ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 18, 2006--The Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology (CCHIT(SM)) today announced that McKesson Corporation (NYSE:MCK) is CCHIT Certified(SM) for its product, Horizon Ambulatory Care(TM) Release 9.4, and meets CCHIT ambulatory electronic health record (EHR) criteria for 2006. Ambulatory EHRs are designed for physician offices and clinics where most Americans get their healthcare. CCHIT is the recognized authority in the United States for certifying EHR products -- an independent, nonprofit, public/private organization that sets the benchmark for healthcare information technology.

As a CCHIT Certified product, Horizon Ambulatory Care has been tested and passed inspection of 100 percent of a comprehensive set of criteria for:

    --  Functionality (ability to create and manage electronic records
        for all patients, as well as automating workflow in a
        physician's office),

    --  Interoperability (ability to receive and send electronic data
        to other entities such as laboratories), and

    --  Security (ability to keep patients' information safe).

The CCHIT Certified mark -- a "seal of approval" for EHR products -- provides the first consensus-based, consistent benchmark for ambulatory products. By looking to products with the CCHIT Certified seal, physicians and other providers can be assured they are making a reliable investment, and insurers and other payors know the products meet expected industry standards.

"Physicians who purchase certified products have the assurance that they have been reviewed by a panel of judges, including practicing physicians, and that they are being evaluated against standards set by professionals in the field and successfully piloted with products from large and small companies," said Mark Leavitt, M.D., Ph.D., chair, CCHIT. "The quality and safety of EHR products can now be measured using certification criteria that were developed specifically for that purpose."

Horizon Ambulatory Care(TM) is a Web-based ambulatory EHR solution that automates the clinical functions of a group practice: e-prescribing, diagnostic order entry, results reporting, encounter documentation and clinical workflow management. It is designed to speed technology adoption by offering providers the flexibility to install the technology in a customized, modular approach. Horizon Ambulatory Care helps to enable continuity of care across both inpatient and outpatient settings.

"McKesson is proud to be among the first vendors to achieve CCHIT certification," said Pamela Pure, president of McKesson Provider Technologies. "We believe that receiving the CCHIT Certified seal is validation of McKesson's leadership in the ambulatory market and reflects our deep understanding of what's required to help physicians deliver safer care while improving the efficiency of their practices. Over the past six months, customers representing more than 4,000 physicians have selected our ambulatory EHR, clearly demonstrating the growing adoption of these systems in the marketplace."

The goals of CCHIT product certification are to reduce the risk of HIT investment by physicians and other providers; ensure interoperability of HIT products; enhance the availability of HIT adoption incentives from purchasers and payors; and protect the privacy of personal health information.

CCHIT's certification compliance criteria and its design for a certification inspection process have been thoroughly researched, taking into account the state of the art of EHRs and available standards, and comparing certification processes in other industries and other countries. The inspection process is based on real-life medical scenarios designed to test products rigorously against the clinical needs of providers and the quality and safety needs of healthcare consumers and payors. One script, for example, recreates a scenario of an elderly man with poorly controlled diabetes, hypertension and other chronic conditions in order to test EHR functions such as potential adverse drug reactions, disease management and treatment plans.

About McKesson

McKesson Corporation, currently ranked 16th on the FORTUNE 500, is a healthcare services and information technology company dedicated to helping its customers deliver high-quality healthcare by reducing costs, streamlining processes, and improving the quality and safety of patient care. Over the course of its 173-year history, McKesson has grown by providing pharmaceutical and medical-surgical supply management across the spectrum of care; healthcare information technology for hospitals, physicians, homecare, and payors; hospital and retail pharmacy automation; and services for manufacturers and payors designed to improve outcomes for patients. For more information: www.mckesson.com.

About CCHIT

CCHIT was founded in 2004 with support from three leading industry associations in healthcare information management and technology -- The American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA), the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) and The National Alliance for Health Information Technology (Alliance). In September 2005, CCHIT was awarded a contract by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to develop, create prototypes for, and evaluate the certification criteria and inspection process for EHRs and the networks through which they interoperate. More information on CCHIT and a list of CCHIT Certified products is available at www.cchit.org.

    CONTACT: McKesson
             James Larkin, 415-983-8736
             james.larkin@mckesson.com
              or
             CCHIT
             C. Sue Reber, 503-703-0813
             sreber@cchit.org

    SOURCE: McKesson Corporation