Harris Corporation Awarded Contract to Help VA Migrate to New Electronic Healthcare Transaction Standards

WASHINGTON, June 2 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Harris Corporation (NYSE: HRS), an international communications and information technology company, has been awarded an eight-month contract to support the Veterans Health Administration's migration to updated standards under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).

As the primary subcontractor on the Engineering Services Network, Inc. team, which was awarded a potential $10.9 million contract, Harris will provide a complete range of software development services, including requirements definition and documentation, and software design, test and deployment.

"With more than 850 changes to the standards and the addition of new data elements to the system, the upgrade to 5010 will be particularly challenging for very large, nationwide healthcare providers such as the Veterans Health Administration (VHA)," said Jim Traficant, vice president and general manager, Harris Healthcare Solutions.  "Harris technology and services are already playing a key role in enhancing veterans' benefits claims processing, and we will help the VHA make a smooth transition to HIPAA 5010."

HIPAA's Administrative Simplification provisions set national standards for certain electronic health care transactions, such as claims processing, remittance advice, and eligibility and status determinations.  They also address the security and privacy of health data.  

The current transaction standard is HIPAA X12 version 4010A1.  Pharmacy claims must comply with National Council for Prescription Drug Programs (NCPDP) version 5.1.  By January 1, 2012, covered entities — including health plans, healthcare clearinghouses and certain healthcare providers — must upgrade to HIPAA X12 version 5010 and NCPDP version D.0 in order to further simplify procedures, enhance the uniformity of transactions, streamline reimbursements and combat fraud and abuse.

This contract is one of several new VA-related awards Harris has received since the company's November 2009 acquisition of Patriot Technologies, a leading provider of healthcare IT, imaging and enterprise software solutions for the VA.

Harris Healthcare Solutions provides secure enterprise intelligence solutions and services for government and commercial customers — including systems integration, intelligent infrastructure, advanced visualization and display, enterprise digital content management and IT solutions.  A leader in federal healthcare IT integration, Harris products, systems and services improve healthcare outcomes by assuring that critical medical and benefits information is delivered with security and privacy to the right person, on the right device, at the point of care.

About Harris Corporation

Harris is an international communications and information technology company serving government and commercial markets worldwide.  Headquartered in Melbourne, Florida, the company has approximately $5 billion of annual revenue and more than 15,000 employees — including nearly 7,000 engineers and scientists.  Harris is dedicated to developing best-in-class assured communications® products, systems, and services.  Additional information about Harris Corporation is available at www.harris.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements that reflect management's current expectations, assumptions and estimates of future performance and economic conditions. Such statements are made in reliance upon the safe harbor provisions of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. T he company cautions investors that any forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results and future trends to differ materially from those matters expressed in or implied by such forward-looking statements.  Statements about the expected value of the program to Harris are forward-looking and involve risks and uncertainties. Other factors that may impact the company's results and forward-looking statement may be disclosed in the company's filings with the SEC.  Harris disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

SOURCE Harris Corporation

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