Solutions was launched by healthcare supply chain executives to accelerate savings and automation in the healthcare supply chain. Based on its expertise in healthcare supply chain process and technology, Prodigo Solutions delivers a suite of solutions and services including e-procurement, content management, B2B transactions and supply chain consulting. Prodigo Solutions is part of UPMC's International and Commercial Services Division. Visit [ www.prodigosolutions.com ].

About MedAssets

MedAssets (NASDAQ: MDAS) partners with healthcare providers to improve financial strength by implementing spend management and revenue cycle solutions that help control cost, improve margins and cash flow, increase regulatory compliance and optimize operational efficiency. MedAssets serves more than 125 health systems, 3,300 hospitals and 40,000 non-acute healthcare providers. For more information, visit [ www.medassets.com ].

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