ASCL Ascential Software - Common Stock (MM)

HIMSS Advisory: Ascential Software to Highlight Business Benefits of Enterprise Data Integration to Healthcare Payors and Providers Ascential Software Experts Advise Healthcare IT Executives to Plan Beyond HIPAA and Prepare for National Health Information Infrastructure WESTBORO, Mass., Feb. 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Ascential Software Corporation (NASDAQ:ASCL), the enterprise data integration leader, today announced that its team of healthcare industry experts will underscore the critical role of data integration at the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) Conference and Exposition in Dallas, from February 13 - 17, 2005. Company representatives will be located in booth #35. Ascential Software provides a complete enterprise data integration solution that can help leading healthcare organizations achieve regulatory compliance, improve operations and reduce costs. In addition, data integration is expected to emerge as a key underpinning of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' National Health Information Infrastructure (NHII). More than 150 healthcare organizations rely on Ascential Software's enterprise data integration solution, including Aetna, Anthem, Highmark, PacifiCare, Fortis Health, NOVANT, Delta Dental, Laboratory Corp. of America, and VNSNY Home Care. "HIPAA compliance generated an abundance of new electronic data regarding patient/subscriber profiles, diagnostics, procedures, drug utilization, and billing," said Helen Gurevich, director of healthcare solutions at Ascential Software. "Today, healthcare organizations can capitalize on this high-volume, complex data by seamlessly integrating it with operational and analytical data, and driving significant business improvements as a result." Throughout HIMSS, Ascential Software will provide comprehensive, real-time product demonstrations that highlight unique identification and on-demand data correction capabilities for patient/provider information generated from healthcare eligibility inquiry transactions. In addition, Ascential Software will show how transactional data can be seamlessly integrated with a dynamic data warehouse, and the consequent value for business analytics. Data integration is expected to play an important role in building and enabling the NHII. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Web site, a lack of standards for content have been identified as a significant challenge to this initiative, which was undertaken to improve the effectiveness, efficiency and overall quality of health and healthcare in the U.S. The NHII entails a comprehensive, knowledge-based network of interoperable systems of clinical, public health, and personal health information that would improve decision accuracy by making health information available when and where it is needed. For example, in the area of bioterrorism detection, the NHII would enable real-time aggregation of health data in order to identify patterns. The Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite(TM) is a comprehensive data integration solution that profiles, cleanses, and transforms data from virtually any application or system regardless of data volume or latency. Ascential Software's integrated offering is designed to help companies streamline operations, improve customer support, expedite business transactions, and make better tactical and strategic decisions on the basis of the best available information. The Suite provides unlimited scalability through parallel processing, complete meta data management, any-to-any data source and application connectivity, and delivers on-demand data integration seamlessly within an enterprise's service-oriented architecture. About The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society HIMSS is the healthcare industry's membership organization exclusively focused on providing leadership for the optimal use of healthcare information technology and management systems for the betterment of human health. Founded in 1961 with offices in Chicago, Washington D.C., and other locations across the country, HIMSS represents more than 14,000 individual members and some 220 member corporations that employ more than 1 million people. HIMSS frames and leads healthcare public policy and industry practices through its advocacy, educational and professional development initiatives designed to promote information and management systems' contributions to ensuring quality patient care. Visit http://www.himss.org/ for more information. About Ascential Software Ascential Software Corporation (NASDAQ:ASCL) is the leader in enterprise data integration. Customers and partners worldwide use the Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite(TM) to confidently transform data into accurate, reliable and complete business information to improve operational performance and decision-making across every critical business dimension. Our comprehensive end-to-end solutions provide on demand data integration complemented by our professional services, industry expertise, and methodologies. Ascential Software is headquartered in Westboro, Mass., and has more than 3,000 customers and partners globally across such industries as financial services and banking, insurance, healthcare, retail, manufacturing, consumer packaged goods, telecommunications and government. For more information call 1-800-966-9875 (508-366-3888 if calling from outside the US or Canada) or visit the Ascential Software website at http://www.ascential.com/. Media and industry analysts, contact Chas Kielt, director of media and analyst relations, at 1-508-599-7256 or . Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This release contains forward-looking statements based on current expectations or beliefs, as well as a number of assumptions about future events, and these statements are subject to important factors and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements in this release address a variety of subjects including, for example, the functionality, characteristics, quality and performance capabilities of Ascential Software's products and technology; results achievable and benefits attainable through deployment of Ascential Software's products and provision of services; the ability of Ascential Software's products to help healthcare organizations achieve regulatory compliance, improve operations and reduce costs; and improvements in operational performance and decision-making. The following factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in these forward-looking statements: the ability of the company to expand its market share; growth rates for the enterprise data integration software market; general business conditions in the software industry, the technology sector, and in the domestic and international economies; rapid technological change in the markets served by the company; dependence on international operations; global and geopolitical instability; compliance costs associated with regulations to which the company is subject, including the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, and the impact of such regulations; and difficulties that the company may experience integrating technologies, operations and personnel of completed or future acquisitions. For a detailed discussion of these and other cautionary statements, please refer to the filings made by Ascential Software with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, without limitation, the most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. Ascential Software disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statements made herein to reflect any change in Ascential Software's expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions, or circumstances on which such statements are based. Ascential Software is not responsible for statements attributed to third parties within this release or in any materials referenced herein. Partnerships described herein shall be deemed to be strategic alliances only, and shall not imply the power of either partner to bind the other partner or to incur obligations on behalf of the other partner. Ascential and Ascential Enterprise Integration Suite are trademarks of Ascential Software Corporation or its affiliates and may be registered in the United States or other jurisdictions. Other marks are the property of the owners of those marks. DATASOURCE: Ascential Software Corporation CONTACT: Chas Kielt of Ascential Software Corporation, +1-508-599-7256, ; or Kristina LeBlanc of Porter Novelli, +1-617-897-8233, Web site: http://www.ascentialsoftware.com/

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