American Specialty Health Announces URAC Re-Accreditation.

Business Editors & Health/Medical Writers

SAN DIEGO--(BW HealthWire)--Jan. 30, 2001

American Specialty Health announced today that it has been awarded accreditation by URAC for the quality of its health care operations.

American Specialty Health received accreditation for both its chiropractic and acupuncture plans for two of its subsidiaries, American Specialty Health Plans and American Specialty Health Networks, in each of the following five areas: Health Utilization Management, Health Plan, Health Network with Credentialing, Workers' Compensation Utilization Management and Workers' Compensation Network.

Douglas Metz, D.C., Senior Vice President, Health Services and Quality Management, commented about the accreditation, "ASHN and ASHP see accreditation as an extremely valuable process to validate that their operations meet industry standards for the management of their health care services. ASHN and ASHP are extremely pleased with the outcome of this recent re-accreditation audit."

URAC is a non-profit organization that has issued over 1,200 accreditation certificates to over 300 managed care organizations doing business in all 50 states. URAC-accredited companies provide health care to more than 120 million Americans. URAC accreditation standards are recognized nationally as providing the benchmarks for quality in managed care organizations.

Garry Carneal, URAC president and CEO, said, "By applying for and receiving URAC accreditation, American Specialty Health has demonstrated a commitment to quality health care. Quality health care is crucial to our nation's welfare and it is important to have organizations that are willing to measure themselves against national standards."

American Specialty Health Networks (ASHN) provides network access programs and managed care programs nationwide to health plans, insurance carriers, employer groups and trust funds. Its affiliate, American Specialty Health Plans (ASHP) provides services to members in California and is the nation's first and largest health plan for chiropractic and acupuncture services. Based in San Diego, ASHP and ASHN have over 500 employees and cover over 40 million members nationwide through various managed benefit, network access and discount programs.