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Global Healthcare Exchange and Standard Register Integrate Their Healthcare eProcurement Services Two Powerful e-Business Platforms Integrated Seamlessly at the Desktop Will Help Healthcare Organizations Increase Efficiency and Reduce Costs DAYTON, Ohio and WESTMINSTER, Colo., Feb. 24 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Standard Register and Global Healthcare Exchange, LLC (GHX) announced they are integrating their respective e-procurement services for the healthcare industry. The connectivity will enablehealthcare purchasers using GHX's Catalyst order-management system to launch Standard Register's SMARTworks(R) electronic procurement and print-management system to not only purchase printed materials, but also coordinate and track their design, printing and distribution. "Both Standard Register and GHX have independently created innovative e-business solutions that help customers increase efficiency and reduce costs," said Joe Morgan, Standard Register chief technology officer. "By integrating our solutions through a single Internet connection at customers' desktops, we're delivering even greater value to the marketplace." HCA hospitals will be the first to take advantage of the connectivity between the SMARTworks and Catalyst systems. Hospital personnel at more than 200 HCA hospitals are already using Catalyst to prepare requisitions, which are then routed to HCA's centralized enterprise resource planning (ERP) system where they are converted into purchase orders and sent to the corresponding supplier through GHX's electronic trading exchange. Now those hospitals will be able to use Catalyst to access SMARTworks' customized Web interface that enables users to select, customize, order and track printed materials via preferred printers andsuppliers. The systems work hand-in-hand to streamline the purchasing process, help eliminate purchase order errors and help reduce overall costs. Ranked number 43 in Information Week's 2003 list of the 500 most innovative business users of information technology, Standard Register already conducts business electronically with many of its customers in healthcare and other industries. With the relationship with GHX, Standard Register expects to accelerate its e-business efforts in healthcare, increasing the penetration of SMARTworks in participating GHX hospitals. "With more than 1700 hospitals in the United States transacting business through GHX, we look forward to helping Standard Register further expand its already significant e-commerce business," said GHX Chief Executive Officer Mike Mahoney. "GHX, meanwhile, is proud to have a company of the stature of Standard Register among our more than 145 connected suppliers. By working together, we can make further progress toward our common goal of making healthcare more efficient." About Global Healthcare Exchange Global Healthcare Exchange, LLC (GHX) provides an open and neutral electronic trading exchange, along with complementary products and services, through which buyers and sellers can collaborate to improve efficiencies in the healthcare supply chain. GHX's catalog and content services improve the accuracy of purchasing transactions, reducing many of the most common and costly problems in healthcare procurement, while the privately held company's revenue neutral business model is designed to lower costs for all involved. GHX's owners, strategic partners and trading exchange participants are representative of the entire healthcare supply chain, including suppliers and distributors; integrated delivery networks (IDNs), hospitals and ancillary healthcare facilities; group purchasing organizations and their proprietary healthcare trading exchanges; and supply chain technology companies. Equity owners of GHX include Johnson & Johnson Health Care; GE Medical Systems; Baxter Healthcare Corp.; Medtronic USA, Inc.; Abbott Exchange, Inc.; Siemens; Becton, Dickinson & Co.; Boston Scientific Corp. Tyco Healthcare Group, LP; Guidant Corp.; C.R. Bard, Inc.; AmerisourceBergen Corp.; Cardinal Health, Inc.; Fisher Scientific International, Inc.; McKesson Corp.; B Braun Medical Inc.; Premier, Inc. and HCA. For more information visit http://www.ghx.com/ . About Standard Register Standard Register (NYSE:SR) is a leading information solutions company, with more than 90 years of innovation in improving the way business gets done in healthcare, financial services, manufacturing and other industries. The company helps organizations increase efficiency, reduce costs, enhance security and grow revenue by effectively capturing, managing and using information. Its offerings range from document and label solutions to e-business solutions to consulting and managed services. More information is available at http://www.standardregister.com/ . DATASOURCE: Global Healthcare Exchange, LLC; Standard Register CONTACT: Karen Conway of Global Healthcare Exchange, +1-720-887-7215, cell +1-303-564-2147, ; Julie McEwan of Standard Register, +1-937-221-1825, Web site: http://www.ghx.com/ http://www.standardregister.com/

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