Broadspire Reports Significant Short-term Disability Savings to Customers; 2004 Results Show an Average of Five Work Days Saved per Claim.

PLANTATION, Fla. -- Broadspire, a Platinum Equity company and leading provider of casualty and disability claims management and risk and safety consulting to enterprise customers in North America, today announced the release of a study in the area of short-term disability (STD) that demonstrates a significant savings for Broadspire customers during 2004.

Utilizing "The Medical Disability Advisor" (MDA) reference data, Broadspire compared STD durations for 139 diagnoses for which the MDA has a mean duration value. The MDA provides expected duration guidelines and reference data based on 3.5 million disability cases. The reference data reflects actual experience across the spectrum of physical conditions, from a variety of industries and with varying levels of case management.

Broadspire showed shorter durations in 86 percent of those diagnoses when compared to MDA reference data. By extrapolating those savings per case to Broadspire's entire book of business, Broadspire customers saved 204,019 days in 2004, or an average of five work days per claim. Using the U.S. median salary of $42,409, Broadspire was able to help customers save an average of $815 per STD case.(a)

"Broadspire's comprehensive consulting expertise in the area of short-term disability offers customers a measurable return on their investment," said Dr. Jacob Lazarovic, chief medical officer for Broadspire. "Our team approach to case management ensures that our clients receive the benefit of input from an entire group whose focus is returning employees to work."

The Broadspire team approach to case management includes adjustors, senior nurse reviewers and masters-level mental health case workers who are integrated with the company's medical department. Senior nurse reviewers provide claim adjustors with clinical feedback and guidance. Cases are triaged to more experienced staff based upon diagnosis and clinical complexity.

A team of 95 Broadspire physicians across 33 specialties support the company's claims management process. These physician reviewers perform file reviews and contribute to guideline development. Physician review is fully integrated through referral criteria for controversial diagnoses or durations beyond expected guidelines.

Broadspire utilizes its own internally developed disability criteria that address both common and controversial diagnoses and conditions, such as fibromyalgia, major depression and complications of pregnancy.

Provided by Reed Group LLC, "The Medical Disability Advisor: Workplace Guidelines for Disability Duration", by Presley Reed, M.D., is the industry standard for evidence-based return to work guidelines and normative benchmarks for disability and workers' compensation cases.

About Broadspire

Broadspire - http://www.choosebroadspire.com -, a Platinum Equity company, offers the broadest array of absence management services in the industry. Those services include risk and safety consulting; workers' compensation, auto liability, general liability and short- and long-term disability claim management services; Family Medical Leave Act administration; total disability management programs; and field care and medical management services. Broadspire, based in Plantation, Fla., with 3,400 employees throughout the United States, creates customized solutions designed to increase employee productivity and contain costs.

About Platinum Equity

Platinum Equity, http://www.platinumequity.com , is a global M&A&O(R) firm specialized in the merger, acquisition, and operation of mission-critical services and solutions companies. Since its founding in 1995, the firm has completed more than 65 transactions, building a diverse portfolio of companies with nearly 40,000 employees, more than 600,000 customer sites, and a multi-billion dollar revenue base. Platinum Equity in 2004 was named the 32nd largest private company in the United States by Forbes magazine.

(a) Based upon the median income in the United States of $42,409, Income in the United States: 2002, US Census Bureau.