NEW YORK, Oct. 10, 2001 — Pfizer, IBM and Microsoft today announced the launch of Amicore, a newly-formed independent software and services company providing workflow and connectivity solutions to office-based physicians. Amicores focus will be to reduce the administrative workload and paperwork for physicians, allowing them to dedicate more time toward their mission of providing quality patient care.
Amicore announced that it has named Jim Fitzsimmons as President and Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Fitzsimmons, a healthcare technology veteran and entrepreneur, founded and successfully led three technology companies, including two exclusively focused on the healthcare industry.
Amicore also announced the acquisition of the PenChart Corporation, a Connecticut-based healthcare application developer, to form the core of the companys initial product offering and accelerate its product development strategy.
Amicore will begin operations immediately and has already begun to apply the industry knowledge, expertise and technology of Pfizer, IBM, and Microsoft. The company, with its independent sales, marketing and product development staff, has its current headquarters in New York City.
“Pfizer has clearly seen the tremendous administrative burden faced by physicians and their need for solutions to improve their business practices and cut down on paperwork so that they can focus more time on practicing medicine,”
said Peter Brandt, Senior Vice President of Finance, Planning and Business Development for Pfizer.
“We are pleased to work with IBM and Microsoft and believe that Amicore provides a complete technology solution for the practicing physician. We are particularly excited to have a solid CEO such as Jim Fitzsimmons on board a leader with an unusually broad health care and technology experience and a strong entrepreneurial background.”
A recent customer study showed that PenChart software almost entirely eliminated the cost of filing and retrieving paper medical records and reduced the cost of ordering prescription refills and of transcription services by over 80 percent. Other significant cost and quality benefits include more efficient patient visits, increased accuracy in coding for billing and reimbursement, ready access to patient information from any location, better compliance with third-party documentation requirements, and a decreased number of phone calls and external communications.
Russell J. Ricci, M.D., General Manager IBM Global Healthcare, said:
“Physicians will be attracted to Amicore for two key reasons. First, Amicore is backed by Pfizer, IBM, and Microsoft — each with core strengths and a recognized brand. Second, Amicore will use IBMs Global Services for installation and service and to provide low-cost, reliable IBM Web-hosting with full security and privacy of electronic files.”
“Microsoft is committed to helping the healthcare industry and its providers reduce paperwork and streamline the practice of medicine,”
said David Lubinski, Public Sector and Healthcare general manager, Enterprise Sales and Industry Group at Microsoft.
“The Microsoft® .Net technology platform will enable physicians to practice medicine any time, any place, on any device. In selecting Jim Fitzsimmons as Amicores CEO, we believe we have a very impressive leader with a focused strategy for the companys long-term growth.”
Jim Fitzsimmons, Amicores President and CEO, said:
“I am delighted to have the opportunity to lead Amicore beyond the strong foundation already established by these three world-class companies. I am ready to move forward in a responsible and pragmatic way to build this company and help physicians better manage the administrative burdens they currently face.”
Jim Fitzsimmons
Mr. Fitzsimmons is a healthcare technology veteran, a successful entrepreneur and executive. He founded and successfully led three different technology companies, including two healthcare companies. One of his companies, Phyve, pioneered the concept of delivering secure clinical applications over the Internet, and won many awards, including
“Best in Show”
at the annual Healthcare Industry Management System Society conference. Fitzsimmons also has extensive strategic, general management and financial experience at world-class organizations including: strategy consultant with Booz, Allen & Hamilton, assistant controller with PepsiCo Inc. and senior vice president of corporate planning with PaineWebber Group. Mr. Fitzsimmons is a graduate of Harvard and earned his MBA from the University of Chicago.
Amicore Practice Suite
Amicore, through its own independent sales force, will focus on the needs of the 70 percent of the doctors in the U.S. who work in office-based practices, particularly those in smaller group practices. The Amicore Practice Suite, based on state-of-the-art clinical workflow software developed by the PenChart Corporation, uses an electronic patient record to automate and streamline clinical workflow. The Amicore Practice Suite is a complete system that automates and unifies the administrative, clinical and financial functions in the medical office and connects the practice to payers, laboratories, pharmacies, patients and other providers. The product utilizes wireless pen tablet PCs as well as other devices and runs on the Microsoft Windows®
platform. Microsoft .Net technology will enable Amicore to offer physicians critical data any time, any place using a pen tablet PC or other smart mobile devices.
In the future, physicians will have the option of using the Amicore Practice Suite as part of a low-cost Application Service Provider offering. Clinical and office data can reside at a highly secure IBM eServer* and be accessible with full privacy over the Internet. The PenChart®
system is already in use today by hundreds of physicians and has generated documented cost savings.
Amicores goal is to demonstrate how the Amicore Practice Suite can improve quality of care while enriching and empowering the practicing physician. IBM Global Services will work with Amicore customers to make installations as quickly as possible and with the least disruption to physicians daily routines.
“We have worked hard to develop a program that physicians actually use and find extremely helpful in their daily clinical routine,”
said Robert T. McGovern, founder of the PenChart Corporation.
“Becoming part of Amicore means our solutions will be available to a much broader range of customers.”
“Doctors face a terrible time squeeze,”
said Jim Fitzsimmons, CEO of Amicore.
“They spend so much time dealing with paper-based healthcare systems and administrative details that they cant focus on the important things, including patient care. In my experience, physicians will adopt technological innovation if it fits their current practice workflow, demonstrates immediate benefits and is reasonably priced. I am excited at the opportunity to lead Amicore because I believe we offer low-cost and easy-to-use technology that will let doctors concentrate on whats most important providing quality medical care.”
“The Amicore Practice Suite helps me run our practice like a business. We can now deliver better patient care and yet decrease our overhead at the same time,”
said Henry Borkowski, M.D., Cardiology Associates of Waterbury (Connecticut).
”
Amicores Clinical Suite has helped us reduce the cost of transcriptions and collating medical records. We have actually increased the number of providers and patients in the practice while decreasing the number of transcribers. With Amicore, I have the pleasure of delivering better care.”
About Amicore
Amicore is a privately-held physician software and services company that enriches and empowers office-based physicians. Amicore helps doctors reduce their administrative workload and focus on the mission of providing quality patient care. The Amicore Practice Suite features automated clinical workflow software, integrated billing functions and wireless handheld computers. Its products achieve documented reductions in administrative costs and improved practice revenues. For more information about Amicore please visit http://www.amicore.com/ or call 1-800-526-6748.
About Pfizer
Founded in 1849, Pfizer Inc discovers, develops, manufactures and markets leading prescription medicines and healthcare solutions, for humans and animals, and many of the world’s best-known consumer products. Pfizer had global revenues of $29.6 billion in 2000. Pfizer plans to invest approximately $5 billion in research and development in 2001. For more information about Pfizer, visit www.pfizer.com
About IBM
IBM is the worlds largest technology provider (hardware, software and services) with revenues in 2000 of more than $88 billion and is the worldwide leader in e-business solutions. The company has more than 300,000 employees and does business in more than 160 countries. IBM is focused on delivering customized, flexible and scalable Internet solutions for companies of all sizes. For more information about IBM, visit www.ibm.com
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft is the worldwide leader in software, services and Internet technologies for personal and business computing. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to empower people through great software — any time, any place and on any device. For more information about Microsoft, visit www.microsoft.com
Microsoft and Windows are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries. The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
The IBM eServer brand consists of the established IBM e-business logo with the following descriptive term “server” following it.
