CHARLOTTE, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 5, 2006--The Premier Inc.
healthcare alliance has named SSM Health Care and Phoenix Textile Corp., both of St. Louis, Mo., as winners of the 2006 Premier Diversity Recognition Award for efforts to promote the use of minority, women, veteran and small businesses.

One of the largest group purchasing organizations in the country, Premier is committed to the growth and success of diversity suppliers. As part of its best-in-class supplier diversity initiatives, Premier's Supplier Diversity Committee established the annual award to recognize a member hospital and a contracted supplier for efforts to purchase goods and services from Premier contracted diverse suppliers and to develop procurement strategies to align with the communities served.

The award is presented at Premier's annual Breakthroughs Conference and Exhibition, which drew approximately 3,000 healthcare system and supplier attendees to Orlando from June 20-23 this year.

Harriet Michel, president of the National Minority Supplier Development Council, was on hand to announce the award winners, along with Susan DeVore, president of Premier Purchasing Partners.

"It's important for everyone in healthcare that we have a robust community of diverse suppliers serving our industry," DeVore said. "Competition helps hold down the cost of healthcare supplies, so doing business with diverse suppliers is not only the right thing to do, it's good for business and for patients."

The member award identifies Premier member hospitals and health systems that have established active programs to evaluate and support minority, women-owned, and veteran-owned contracted suppliers available through the Premier contract portfolio. The award considers members that have established programs to encourage the development of diverse suppliers in their own community.

"This award is yet another confirmation that we are moving in the right direction with our diversity strategic goals," said Yvonne Tisdel, SSM corporate vice president for Human Resources and System Diversity. "It is because of the commitment of SSM leadership that we are able to make a difference."

Six other Premier members received honorable mentions for their programs to support supplier diversity: Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH; Detroit Medical Center, Detroit, MI; Henry Ford Health System, Detroit, MI; North Broward Hospital, Ft. Lauderdale, FL; TriHealth, Inc., Cincinnati, OH; and Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN.

The supplier award for diversity recognizes Premier contracted suppliers that support efforts to increase purchases from diverse suppliers and provide economic development opportunities for communities throughout the U.S.

Premier contracted suppliers receiving honorable mentions include American Medical Depot, Opa Locka, FL; Coffee, Tea and Me, Woodbridge, IL; Kerma Medical Products, Portsmouth, VA; LSL Industries, Chicago, IL; Medgluv, Inc., Ft. Lauderdale, FL; Pharmed Group Corp., Miami, FL; and Print Media, Miami, FL.

"All of these organizations realize the value of this initiative and its positive impact," said Gleatha Glispie, national director of Premier's supplier diversity initiative. "Each has recognized and embraced supplier diversity as an essential strategy for managing product costs and creating fair market conditions for all. Access to diversity suppliers expands choice and strengthens the availability of quality products."

As of April 2006, Premier has 210 diverse suppliers on contract: 29 minority business enterprises with total purchases of $41 million; 15 women business enterprises with $7.6 million in purchases; 164 small business enterprises with $790 million in purchases; and two veteran-owned businesses, a recently added classification, with $310,000 in purchases.

About SSM Health Care

Sponsored by the Franciscan Sisters of Mary and based in St. Louis, Mo., SSM Health Care (SSMHC) is one of the largest Catholic health systems in the country and the first health care recipient of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. It owns, manages and is affiliated with 20 acute care hospitals and two nursing homes in Missouri, Illinois, Wisconsin and Oklahoma. Nearly 5,000 affiliated physicians and 23,500 employees work together to provide a wide range of services that are compassionate, holistic and of high quality.

Health-related businesses include information systems, home care and support services such as supply chain management and clinical engineering as well as an ownership interest in Dean Health Insurance, Inc., one of Wisconsin's largest health maintenance organizations.

About Phoenix Textile Corp.

Phoenix Textile Corporation is a major, national healthcare textile distributor doing business in both the acute and extended care marketplace since 1983. Phoenix Textile provides a wide array of products and services to support healthcare delivery through quality products and consultative services. Phoenix Textile, with headquarters in St. Louis, Missouri, is an award winning S.B.A. Certified Woman Owned Small Business supplier and diversity vendor to Premier Purchasing Partners. For more information, visit www.phoenixtextile.com.

About Premier, Inc.

Premier, Inc., the leader in helping hospitals accelerate performance on both clinical outcomes and supply chain costs, is a healthcare alliance entirely owned by more than 200 of the nation's leading not-for-profit hospitals and healthcare systems. These organizations operate or are affiliated with nearly 1,500 hospitals and more than 38,500 other healthcare sites. Headquartered in San Diego, Premier has offices in Charlotte, NC, and Washington, DC. For more information, visit www.premierinc.com.

Copyright Business Wire 2006

Premier, Inc.

Premier, Inc.

Serving 1,700 hospitals and almost 45,000 other healthcare sites, Premier Inc. is the largest healthcare alliance in the United States dedicated to improving patient outcomes while safely reducing the cost of care. Owned by not-for-profit hospitals, Premier operates the nation's largest healthcare purchasing network, the most comprehensive repository of hospital clinical and financial information and one of the largest policy-holder owned, hospital professional liability risk-retention groups in healthcare. Headquartered in San Diego, Premier has offices in Charlotte, N.C. and Washington.

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