Health Net Expands Relationship with MedAvant for Savings on Out-of-Network Health Claims

MedAvant Healthcare Solutions (MedAvant) (NASDAQ:PILL), a leader in healthcare technology and transaction services, today announced the expansion of its relationship with Health Net, Inc. (NYSE:HNT), among the nation's largest publicly traded managed health care companies, to reduce out-of-network medical claims costs via MedAvant's National Preferred Provider Network (NPPN(TM)). The term of the agreement is three years. MedAvant provides managed health care companies with access to 3,650 acute-care hospitals, 65,000 ancillary facilities and more than 450,000 physicians through NPPN. MedAvant's comprehensive cost containment solutions save payers approximately $300 million per year. Expected to reach full production with Health Net's California, Arizona and Oregon health plans in the third quarter, Health Net of the Northeast's business has been in operation with NPPN since November 2005.

MedAvant began working with Health Net, Inc. in the early 1990's to deliver EDI claims, encounters, Real-Time eligibility and ERA transactions, and has delivered claims repricing solutions to Health Net since 2002. The expanded agreement, already in its first phase of production for Health Net of the Northeast, offers Health Net's Northeast, California, Arizona and Oregon health plans access to NPPN for out-of-network claim savings. Health Net can submit out-of-network claims to NPPN for an additional opportunity to save on medical claims costs. "In our first month of production with NPPN at our Northeast health plan, we experienced significant savings in out-of-network claims costs," said Joanne Steffen, vice president of National Contracting with Health Net.

"This partnership speaks directly to our commitment to bring greater efficiencies to the payer community through our national PPO network and national clearinghouse, while focusing on reducing the costs of healthcare for all our clients," said John Lettko, CEO of MedAvant. "We're thrilled to expand our relationship with Health Net."