Bergen Brunswig Announces Acquisition of Lash Group, Strengthening Services to Pharmaceutical Manufacturers.ORANGE, Calif.--(BW HealthWire)--Sept. 1, 1998--Bergen Brunswig Corporation (NYSE NYSE See: New York Stock Exchange :BBC BBC in full British Broadcasting Corp. Publicly financed broadcasting system in Britain. A private company at its founding in 1922, it was replaced by a public corporation under royal charter in 1927. ) today announced it has completed the acquisition of privately-held Lash Group, one of the largest reimbursement consulting firms in the nation. The transaction will be accretive and is consistent with Bergen's overall goal of achieving a mid-twenties EPS (Encapsulated PostScript) A PostScript file format used to transfer a graphic image between applications and platforms. EPS files contain PostScript code as well as an optional preview image in TIFF, WMF, PICT or EPSI, the latter being an ASCII-only format. growth rate for fiscal 1999. Lash Group, founded by Myles Lash in 1986, has offices in Washington, D.C., Richmond, Va., and Charlotte, N.C., and works actively with integrated health networks to address their managed-care challenges. Under terms of the merger, Lash Group will operate as a separate business unit within Integrated Commercialization Solutions (ICS (1) (Internet Connection Sharing) A Windows feature that enables two or more computers to share one Internet connection. First introduced in Windows 98 Second Edition, sharing is accomplished with network address translation (NAT), which is the common method. ), a division of Bergen Brunswig Specialty Company -- the fastest growing subsidiary of Bergen Brunswig Corporation. ICS develops and implements outsourcing services which include distribution, marketing and clinical programs for pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical device and diagnostic companies. According to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. Rick Williams For the baseball player, see . Richard C. Williams (October 16, 1965 - February 23, 1999) was an American professional wrestler, better known as Renegade. Career Rick Williams began wrestling in 1992 after a stint as a male stripper. , executive vice president and general manager of ICS, "The Lash Group provides strategic reimbursement planning and patient-support programs for pharmaceutical companies with a portfolio of services that complements the commercialization strategies that we have launched at ICS. Myles Lash -- a nationally recognized leader in the management of health systems with more than 25 years of experience in strategic planning Strategic planning is an organization's process of defining its strategy, or direction, and making decisions on allocating its resources to pursue this strategy, including its capital and people. , integrated network A network that supports both data and voice and/or different networking protocols. See converged network and new public network. development and operations management Operations management is an area of business that is concerned with the production of goods and services, and involves the responsibility of ensuring that business operations are efficient and effective. -- will remain as president of the company and will assist me in expanding our service offerings." "The acquisition will immediately broaden ICS services, which currently include third party logistics; outsourced accounting and contract management; clinical support hotlines; telemarketing telemarketing, the practice of selling goods or services to customers by means of the telephone or of surveying consumer preferences in telephone conversations. services and sampling programs," Williams continued. "The combination will position ICS as a premier commercialization outsourcing company, supporting start-ups as well as established biopharmaceutical manufacturers." Commented Lash Group president Myles Lash, "We chose to partner with Bergen and ICS because we believe that Bergen's strategy of supporting the commercialization of biopharmaceutical companies fits well with our focus on specialty products. We have worked previously with ICS senior management when they were at pharmaceutical and biotech companies. They have a great understanding of how to meet the needs of manufacturers and they share our mission of putting the patient first." Lash Group has been a leader in developing innovative reimbursement services that help to address the special needs of patients and providers. These comprehensive programs are conducted on behalf of healthcare manufacturers to ensure that their medical products are made available to all eligible patients. In order to expand its consulting services, Lash Group recently announced that Dr. Michael Weintraub has joined the company to develop regulatory and clinical study strategies for healthcare manufacturers. Prior to joining Lash Group, Dr. Weintraub was director of the FDA's Office of Drug Evaluation from 1995 to 1998. "This acquisition is a perfect example of what Bergen is doing to enhance its supply channel management capabilities," said Neil Dimick, president of Bergen Brunswig Specialty Company and chief financial officer of Bergen Brunswig Corporation. "The Lash Group represents the kind of acquisitions we will be focusing on in the near term -- particularly those that help us build a strong presence in the burgeoning pharmaceutical services industry as well as companies that expand our presence in the medical-surgical and pharmaceutical distribution markets." Bergen Brunswig Corporation, a Fortune 200 company with annualized annualized Of or relating to a variable that has been mathematically converted to a yearly rate. Inflation and interest rates are generally annualized since it is on this basis that these two variables are ordinarily stated and compared. revenues of approximately $14 billion, is one of the nation's leading supply channel management companies. In addition to its diversified healthcare product offerings, the company offers innovative logistics management Logistics Management is that part of Supply Chain Management that plans, implements, and controls the efficient, effective, forward, and reverse flow and storage of goods, services, and related information between the point of origin and the point of consumption in order to meet programs in pharmaceuticals and medical-surgical supplies to all healthcare venues. These programs are designed to help customers grow efficiently, improve cost-effectiveness and further support their focus on patient/consumer care. Some of the information set forth in this press release (including without limitation the company's statements regarding goals for the remainder of the current fiscal year and fiscal 1999) constitutes forward-looking information which is subject to uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected or implied. The most significant of such uncertainties are described in exhibit 99(a) to the company's annual report on Form 10-K Form 10-K A report required by the SEC from exchange-listed companies that provides for annual disclosure of certain financial information. Form 10-K See 10-K. for the year ended September 30, 1997 and in other reports and exhibits filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Bergen Brunswig press releases are available at no charge through the company's Faxline. To receive a directory of available releases, call 800/344-7508 and follow the voice-prompt instructions. You may also view the company's website at www.bergenbrunswig.com.
CONTACT: Bergen Brunswig Corporation
Lisa Riordan, 800/840-5131
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