Press Releases

University of Kansas' Jayhawk Primary Care Becomes First Medical Group to Offer Online Communications Via Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City-RelayHealth Reimbursement Program

Jayhawk's HMO Patients Eligible to Gain More Direct and Convenient Access to Their Physicians

Kansas City, MO and Emeryville, CA, February 15, 2006 — Blue Shield of Kansas City (BCBSKC) and RelayHealth Corporation today announced that Jayhawk Primary Care has become the first medical group to join a new benefit program that reimburses eligible physicians for online doctor-patient consultations. The consultations, called webVisits®, and other online healthcare services are provided by RelayHealth.

One of Kansas City's largest primary care physician groups, Jayhawk Primary Care is affiliated with the University of Kansas Hospital and has six different locations around the Kansas City area. Its HMO members will now have the opportunity to access their primary care physician online. Available online services include the ability to request prescription refills, receive lab and test results, schedule appointments, and conduct a webVisit with their personal physician about non-urgent symptoms.

"Once we were assured that the privacy of our patients would be protected, we immediately saw the benefits of this program for our patients and their families," said Carrie Jordan, chief operating officer of Jayhawk Primary Care. "Our patients can directly access their primary care physician when the need is important, but not urgent. From the office's point of view, it will allow us to be more efficient and cost effective while still satisfying the needs of our patients. Additionally, this service will be available to all of our patients and not just the ones enrolled in the BCBS HMO product."

As part of the BCBSKC-RelayHealth reimbursement program, online webVisit consultations are a covered benefit and the patient will be responsible for a $10 co-payment.

"We applaud the Jayhawk physician group for signing on to participate in the BCBSKC-RelayHealth reimbursement program," said John W. Kennedy, executive vice president and chief operating officer of BCBSKC. "This program will bring the HMO members who are patients of this physician group a variety of convenient services and greater access to their primary care physicians. These patients can look forward to online physician consultations, electronic appointment scheduling, online delivery of lab results, e-prescribing, and more."

"We're confident Jayhawk physicians and patients will benefit from using the RelayHealth service-research shows that RelayHealth can reduce the cost of care and increase patient satisfaction," said Giovanni Colella, MD, president and chief executive officer of RelayHealth. "We're very fortunate to team with a strong health plan partner who recognizes the value of shifting non-urgent medical issues online, and we look forward to many more medical groups signing up for the service."

The BCBSKC-RelayHealth reimbursement program is open to BCBSKC HMO physicians, and HMO members and their qualified dependents. Eligible HMO members will be notified of their eligibility when their primary care physician joins the program. For more information, visit www.kumed.com/relayhealth or www.bcbskc.com.

About Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City, the largest not-for-profit health insurer in Missouri and the only not-for-profit health insurer in Kansas City, has been part of the Kansas City community since 1938. BCBSKC provides health coverage to more than 886,000 residents in the greater Kansas City area and Northwest Missouri. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. For more information on the company, visit our redesigned Web site at www.bcbskc.com.

About RelayHealth Corporation
RelayHealth is the premier provider of secure online healthcare communication services linking patients, healthcare professionals, health plans, and pharmacies. A secure, clinically structured productivity platform for the medical office, the RelayHealth service is an emerging online communication standard, interfacing with both commercial and custom-built electronic medical record systems through the company's Interoperability Toolkit. Research studies show RelayHealth reduces phone traffic and increases physician productivity through modular features like the webVisit® clinical consultation and eScript™ electronic prescribing — one reason leading health plans nationwide increasingly reimburse providers who use the RelayHealth service. For healthcare consumers, RelayHealth improves convenience, access and communication with their own doctors. For information, visit www.relayhealth.com.