“We are delighted these respected individuals have joined our Advisory Board,” said Gary Kolbeck, president of LodgeNet Healthcare. “Not only are they extremely qualified, but their accomplishments as clinicians, government officials, healthcare visionaries, and thought leaders make them perfect advisors. They will offer valuable insights and information to help our management team make strategic decisions and develop patient engagement solutions that will help providers improve outcomes and reduce costs while driving us to the next level of success and growth.”

The Board’s charter members are:

• Sachin H. Jain, M.D., M.B.A. (Chair)
• Garth Graham, M.D., M.P.H., F.A.C.P.
• David I. Rosenthal, M.D.
• Christopher Lee Roy, M.D.
• Thomas Tsang, M.D., M.P.H., F.A.C.P.
• Dianne J. Willer-Sly, D.N.P., R.N., C.N.P., B.C.

“LodgeNet Healthcare is recognized as an innovative leader in developing the
evidence-based, customizable tools that enable hospitals to engage patients and
their families before, during and after hospitalization, converting them from passive
bystanders into knowledgeable participants in their care,” explained Jain. “Members
of the Advisory Board are excited about the opportunity to support LodgeNet
Healthcare’s mission in helping hospitals achieve the patient engagement
objectives necessary for success within a transformed, performance-based
payment system that is increasingly tied to care coordination, improved outcomes,
improved patient experience and decreased cost of care delivery.”

Sachin H. Jain, M.D., M.B.A. – Jain is a clinical fellow in Medicine at Harvard Medical School/Brigham and Women’s Hospital and a senior institute associate at the Harvard Business School Institute for Strategy and Competitiveness. Before that he was senior advisor to Donald M. Berwick, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), where he played a key role in launching the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation. Jain was also special assistant at the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC). He received the Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans and was named a John Kenneth Galbraith Scholar. Jain has authored more than 50 articles on healthcare delivery innovation and healthcare reform in addition to co-authoring a book titled, The Soul of a Doctor. He holds an Artium Baccalaureatus degree in Government from Harvard University; Master of Business Administration degree from Harvard Business School; and Doctor of Medicine degree from Harvard Medical School.

Garth Graham, M.D., M.P.H., F.A.C.P. – Graham is the assistant dean for health policy and the chief of the section of health services research at the University of Florida College of Medicine. Prior to these positions, he served as the chairman of the National Health Information Technology Collaborative for the Underserved and the deputy assistant secretary for minority health in the Office of Minority Health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the executive director of the HHS Council of Public Health Disparities. A recognized leader in reducing health disparities, he has published numerous articles in journals including the Journal of the American Medical Association and Health Affairs. He was also a White House Fellow, serving as a special assistant to the HHS Secretary. Graham has won numerous awards, including the Inaugural Credo Award from the American College of Cardiology, 20 People Who Make Healthcare Better from HealthLeaders magazine, and Kaiser Permanente’s Future Thought Leaders in Healthcare. He has a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from Florida International University, graduated cum laude from the Yale School of Medicine and received a Medical degree in Public Health from the Yale School of Epidemiology and Public Health.

David I. Rosenthal, M.D. – Rosenthal is a primary care physician currently working with a patient aligned care team (PACT) for underserved, homeless veterans and is on faculty at the Yale University School of Medicine at the West Haven Veterans Administration Medical Center in West Haven, CT. A former clinical fellow in medicine at Harvard Medical School/Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Aspen Health Forum Fellow and IDEO Cambridge Physician-in-Residence, Rosenthal is interested in the intersection of medicine, video technology, health information technology (IT) and use of narrative storytelling in medicine. He serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Participatory Medicine. He pursued Visual and Environmental studies at Harvard University, graduating magna cum laude, and worked as a documentary filmmaker and media technician prior to becoming a physician. He earned his Doctor of Medicine from Northwestern University in Chicago.

Christopher Lee Roy, M.D. – Roy is a co-founder and medical director of the Hospitalist Service at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, which is part of Partners HealthCare, a Boston-based not-for-profit, integrated health system. In this role, he directs a team of 70 physicians and 8 physician assistants, teaches medical students and residents, leads quality improvement initiatives, and researches patient safety issues. He is currently spearheading the development of policies and information systems to enhance physician communication and follow-up of laboratory and radiology test results − an area he began researching after observing that patients discharged from the hospital with pending test results were at risk for adverse events. His research, which has garnered national attention, was recently awarded a $1million grant from the Harvard Risk Management Foundation. He graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Anthropology from the University of Vermont and received his Doctor of Medicine from Harvard Medical School where he is currently an assistant professor of medicine.

ThomasTsang, M.D., M.P.H., F.AC.P. – Tsang is the senior advisor on healthcare transformation to the governor of Hawaii and an innovations advisor for the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation. Previously, he was the medical director of meaningful use at ONC. As a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Health Policy Fellow on the U.S. House of Representatives’ Subcommittee on Health/Committee on Ways and Means, he helped develop the HITECH Act 2009; healthcare reform legislation; and accountable care organizations, value-based purchasing, and medical home programs. Tsang was a clinical assistant professor of medicine at the New York University School of Medicine and the chief medical officer at the Charles B. Wang Community Health Center. He holds Bachelor of Science and Doctor of Medicine degrees from City College of New York/State University of New York Stony Brook School of Medicine, and an Executive Master’s Degree in Public Health from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.

Dianne J. Willer-Sly, D.N.P., R.N., C.N.P., B.C. – Willer-Sly is a primary care provider affiliated with a multi-site health care system in the Twin Cities area of Minnesota and an Affiliate Faculty member at the University of Minnesota School of Nursing. Previously, she was a teaching specialist at the University of Minnesota School of Nursing, a nurse practitioner (NP)  at the Austin State School in Austin, TX, and a clinical preceptor in NP programs at several schools including the University of Minnesota, The College of St. Catherine’s, The University of Texas at Austin and The University of Cincinnati. Over her 30-year career as an NP and registered nurse, Willer-Sly has lectured widely on a variety of subjects including the health status of geriatric patients. She is a University of Minnesota Hartford Geriatric Nursing Education Scholar and was recognized as one of “five fabulous nurses of the year” by the Texas Nursing Association District Five for demonstrating exceptional professional nursing practice. She received a Bachelor of Arts in Biology degree from Kalamazoo College; Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from the University of Rochester (NY), Master of Science in Nursing Sciences degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago, and Doctor of Nursing Practice degree from the University of Minnesota.

Jain concludes, “The Board members are eager for the opportunity to work with the
LodgeNet Healthcare team, who has a keen understanding about how to develop and
deploy user-friendly, affordable products and services that improve patient quality, safety and satisfaction while reducing costs. For example, their solutions can overcome many of the communication breakdowns that often occur during care transitions and the expensive and potentially dangerous problems that can result. We are committed to reducing disparities in the availability of healthcare information, and we look forward to helping LodgeNet Healthcare leverage their expertise in utilizing multiple communications channels to achieve that goal – whether by reaching patients and family members through the in-room TV during an inpatient stay, or empowering them after discharge by offering access via their preferred Web-enabled device to information designed to support ongoing patient involvement.”

The collaboration with Enseo will benefit three groups of current and potential LodgeNet customers. For those seeking an iHDTV solution with enhanced in-room processing, there is now a LodgeNet IP solution powered by a best-of-breed set-top box (STB) and the capabilities that come with it. Hotels and hospitals who already have Enseo-powered solutions are also prime candidates to upgrade to LodgeNet’s latest-generation iHDTV platform. And a third group – hotels and hospitals whose HDTVs are compatible with Enseo STBs – can now utilize LodgeNet’s latest iHDTV systems.

“Enseo hardware has proven itself in high-traffic, multiple user environments by delivering the performance and reliability our customers demand,” said Paul Johnson, Vice President of Product Management for LodgeNet. “We look forward to working with Enseo and now being able to offer our most advanced iHDTV platforms in the thousands of hotel and hospital rooms that have already installed the Enseo solution.”

“We view the relationship with LodgeNet as an extremely promising venue for maximizing our competitive advantage with potential new customers while adding value for customers who have already installed an Enseo-powered solution,” said Vanessa Ogle, CEO, President and Chairman of the Board for Enseo. “LodgeNet’s TV Compatibility Program is just one example of their commitment to helping hoteliers and healthcare providers make informed technology decisions, and we look forward to the opportunities this new partnership represents for both of our companies as well as the customers we serve separately and in common.”

Enseo’s HD3000, HD4000 and HD5000 STBs are now supported for the Envision iHDTV and HD FTG solutions LodgeNet offers the hospitality market as well as the iHDTV solution being sold by the company’s LodgeNet Healthcare subsidiary. The integrated LodgeNet/Enseo platforms will accommodate coax or IP network delivery, and Enseo STBs will be one of the available client options with LodgeNet’s Envision IP platform.

About LodgeNet
LodgeNet Interactive Corporation is the leading provider of interactive media and connectivity services to hospitality and healthcare businesses and the consumers they serve. Recently named by Advertising Age as one of the Leading 100 US Media Companies, LodgeNet Interactive serves approximately 1.6 million hotel rooms worldwide in addition to healthcare facilities throughout the United States. The Company’s services include: Interactive Television, Broadband and Advertising Media Solutions along with nationwide technical and professional support services. LodgeNet Interactive Corporation owns and operates businesses under the industry leading brands: LodgeNet, The Hotel Networks and LodgeNet Healthcare. LodgeNet Interactive is listed on NASDAQ and trades under the symbol LNET.

About Enseo
Enseo is a provider of in-room entertainment and digital signage for hospitality, healthcare, retail, cruising, and stadiums and arenas. The company’s flexible technology displays virtually any media, on any display, through any distribution medium. With an installed base of more than 450,000 set-top boxes and digital media players, Enseo is preferred by North America’s largest hotel groups and digital signage operators. For more information, visit www.enseo.com.

LodgeNet, the LodgeNet logo, and Envision are trademarks or registered trademarks of LodgeNet Interactive Corporation. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

LodgeNet Healthcare is working towards the very same goal, using our patient engagement solutions to empower patients and encourage provider communications in an effort to drive better outcomes. The availablity of electronic health records was key in providing patients with access to their own health information. Now, mobile health products like LodgeNet’s eXPRESS and eXTEND have increased the value of EHR’s by delivering that information to cell phones, making it readily available for patients who are on the go and don’t always have access to their computers. This is an exciting time for the heatlhcare industry and we’re happy to be part of it.

Read Secretary Sebelius’ entire speech here: http://www.hhs.gov/secretary/about/speeches/sp20111205.html

Consistent with the understanding that care quality improvement and cost constraint objectives cannot be met without achieving genuine patient engagement, the final rule retains patient engagement requirements for applicant ACOs and patient engagement dependent quality measures. ACO’s will be required to demonstrate to the satisfaction of CMS that they adequately prepare and involve patients as active participants in the care process using tools such as shared-decision making, understandable education
and information, communication strategies designed to reach diverse patient groups and the development of individualized care plans that reflect patient needs and preferences. Quality reporting and/or measurement during program years will include patient experience of care surveys  (through use of the CAHPS, not the HCAHPS because not all ACOs will include a hospital) and the all-condition readmission measure. CMS adopted approximately half of the proposed quality measures included in the proposed rule, ultimately excluding inpatient safety requirements but retaining care coordination measures applicable to the hospital setting. In an effort to curtail the up-front costs of ACO participants, in the final rule, CMS adopted a plan to pay for the administration of CAHPS surveys for ACO participants in 2012 and 2013.

• evidence-based patient engagement tools and services that anticipate regulatory and market trends,
• disease-specific processes, protocols and content for expensive-to-treat chronic conditions, and
• strategic partnerships and other industry relationships.

“Sachin brings a unique perspective that combines hands-on clinical, public policy and business experience, all directed at finding realistic approaches for empowering patients and improving the healthcare delivery system, which aligns perfectly with our goals,” said Gary Kolbeck, President of LodgeNet Healthcare. “His proven track record as a healthcare consultant, strong advocacy for the use of information technology to improve the coordination and cost effectiveness of healthcare, and deep understanding of issues confronting both the public and private healthcare sectors make him a great addition to our team. He is the latest example of the impressive, talented and accomplished high performers that have joined LodgeNet Healthcare, affirming the momentum we have achieved in the industry.”

Over the course of his career, Dr. Jain has held several high-profile public service and consulting positions. As senior advisor to Dr. Berwick at CMS he played a key role in launching the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, which tests innovative payment and care delivery models to improve healthcare. He also oversaw strategy on major CMS priorities such as advancing clinical registries, perinatal quality improvement and diabetes prevention. Prior to that, while Dr. Jain was special assistant at ONC he managed the senior management agenda of Dr. Blumenthal and directed a critical portfolio that included provider adoption of, and engagement with, policies pertaining to
meaningful use, usability of electronic health records (EHRs), and leveraging HIT to address health disparities.

A practicing physician, Dr. Jain has also been a member of the faculty of the Harvard Business School; a consultant to companies including Hearst-Argyle Media, ECity.com, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Carol Corp. and Outcome Sciences Inc.; a fellow at WellPoint Inc.; a summer associate at McKinsey & Company; founder of ImproveHealthCare.org; and a research assistant at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement. He has written, co-authored, edited and contributed to three books and more than 40 articles in journals including The New England Journal of Medicine, Journal of the American Medical Association, Health Affairs, Healthcare Financial
Management, American Journal of Managed Care, and the Harvard Health Policy Review.

He was awarded a Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans, the Henry Asbury Christian Award and was named a John Kenneth Galbraith Scholar.

“I’m very excited about the opportunity to work with the LodgeNet Healthcare team, and I am extremely impressed with the company’s leadership, technology and commitment to deliver the most innovative, effective and affordable patient engagement solutions,” Dr. Jain stated. “I believe it is essential to educate patients and encourage them to become active participants in their care, and that information to support that effort must be available whenever and wherever it’s needed and convenient. LodgeNet Healthcare does exactly that, while also providing operational efficiencies for nursing and physicians, and I look forward to helping them continue to stay ahead of the curve to meet the needs of the evolving healthcare delivery system.”

Dr. Jain holds an Artium Baccalaureatus degree in government from Harvard University, a Master of Business Administration degree from Harvard Business School and a Medical Degree from Harvard Medical School.

• A corporate reorganization established LodgeNet Healthcare as an independent, but wholly owned subsidiary of LodgeNet Interactive Corporation (NASDAQ:LNET). This restructuring ensures ongoing operational and product
  development enhancements that will enable the company to introduce and improve product and service offerings that support interactive patient engagement, a key factor in healthcare reform.
• Additional staff was hired to support LodgeNet Healthcare’s growing customer
  base and business objectives. New team members bring valuable expertise in the
  areas of Clinical Strategy, Account Management, Project Management, Product
  Development and Marketing. In addition, the company has internalized its sales
  force and now employs a team of dedicated, knowledgeable sales executives who
  are regionally located throughout the United States.
• Continued growth was further validated by fourteen new implementations,
  currently in various stages of completion in hospitals across the country. These
  hospitals include: academic medical centers, several children’s hospitals, a
  hospital that serves the Cherokee Nation, community hospitals, small rural
  hospitals, several hospitals from a large health system, and a women’s hospital.
  The diversity of contracted hospitals and health systems demonstrates the
  flexibility and scalability of LodgeNet Healthcare’s solutions, which provide
  patient education, empowerment and engagement before, during and after a patient is hospitalized.
• Recognizing the widespread value that LodgeNet Healthcare provides, the
  Texas Health Resources system and the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
  (UPMC) named LodgeNet Healthcare a vendor of choice, which will spur greater
  adoption of LodgeNet Healthcare solutions within their systems.
• LodgeNet Healthcare announced that eSUITE™ is being expanded to include new applications that will encourage patients to play active roles in managing their
  health outside hospital walls through the use of home PCs and mobile phones.
  This upgrade will provide robust solutions to improve clinical outcomes before,
  during and after hospitalization by supporting adherence to medication and other
  treatment regimens. eSUITE offers hospitals the ability to “get ahead of the
  curve” when it comes to demonstrating meaningful use of health information
  technology, creating accountable care organizations, implementing quality
  initiatives per value-based purchasing and reducing avoidable readmissions.
• LodgeNet Healthcare entered into an agreement with Amerinet, a leading
  national healthcare group purchasing organization, to provide Amerinet members
  with solutions that support patient engagement throughout the continuum of care
  at a reduced cost. LodgeNet Healthcare also partnered with the American Society
  of Health-System Pharmacists to develop “My Medication,” a clinically integrated
  application that delivers personalized medication education in patient-friendly
  language to improve medication compliance and health outcomes.

“There is growing recognition that patient empowerment and engagement are critical, and these business imperatives will lay the foundation for LodgeNet Healthcare’s continued growth,” stated Gary Kolbeck, President of LodgeNet Healthcare. “We are increasingly being recognized and sought out as an innovator that is leading the way for hospitals to strengthen their relationships with patients beyond their four walls and to support the adoption of collaborative and coordinated patient care. We anticipate continuing growth momentum as we leverage proven studies, existing trends, increasing quality mandates and the enthusiastic support and referrals from our satisfied hospital customers to usher in a new era of patient-centered care driven by involved, educated patients who reject the passivity that has been the norm until now.”

The reorganization is designed to accomplish the following objectives:

• To foster the continued growth of LodgeNet’s healthcare business, which currently serves 60 hospitals and health systems with sophisticated, but easy-to-deploy and affordable patient engagement solutions,
• To better facilitate the development of new and innovative solutions that meet the unique needs of the healthcare market, leveraging the experience of LodgeNet as well as the strengths of third party partners,
• To provide a vehicle through which thought leaders in the healthcare industry and strategic partners can converge to help meet the evolving needs of hospitals and healthcare providers, and
• To assist hospitals and healthcare providers in complying with the extensive and constantly evolving federal mandates related to patient engagement, the meaningful use of electronic medical records and improvement of patient outcomes, each of which can have a significant impact on Medicare reimbursements and the availability of other government incentives.

“After conducting a strategic review, we determined that the best way to enhance shareholder value and the success of the Healthcare group was not only to enable it to leverage synergies, but to develop and execute independently focused strategies based on the unique needs of the healthcare market,” explained Scott C. Petersen, Chairman and CEO of LodgeNet Interactive. “This move demonstrates our strong commitment to proactively respond to the substantial demand for interactive patient engagement and accelerate decision-making to capitalize on the significant opportunities that demand
represents. These solutions can help hospitals transform typically passive patients into more informed, involved, and active participants in managing their health before, during and after their hospital stay.”

Looming health reforms, such as the implementation of value-based purchasing and the preventable hospital readmission program, focus on empowering patients and placing them at the center of healthcare decisions. The goals of these programs are to improve quality, safety, coordination and cost effectiveness of care by tying reimbursement and a hospital’s profit or loss to clinical performance.

LodgeNet Healthcare’s eSUITE™ interacts with patients throughout the entire care continuum. eXPRESS™ helps patients prepare for a hospital stay or procedure by providing relevant videos, timely reminders and more. eNGAGE™, an inpatient solution, prescribes and delivers education content to patients through in-room televisions based on an individual’s specific diagnosis, age and language. He or she can also access information about their care team, condition, treatment, procedure, test, medication, daily schedule, and post-discharge instructions while still in the hospital, when they are able to interact with care providers. Patients can even use the interactive technology to order approved food and control their room’s temperature and lighting. The system tracks viewership, measures patient understanding through a series of interactive questions on the TV, generates follow-up prompts for clinicians, makes it easy for hospitals to identify when additional patient counseling and intervention are necessary, and dynamically records all actions in the patient’s electronic health record (EHR). Once patients leave the hospital, providers can use eXTEND™ to deliver personalized information via the patient’s preferred bi-directional communication devices including mobile phones, home PCs and Web-enabled TVs.

According to Petersen, “Facilities that deliver high-quality and cost effective clinical outcomes will thrive while others will experience adverse effects to their bottom line because of reduced Medicare reimbursements. The more informed and involved patients are in their care, the better they, their hospital and the overall healthcare system will be, meaning that providers must fundamentally change how they interact with and treat patients inside and outside their four walls.”

“Patient engagement is now a business necessity for all providers, and LodgeNet Healthcare is rapidly becoming a top resource for hospitals moving in this direction,” added Gary Kolbeck, President of LodgeNet Healthcare, Inc. “This reorganization will enhance LodgeNet Healthcare’s market responsiveness during a period of unprecedented change, opportunities and challenges.”