TZIX Trizetto Grp. (MM)

The TriZetto Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: TZIX) today announced a seventh client for software and services offered through the exclusive TriZetto Premier Partnership Program�, which is designed to help benefits administrators transition from a singular focus on paying claims to the broader realm of managing risk. Pequot Plus Health Benefit Services in Mashantucket, Conn., joins the growing list of benefits administrators participating in this program that provides administrators with affordable, integrated access to technology that helps manage the cost and quality of care. Pequot Plus has contracted for the advanced disease management services available through American Health Data Institute (AHDI) as part of the TriZetto Premier Partnership Program. This brings to five the number of contracts for the AHDI service, which is pre-integrated with TriZetto�s QicLink benefits administration software. �We welcome the opportunity to join forces with TriZetto and AHDI to manage a broad spectrum of chronic diseases for improving the health and welfare of our employees and their families,� said Karen Hatcher, president of Pequot Plus. Supporting more than 400,000 health plan members, AHDI helps organizations manage the chronically ill who account for most claim costs. Benefits administrators are also signing up for the services of other TriZetto Premier Partners in the exclusive program, with two organizations contracting for the QicLink-integrated pharmacy benefits management solution. Integrated & Operational Another TriZetto client, Sheffield, Olson and McQueen, Inc. (SOMI), a Minneapolis-based third-party administrator, has already completed implementation of the AHDI solution, including: Integration with QicLink for population of AHDI reports with real-time SOMI claims processing data. Executive-level reporting with �drill down� capabilities to access background report detail that accurately ties back to the claims and historical data on the QicLink system. Discounted pricing for the Healthcare Quality Management service provided to SOMI due to AHDI�s participation as a vendor partner in the TriZetto Premier Partnership Program. �With the AHDI services and the TriZetto Premier Partnership Program, we�re building a model to drive employees into the system, where we can help them become and remain healthy,� said Cindy Sheffield, owner and chief executive officer of SOMI. With this new program, SOMI has been able to increase revenues from clients that like the company�s ability to show them projected three-year cost comparisons for wellness and quality initiatives. The service also has helped SOMI capture new business from the competition, even when that competition has been a major health plan. �Why would you go anywhere else for these services? TriZetto has negotiated the best rates, and integration and free health risk assessment is included,� Sheffield said. �Use these services as a springboard and you can become a highly valued consultant that your employer groups turn to for guidance.� The TriZetto Premier Partnership Program leverages the Company�s industry-leading QicLink claims administration platform to generate attractive pricing, packaging and QicLink integration from key vendors offering advanced products and services for healthcare and benefits management. Premier partner solutions include: Pharmacy benefits management Advanced disease management Out-of-network claims management Fraud and abuse mitigation About TriZetto TriZetto is Powering Integrated Healthcare Management�. With its technology touching nearly half of the U.S. insured population, TriZetto is uniquely positioned to drive the convergence of health benefit administration, care management and constituent engagement. The company provides premier information technology solutions that enable payers and other constituents in the healthcare supply chain to improve the coordination of benefits and care for healthcare consumers. Healthcare payers include national and regional health insurance plans, and benefits administrators that provide transaction services to self-insured employer groups. The company�s payer-focused information technology offerings include enterprise and component software, hosting and business process outsourcing services, and consulting. Headquartered in Newport Beach, Calif., TriZetto can be reached at 949-719-2200 or at www.trizetto.com.