American Specialty Health Entry Named Finalist in URAC’s Best Practices in Consumer Empowerment and Protection Awards

WASHINGTON (Dec. 5, 2007)—A distinguished panel of judges has selected American Specialty Health (ASH), one of the nation’s premier personal health improvement organizations, as a finalist for URAC’s inaugural Best Practices in Consumer Empowerment and Protection Awards competition. Award winners will be announced at the Best Practices in Consumer Empowerment and Protection Conference and Exhibit, March 25-26, 2008 at the Rosen Shingle Creek Hotel in Orlando.

ASH’s director of Health Services, Dr. Craig Nelson, MS, DC, is credited for ASH’s finalist distinction because of his submission entitled “Reduction in Regional Variation of X-ray Utilization.” Dr. Nelson will present ASH’s program at the conference, along with the other finalists. Presentations will showcase working best practices in three categories: consumer decision support, integrated care coordination, and patient/consumer safety.

Gold, Silver and Bronze Best Practices Award winners, and Honorable Mentions in the three topic categories will be announced at a dinner gala during the conference.

The panel of judges, chaired by epidemiologist Thomas W. Wilson, Ph.D., DrPH, Trajectory HealthCare, LLC, included some of the best and most widely recognized experts in program evaluation, care coordination, health information technology, employer and purchaser decision-making, and patient safety. Entries were blinded, then reviewed and scored based on objective criteria.

“We are extremely proud of Dr. Nelson’s work to further advance consumer protection and empowerment,” said ASH’s chairman and CEO George DeVries. “We are also excited to share our knowledge this March with the other finalists in this prestigious competition.”

The nationwide competition attracted entries detailing innovative and proven programs that are enhancing patient safety and giving consumers more control over their health care. The awards will be given to health plans, pharmacy benefit management organizations, health care management companies and health information technology companies.

“The Best Practices awards and conference will be an opportunity for leaders in health care management to find out what premier companies are really doing to advance consumer protection and empowerment,” said Alan Spielman, URAC’s president and CEO. “This is a first-of-its-kind conference with national scope that includes entries from health care management organizations big and small, across the health care spectrum.”

“This conference will prepare attendees to apply these best practices to their own programs,” Spielman said. “It is a groundbreaking mechanism to multiply the positive outcomes of winning programs across the health care management field and to raise the bar on quality for both URAC-accredited and non-accredited organizations.”

About URAC

URAC, an independent, nonprofit organization, is well-known as a leader in promoting health care quality through its accreditation and certification programs. URAC offers a wide range of quality benchmarking programs and services that keep pace with the rapid changes in the health care system, and provide a symbol of excellence for organizations to validate their commitment to quality and accountability. Through its broad-based governance structure and an inclusive standards development process, URAC ensures that all stakeholders are represented in establishing meaningful quality measures for the entire health care industry. For more information, visit www.urac.org.

About American Specialty Health

American Specialty Health Incorporated is one of the nation’s premier personal health improvement organizations, providing specialty benefit programs, fitness programs, health coaching and incentives, Internet solutions, and worksite wellness programs to health plans, insurance carriers, employer groups, and trust funds nationwide.

Based in San Diego, ASH has over 600 employees and covers more than 13.4 million members in specialty benefit, fitness, and coaching programs. For more information, visit ASH online at ASHCompanies.com or call 800.848.3555.