NASHVILLE, Tenn. - February 12, 2008

Premerus Reduces Medical Misdiagnoses, Provides Americans with Access to Experienced, Qualified US-based Diagnosticians

Medical specialists in the relevant body part or organ system are matched to unique clinical needs of each patient - increasing diagnostic accuracy and reducing costs.

Premerus (www.premerus.com) represents a new healthcare paradigm to address the epidemic of medical misdiagnosis in America, focusing on more accurate diagnoses, which can lead to better medical outcomes and lower costs for consumers and benefits payers. The nation's only company dedicated to advancing clinical accuracy through diagnostic excellence, Premerus uses proprietary telemedicine technology to transmit CT, MRI scans and other diagnostic studies to qualified medical specialists - regardless of where they are located in the United States.

"The time is right for innovation that improves the accuracy of diagnosis," says Curt Thorne, chief executive officer of Premerus, which has spent five years developing this unique approach. "Clinical research documents an alarming rate of error at the earliest phase of medical care - the diagnosis. Premerus tackles this issue, with confidence that this model can impact the quality of health care outcomes for many Americans in ways that are clear and measurable."

Thorne cites a December 2007 study in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute (December 2007; 99:1854-1863) where researchers found that half the doctors missed at least 21 percent of cancers present.

"Medical errors happen all the time," he continues. "To get the right care, patients first need an accurate diagnosis-and that is the core value of Premerus."

An example of diagnostic error involves Wendy Kova (N.J.), a sixty-three-year old breast cancer survivor for more than six years. After a routine checkup last fall, her doctors told her that the cancer had metastasized to her lung and would require additional tests and biopsies. After two months of multiple CT scans and painful procedures along with the emotional suffering and fear that she and her loved ones felt, doctors reported that the "nodule" had disappeared and accurately concluded that the condition was simply an infection. But not before leaving the Kova family with crippling medical expenses as well.

If Kova had the benefits of Premerus, her study would have been transmitted to a lung diagnostic specialist, increasing the likelihood of an accurate initial diagnosis and obviating the need for further testing. For Ms. Kova's diagnostic radiology exam, here is how Premerus would have worked:

1. She would have gone to a local imaging center or hospital facility in the Premerus Platform, and the diagnostic imaging would be performed in the usual manner.
2. Using telemedicine, the CT study would be digitally transmitted to an expert radiologist who specializes in reading chest CT and diagnosing lung cancer.
   Premerus matches the specific patient needs with a Certified Premerus Expert who specializes in the relevant body part, disease state and diagnostic modality.
   Because Certified Premerus Experts can be based anywhere in the United States, the Premerus technology eliminates geographic barriers to accessing highly specialized doctors.
3. Written reports and findings would be sent to Kova's ordering physician.

"The results of misdiagnosis can be a matter of life and death," emphasizes Gregg Allen, M.D., chief medical officer of Premerus. "For example, a Mayo Clinic autopsy study found that 26 percent of the time a major diagnosis was missed, and the researchers indicated that the right diagnosis could possibly have prevented death." (Source: Mayo Clinic Proceedings 2000; 75:562-567.) "Frequently, the wrong treatment not only fails to help the patient, but also carries the risk of side-effects that may be worse than the original problem."

He notes that most people do not realize how often they could be getting the wrong diagnosis, adding, "Premerus is founded upon the principle that diagnostic accuracy will do more to improve patient outcomes, enhance quality of care and reduce costs than any other possible intervention."

Dr. Allen points to a compelling body of evidence, including research published in 2005 that studied 209 reading radiologists who had interpreted more than one million mammography studies over a five-year period. In this large scale study, researchers found that some physicians missed 71 percent of the actual cancers (Source: Journal of the National Cancer Institute, Vol. 97, No 5, March 2005).

"By effectively reducing diagnostic error rates, Premerus can significantly improve health care outcomes for Americans," he adds. "Not everyone recognizes that advancements in diagnostic technology bring with them a need for more knowledge on behalf of doctors who are making actual diagnoses. Premerus is designed to take a methodical approach to determining which physicians actually get better outcomes for specific clinical scenarios. Leveraging technology, it then accesses these doctors from all parts of the country, matching the appropriate physician to the individual patient's need."

Supporting the Premerus concept, Edward Coleman, M.D., professor and vice chairman of the department of radiology, Duke University Medical Center, says, "Premerus is founded upon the fundamental fact that for specific medical problems, experienced specialists provide more accurate diagnoses and better outcomes than do generalists.  In the past three decades, there has been a great deal of research demonstrating the relationship between volume and patient outcome for a variety of medical conditions and procedures."

He concludes that an accurate diagnosis mitigates downstream expenditures and minimizes emotional distress for patients that result from an inaccurate diagnosis, adding, "An early, accurate diagnosis provides the best prognosis for the patient."

About Premerus
Premerus is the industry's first and only diagnostic management company, representing a new healthcare paradigm: the coordinated focus of resources, expertise and technology to improve the accuracy of diagnosis. Premerus is dedicated to advancing clinical accuracy through diagnostic excellence. Visit www.premerus.com.