Phase 2 Consulting to Provide Management and Consultation for Major Co

    Business Editors/Healthcare Editors

    SALT LAKE CITY, Utah--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 3, 2005--Phase 2 Consulting, a division of RehabCare Group, Inc. (NYSE:RHB), has announced a 12-month agreement with Maricopa County Correctional Health Services (CHS) to provide management and consultation. CHS provides a continuum of healthcare services to the more than 8,500 inmates in Maricopa County, AZ, the fourth largest jail system in the United States, including primary, specialty, maternity, psychiatric and pediatric care; inpatient infirmary; pharmaceuticals and health promotion and education.
    Under terms of the agreement, Phase 2 Consulting, a healthcare management and economic consulting firm based in Salt Lake City, UT, will manage operations of the healthcare delivery system in Maricopa County's six existing jails, as well as plan and develop services for two new facilities scheduled to open in January. In addition, Phase 2 will provide consultation on staffing solutions, employee relations, organizational design, pharmacy acquisition and distribution programs, financial reporting and management, and improvements in the continuum of care for the inmate population.
    Mark Ellsworth, Health Administrator of CHS, says Phase 2 was selected after an extensive search and review of qualified firms across the country. "We were impressed by Phase 2's broad healthcare perspective, management turnaround expertise and experience in correctional health system design," he says. Ellsworth points to Phase 2's prior work with the Salt Lake County Jail, which was named the NCCHC's (National Commission on Correctional Health Care) Facility of the Year in 2002, as an example of the company's proven abilities.
    "The delivery of healthcare services in the correctional systems has distinct challenges, from unique governing regulations to increased cost containment expectations," says Howard Salmon, a Phase 2 partner, who will serve as Project Manager and Interim Chief Executive Officer of CHS for the duration of the agreement. "We have experience with the many regulatory, clinical, ethical and administrative aspects of correctional healthcare and look forward to applying this knowledge at CHS to achieve greater productivity in an enhanced healthcare delivery program."
    Another key member of the management team, Todd Wilcox, M.D., a Phase 2 associate, who will serve as Medical Director for CHS, says improving the effectiveness of the CHS healthcare continuum is a primary objective. "We literally follow patients through the system to experience the current process and determine the optimum mix of internal and external programs and services. It's a method that works well for us when consulting clients with multiple healthcare delivery settings."
    Phase 2 Consulting, with offices in Salt Lake City and Austin, TX, specializes in strategic planning, revenue enhancement, clinical operations and productivity improvement, physician practice management, managed care contracting, correctional healthcare and online patient accounts.
    Phase 2 Consulting is a division of RehabCare, a leading provider of program management services in conjunction with more than 800 hospitals and skilled nursing facilities in 39 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.
    More information on Phase 2 Consulting can be found on the World Wide Web at http://www.phase2consulting.com.

--30--MC/na*

CONTACT: RehabCare Group, Inc. David Totaro, 314-659-2115 http://www.phase2consulting.com

KEYWORD: ARIZONA UTAH TEXAS MISSOURI INDUSTRY KEYWORD: PHARMACEUTICAL MEDICAL DEVICES MEDICAL GOVERNMENT INSURANCE PRODUCT MARKETING AGREEMENTS SOURCE: RehabCare Group, Inc.

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