BOCA RATON, Fla., November 15, 2006 -- LexisNexis® Risk & Information Analytics Group announced today that it has expanded the capabilities of the Special Investigation Resource and Intelligence System (SIRIS) application, a health care information-sharing tool designed to enhance the industry’s ability to combat health care abuse and fraud. The enhancement is the result of collaboration between LexisNexis Risk & Information Analytics Group and industry professionals and the National Health Care Anti-Fraud Association (NHCAA). The NHCAA’s mission is to serve and protect the public interest by increasing awareness and improving the prevention, detection, investigation and civil and criminal prosecution of health care fraud. The LexisNexis Risk & Information Analytics Group delivers actionable intelligence to help customers confidently make critical decisions faster.

“We consistently seek ways to reaffirm our commitment to the health care industry and consumers,” said John Benson, Vice President of Health Care Solutions for LexisNexis Risk & Information Analytics Group. “We are excited to be part of the solution tackling the ever-growing problem of health care fraud by continuing our partnership with the NHCAA and by improving the functionality and features of the SIRIS application.”

Industry statistics show that health care fraud has become an increasingly serious problem costing $60 billion of America’s $2.0 trillion annual health care cost. Health care spending in the U.S. is nearly five times that of defense and three times that of education. Fraud results in growing consumer costs incurred in the form of increased premiums, co-pays and deductibles.

“Over the past year, LexisNexis has been an important contributor in helping our organization and members find ways to combat health care fraud,” said Louis Saccoccio, NHCAA. “Their efforts have set an impressive standard for the solution of problems in our industry.”

Designed to help health care industry professionals mitigate risk, SIRIS provides ways to share critical information regarding potentially fraudulent health cases. As the only database of its kind, the data shared is rich with useful descriptions of health care fraud schemes, patterns, investigations and trends, all of which can be shared with a variety of law enforcement agencies for reporting and prosecution.

SIRIS’s new administrative functionality is a self-service tool for the management of login accounts, passwords, system access, record transfer and activity reports. Further, users can now change record contacts within their own member organization. Application enhancements include: a link to the HHS-OIG Exclusion web site; the ability to add multiple SSNs, TIN/FEINs to a SIRIS record; the addition of Activity and Revision History to Schemes; Related Records and Schemes can be hyperlinked on the Schemes page and the ability to search common data fields in Records and Schemes simultaneously.

SIRIS users who subscribe to Accurint® for Health Care have the ability to search on LexisNexis® Provider License and Provider Sanction datasets. Additionally, a SIRIS user has the ability to attach Provider License and Provider Sanction Reports to a SIRIS record. This capability enriches the record for the investigator.

The enhanced SIRIS application will debut to The National Health Care Anti-Fraud Association (NHCAA) Membership during the Institute for Health Care Fraud Prevention’s Annual Training Conference November 14-17 in Marco Island, Florida. The demonstration of SIRIS Admin will be held on November 15 at 9:30 am.

The conference, sponsored by the NHCAA Institute for Health Care Fraud Prevention, is expected to draw more than 1,000 health care and disability anti-fraud professionals spanning numerous sectors within the healthcare industry including those focused on health insurance plans, disability insurance, government health programs and law enforcement. This year’s conference marks the third anniversary of the LexisNexis alliance with the NHCAA.

EDITOR’S NOTE: John Benson will lead two sessions focusing on the company’s approach to solving issues plaguing the health care industry. Benson is available for in-person interviews with journalists attending the NHCAA Annual Training Conference.

About NHCAA:

Founded in 1985 by several private health insurers and federal and state law enforcement officials, The National Health Care Anti-Fraud Association (NHCAA) is a unique issues-based non-profit organization comprised of private and public sector organizations and individuals who combat fraud in the nation’s health care system. NHCAA’s mission is to serve and protect the public interest by increasing awareness and improving the detection, investigation, prevention and civil and criminal prosecution of health care fraud.

NHCAA pursues its mission by maintaining a strong private-public partnership and information-sharing capabilities, providing unparalleled learning and training opportunities through the NHCAA Institute, recognizing professional specialization through accreditation and by serving as a resource to government, industry and the media. For information regarding NHCAA Corporate membership and benefits, please contact Leigh McKenna, Director of Member Services, lmckenna@nhcaa.org.

About LexisNexis

LexisNexis® (www.lexisnexis.com) is a leading provider of information and services solutions, including its flagship Web-based Lexis® and Nexis® research services, to a wide range of professionals in the legal, risk management, corporate, government, law enforcement, accounting and academic markets. A member of Reed Elsevier Group plc (NYSE: ENL; NYSE: RUK) (www.reedelsevier.com), LexisNexis serves customers in 100 countries with 13,000 employees worldwide.

About LexisNexis® Risk & Information Analytics Group

LexisNexis Risk & Information Analytics Group is a natural extension of the core competencies and technologies proven in the LexisNexis online products from the past 30 years. The LexisNexis Risk & Information Analytics Group builds on the LexisNexis tradition as a trusted provider and custodian of quality information, and leverages new cutting-edge technology, unique data and advanced scoring analytics to create total solutions to address client needs.

LexisNexis Risk & Information Analytics Group is specifically designed to serve the multi-billion dollar risk information industry which is comprised of professionals and organizations such as law enforcement, government agencies, financial services firms, collection agencies, insurance and health care providers, hiring managers, and other professionals.

Contacts 
LexisNexis Risk & Information Analytics Group
Kristina Grammatico, 561-999-3981
Kristina.grammatico@lexisnexis.com