ChoicePoint Health Systems Debuts New Diabetes Monitoring System; Appraise unveiled at National Managed Care Congress.

Business Editors, Health & Medical Writers

ATLANTA--(BW HealthWire)--April 17, 2000

ChoicePoint(TM) Health Systems Inc. announced the launch of Appraise(TM), a new diabetes monitoring system, at the 12th annual National Managed Care Congress.

Appraise is a cutting-edge development in disease monitoring that will provide Managed Care Organizations (MCOs) and physicians with significantly improved tools to effectively manage diabetes, which affects more than 16 million people nationwide.

ChoicePoint Health Systems is a subsidiary of Osborn Group Inc. based in Olathe, Kansas. The new Appraise product will enable people with diabetes to quickly and conveniently collect their own specimens for Hemoglobin A1c and Microalbumin in the privacy of their home and avoid making an extra trip to the laboratory. Hemoglobin A1c and Microalbumin are two essential test measures for monitoring a patient's diabetic status.

The Appraise diabetes monitoring system allows MCOs to directly enroll their patients into the system by establishing tests to be performed, testing parameters and frequency of testing. Specimen collection kits are automatically sent to the patient's home. Once the specimen is collected, the kit is sent directly to the ChoicePoint Health Systems certified laboratory. Tests are performed and results are sent to the physician prior to the patient's scheduled appointment, providing the physician with the opportunity to consult with the patient and make adjustments to therapies or diet as necessary based on the test information. Laboratory data and trending analysis is provided by ChoicePoint Health Systems to MCOs, enabling them to meet their NCQA and HEDIS requirements.

"Appraise is clearly a major breakthrough and has significant advantages, including compliance with disease management protocols, convenience for physicians and patients, ease of use for the patients and standardization of test results," says Dr. John Miles, UMKC School of Medicine, Kansas City, Missouri. "This product is a dramatic advancement in the care and treatment of patients with diabetes."

"This product will provide individuals with diabetes an easy, convenient and cost-effective way to obtain critical information affecting their health in a timely manner," says Dan Rocco, president of ChoicePoint Health Systems. "We believe Appraise will be welcomed and embraced by MCOs and physicians in their efforts to seek new and innovative ways to improve the care of patients with chronic illnesses."

The Appraise Hemoglobin A1c test allows physicians to monitor a patient's average blood glucose level over the previous two to three months. Keeping these levels within acceptable limits can delay or prevent serious problems that may affect eyes, kidneys, heart and nerves by up to 60 percent. The Appraise Microalbumin test enables early detection of problems associated with eyes and nerves. Early detection and control of both of these levels maximizes the ability of the physician to effectively care for the patient.

"Having this critical information prior to an appointment means the physician and patient can both make informed decisions regarding treatment," adds Dr. Miles. "In the past, it's been virtually impossible to obtain lab results prior to the patient's appointment, which delays important treatment options until a later date."

ChoicePoint Health Systems and Osborn Group are subsidiaries of ChoicePoint Inc. (NYSE:CPS), the leading provider of decision-making intelligence to businesses, individuals and government agencies. Through the identification, retrieval, storage, analysis and delivery of data, the company serves the information needs of the property and casualty insurance market, the life and health market, and the business and government markets, including Fortune 1000 corporations, asset-based lenders and professional service providers, and federal, state and local governments. ChoicePoint is committed to the responsible use of information and the protection of personal privacy as fundamental planks of the Company's business model.

For more information about ChoicePoint, visit www.choicepoint.net. For more information on Appraise, contact ChoicePoint Health Systems at 1-888-593-2747.

ChoicePoint and Appraise are trademarks of ChoicePoint Inc.