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Medicine Shoppe International, Inc. To Provide Charter Membership to More Than 1,000 Medicine Shoppe(R) Pharmacies and Medicap Pharmacy(R) Stores

Posted on: Wednesday, 20 July 2005, 18:00 CDT

Franchisor to provide Medicine Shoppe(R) Pharmacies and Medicap Pharmacy(R) Stores nationwide with significant discounts on their electronic prescribing transactions

Medicine Shoppe International, Inc. (MSI), a Cardinal Health Company (NYSE:CAH) and the largest franchisor of independent community pharmacies, has secured a charter membership in the SureScripts Membership Program for MSI's 1,000 plus Medicine Shoppe(R) Pharmacies and Medicap Pharmacy(R) Stores. The charter membership, among other things, will provide Medicine Shoppe Pharmacies and Medicap Pharmacy Stores with significant discounts on their electronic prescribing transactions. SureScripts, a pharmacy industry founded and owned entity, is the largest network provider of electronic prescribing services in the United States.

Electronic exchange of prescription information, or e-prescribing, will help Medicine Shoppe(R) Pharmacists and Medicap Pharmacy(R) Pharmacists to spend more time with customers by reducing the amount of time traditionally spent receiving new prescriptions, refill requests and change requests from physicians and physicians' offices. A recent survey(1) found that electronic prescriptions required 26.6 percent less staff time to process than all other means of handling new prescriptions. Most Medicine Shoppe Pharmacies and Medicap Pharmacy Stores that elect to implement SureScripts will be capable of exchanging electronic prescription information with physicians beginning in the fall of 2005.

E-prescribing will also help to improve prescription accuracy by reducing errors attributed to fax, telephone transmissions and written communication, such as misunderstandings based on illegible handwriting and medications with similar sounding names.

"Our pharmacists are known for the personal care and counseling they provide our customers," said Terry Burnside, president of MSI. "SureScripts will enable our pharmacists to grow this distinction by cutting back on their administrative duties and providing additional time to spend with customers."

Medicine Shoppe Pharmacies and Medicap Pharmacy Stores that choose to exchange prescription data with local participating physicians will need to contact their pharmacy's software vendor to see if the vendor is a SureScripts Certified Solution Provider(TM) and request a connection to the SureScripts network. Physicians interested in communicating electronically with Medicine Shoppe Pharmacies and Medicap Pharmacy Stores also will need electronic prescribing software from a SureScripts Certified Solution Provider.

"Independent pharmacies are key links to increasing usage and expanding the availability of electronic prescribing services with physicians," said Kevin Hutchinson, president and chief executive officer of SureScripts. "We're excited about the leadership role that Medicine Shoppe International, Inc. is taking as a charter member in helping educate physicians on the benefits of electronic prescribing; reduce the potential for medication errors; and deliver a higher quality of care to patients. We look forward to Medicine Shoppe Pharmacists and Medicap Pharmacy Pharmacists realizing the benefits of electronic prescribing."

About Medicine Shoppe International, Inc.

Medicine Shoppe International, Inc. (www.medicineshoppe.com), a Cardinal Health Company, is distinguished for its commitment to providing expert, personalized health care. Medicine Shoppe International is the largest franchisor of independent community pharmacies in the U.S. In 2003, Medicine Shoppe International acquired Medicap Pharmacies Incorporated (www.medicap.com), which franchises independent community pharmacies in the U.S. under the trade name Medicap Pharmacy(R). There are more than 1,000 domestic Medicine Shoppe(R) Pharmacies and Medicap Pharmacy(R) locations and more than 300 pharmacies in six other countries.

About SureScripts

SureScripts, the largest network provider of electronic prescribing services, is committed to building relationships within the healthcare community and working collaboratively with key industry stakeholders and organizations to improve the safety, efficiency and quality of healthcare by improving the overall prescribing process. At the core of this improvement effort is SureScripts network, a healthcare infrastructure, which establishes electronic communications between pharmacists and physicians and enables the two-way electronic exchange of prescription information. More information about SureScripts is available at www.surescripts.com.

(1) The survey was conducted by Michael Rupp, Ph.D., R.Ph. and phase one results were released in February 2005. Phase one results were based on data collected at ten pharmacy chains with e prescription services over 75 days. In total, 23,285 prescriptions were dispensed, 451 of which were e prescriptions.

Source: Business Wire

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