Michael Reese Hospital selects Omnicell.com for automated supply procurement

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Chicago hospital to integrate point-of-use dispensing with on-line purchasing

PALO ALTO, Calif. — Oct. 29,1999 — Omnicell.com announced today that Michael Reese Hospital, Chicago, IL, has signed a subscription to Omnicell.com’s automated requisition and procurement service, OmniBuyer. As a charter member, Michael Reese Hospital will initially provide Omnicell.com with its supplier information to fully stock its automated dispensing cabinets. OmniBuyer is an automated procurement system powered by Commerce One (NASDAQ:CMRC), a leading provider of e-commerce solutions.

Michael Reese Hospital will use OmniBuyer to streamline its purchasing process, reduce operational costs and enable more strategic procurement planning. In addition to medical supplies and equipment, Michael Reese Hospital will be able to purchase a broad range of goods and services from suppliers currently transacting business through Commerce One’s MarketSite, the premier business-to-business marketplace portal. Omnicell.com’s system, unlike any other in the industry today, allows healthcare facilities to automatically reorder stock from point-of-use dispensing systems when supplies hit the reorder point.

"E-commerce allows us to communicate with vendors electronically,” said John A. Moreno, director of resource and materials management, Michael Reese Hospital.” Currently we are using archaic practices, such as manually transcribing orders and faxing them to the appropriate vendor to order our supplies. We do not have the time to investigate different product offerings because we have different agreements with hundreds of vendors. Omnicell.com delivers the power to maintain front-line negotiating and tracking of all items purchased. It also allows internal customers, such as our radiology department, real-time access to the products.”

"Many healthcare institutions already have negotiated contracts with suppliers,” said Shelly Asher, president and chief executive officer of Omnicell.com. “Our system is different in that it honors agreements with vendors, specific to the provider. Omnicell.com’s system is the only one that provides this confidential commerce experience as well as a faster, easier way to procure supplies and services. We are excited about having Michael Reese Hospital as yet another key member of the Omnicell.com Healthcare Network.”

Omnicell.com recently announced a strategic alliance with Commerce One to create an online vertical trading community for the healthcare industry. Omnicell.com is an affiliate of Commerce One’s Global Trading Web of regional and vertical marketplace portals for business-to-business electronic commerce.

About Omnicell.com

Established in 1992, Omnicell.com enables healthcare organizations to gain control over their supply chains by providing business-to-business e-commerce services, automated supply and pharmacy product dispensing at the point of use, automated decision support, and an online community for healthcare professionals. Today, the Omnicell.com Healthcare Network boasts over 1,200 customer accounts worldwide, 1,000 interfaces to healthcare information systems and more than 150,000 system users. For more information, go to www.omnicell.com.

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