| -- Telemonitoring Service
Provided to Select Participants in LifeMasters CHF Disease
Management Program --
Irvine, Calif. and Bearsville,
N.Y. October 1,
2002 - LifeMasters®
Supported SelfCareSM, Inc. and LifeLink Monitoring Corporation
today announced an agreement under which LifeLink Monitoring
is providing telemonitoring services to a select group
of LifeMasters' disease management program participants
with congestive heart failure (CHF). To date, about
225 individuals are participating in this service.
LifeMasters has led the disease management industry
in the collection and analysis of vital sign and symptom
data from program participants in a variety of ways
including an interactive Web site and IVR system. The
LifeMasters database continuously analyzes this data
and generates alerts when values fall outside of nationally
accepted parameters. A LifeMasters nurse follows up
on the alert by calling the program participant and
exception reports are sent to the participant's personal
physician if appropriate.
The agreement with LifeLink Monitoring provides participants
with another avenue by which they can transfer data
to LifeMasters in a manner that best meets their individual
needs, improving compliance with LifeMasters' disease
management program. With the press of a button, participants
enrolled in this arm of the LifeMasters' CHF disease
management program can now easily collect and transmit
biometric information, such as weight and blood pressure,
to the LifeMasters systems and nurses who remotely monitor
their conditions. In addition, these participants can
use interactive voice response (IVR) technology to record
non-biometric data such as symptoms and compliance information
"The backbone of disease management is a constant
flow of information between a patient and his or her
doctor, and LifeMasters' implementation of the LifeLink
Monitoring solution is a valuable aid in enhancing this
overall process," said Christobel Selecky, CEO
of LifeMasters. "We want to offer our participants
as many ways as possible to transmit data to LifeMasters.
For those who are unable to transmit data via the IVR
or the web, the LifeLink Monitoring solution is a good
alternative. Besides having a technology that worked
well for us, we chose LifeLink Monitoring due to its
commitment to customer service and willingness to effectively
integrate telemonitoring with our CHF program."
"We are very pleased to
be working with a premier organization such as LifeMasters.
They've led the way in recognizing the benefits of self
monitoring at home," stated Art Avedisian, CEO
of LifeLink Monitoring. "We believe our comprehensive,
service-based approach to home telemonitoring greatly
benefits the disease management industry as it seeks
to further reduce medical claims costs and improve participants'
health outcomes."
About LifeMasters
LifeMasters Supported SelfCare, Inc. provides
disease-management programs that create health partnerships
among participants, physicians and payers. LifeMasters
programs improve quality of care for individuals with
chronic illnesses, reduce chronic-disease costs for
payers and provide decision-support tools for physicians.
Leveraging the most technologically advanced infrastructure
in the industry, LifeMasters covers individuals with
diabetes, CHF, CAD, COPD and asthma, as well as other
co-morbidities.
Founded in 1994 and headquartered in Irvine, Calif.,
LifeMasters has contracts with health plans and other
payors that include Aetna, Fallon, several Blue Cross
Blue Shield plans, and Florida's Agency for Health Care
Administration (Medicaid). More information about LifeMasters
can be found at www.lifemasters.com or by calling 1-800-760-9261.
About LifeLink Monitoring
Corporation
LifeLink Monitoring is a leading provider of turnkey
home telemonitoring services to healthcare organizations.
The company's services can be used by anyone responsible
for the care of patients with chronic conditions, either
in a primary care setting or a formal disease management
program. LifeLink Monitoring provides telemonitoring
services to home health organizations, disease management
companies, managed care organizations, integrated delivery
systems and self-insured employers.
Founded
in 1996 and headquartered in Upstate New York, LifeLink
Monitoring provides a broad and expanding range of telemonitoring
services including blood pressure, heart rate, weight,
blood glucose, hemoglobin A1c and patient-supplied symptom
information. All services are provided on a "pay-as-you-go
basis" eliminating the large, up-front expenditures
common to most telemonitoring equipment purchases. More
information about LifeLink Monitoring can be found at
www.llmi.com or by calling 1-888-595-8080 ext 254.
Contacts:
LifeMasters
Supported SelfCare, Inc.
Scott Eisenstein
Bratskeir & Co. Senior
(212) 679-2233
seisenstein@bratskeir.com
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LifeLink
Monitoring Corporation
John Holland
(888) 595-8080 ext. 203
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