HHS Texas Management Selects InterQual to Guide Appropriate Levels of Care for Medicare Population

“We needed a new solution that would be a better fit with our care delivery model and could address Medicare guidelines across the various states we serve,” said Sandra McAnallen, HHS Texas Management senior vice president. “InterQual was selected for its clinical rigor, ease of integration into our business processes, and because it supports our focus on level of care decisions based on the individual versus the diagnosis.”

HHS Texas Management will access the gold-standard criteria through InterQual Online, a secure Web-based application. The hosted service allows for anytime, anywhere views of the comprehensive InterQual content to facilitate decision making during HHS Texas Management’s pre-certification, admission, concurrent stay and retrospective review processes.

“With over a quarter million Medicare members, we were looking for a partner that had the experience and resources to implement quickly, and the McKesson team was an excellent fit for us,” said McAnallen. “Certainly the ease of use and levels-of-care orientation of InterQual Online was a big draw, but we also felt that McKesson could support us as we look to enhance our criteria delivery system down the road.”

“We are pleased to partner with HHS Texas Management to help expedite consistent, clinically sound care decisions,” said A. Jacqueline Mitus, M.D., senior vice president of clinical content for McKesson Health Solutions. “HHS is a leader in managing Medicare members, ensuring that this population receives the most appropriate care to meet their complex needs.”

About HHS Texas Management

HHS Texas Management is run by Heritage Health Systems, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Universal American Corp. (Nasdaq: UAM). Through its family of companies, Universal American offers a broad array of health insurance and managed care products and services, primarily to the growing senior population. For more information on Universal American, please visit our website at www.universalamerican.com.

About McKesson Corporation

McKesson Corporation, currently ranked 18th on the FORTUNE 500, is a healthcare services and healthcare information technology company dedicated to helping its customers deliver high-quality healthcare by reducing costs, streamlining processes, and improving the quality and safety of patient care. McKesson is the longest-operating company in healthcare today, marking its 175^th anniversary this year. Over the course of its history, McKesson has grown by providing pharmaceutical and medical-surgical supply management across the spectrum of care; healthcare information technology for hospitals, physicians, homecare and payors; hospital and retail pharmacy automation; and services for manufacturers and payors designed to improve outcomes for patients. For more information, visit http://www.mckesson.com.