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For immediate Release
November 12, 2004
Castle Technologies moves into the BioTech Park
Castle Technologies: A health care, I.T. innovator
Company's state-of-the-art, Web-based applications meet growing health care needs
In this year's contentious presidential campaign, candidates Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and President George W. Bush appeared to agree on at least one point: The U.S. health care system needs serious innovation in order to reduce costs and improve the quality of care for all Americans.
Kerry supported a stronger emphasis on "disease management" - an emerging model that aims to keep chronic illnesses in check so that patients avoid costly hospital stays or emergency room visits. President Bush, meanwhile, called for more investment in health care information technology to streamline health care processes and allow quicker, more efficient delivery of services to people who need them. In one of their debates, Bush cited an industry estimate that H.I.T. innovations may reduce health care costs by as much as 20 percent in coming years.
Regardless of political debates, H.I.T. is already fast evolving, and one Richmond company, Castle Technologies, Inc., is on the leading edge of this trend. Throughout the United States, Castle's Internet-based applications are being used to help thousands of people receive the medical services they need to treat their chronic illnesses.
Established in 1994, Castle Technologies is a health care services and I.T. company that develops Web-based systems for health care organizations and providers, including state Medicaid and health care access programs. The company also provides I.T. services and products for a variety of other industries, including manufacturing, retail and defense. "Castle's I.T. solutions address the challenges of today's health care market," said Justin Samson, president of Castle Technologies. "Health care organizations and providers need comprehensive patient information - and quickly - so that patients get the right medical services at the right time across the entire continuum of care."
Prior to founding Castle, Samson worked in a variety of management, consulting and development positions since 1979, including senior consultant to Per-se Technologies, Inc., the nation's largest physician billing services company; an analyst and project manager for the National Air and Space Administration; manager and lead analyst for Circuit City Stores; senior technical staff for Computer Sciences Corporation; and academic consultant and programmer for Old Dominion University.
Since 1994, Castle has built a track record of developing health care applications throughout the United States, including Internet-based systems to handle specialized health care functions such as case management, disease management and utilization management for state Medicaid programs in Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Maryland and West Virginia.
Castle completed its most recent project in October 2004. The company developed and launched a Web-based prior-authorization and utilization management system for the administrative organization that manages the state of Maryland's Medicaid mental health program. Castle's system is already being used by more than 7,000 providers statewide.
Like Castle's other Medicaid applications, the Maryland application allows case managers and health care providers to exchange critical patient information over the Internet to determine the appropriate health care services for Medicaid clients who are eligible. Castle's applications provide complete data security and strictly adhere to health care privacy requirements such as the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.
Seeing a greater need and demand for H.I.T. applications in the public and private sectors, Castle is taking measured steps toward growth, with a keen eye on government contracts, product development and relationships with healthcare industry leaders.
To accomplish these goals, the company has enlisted the guidance of experts at Virginia's Center for Innovative Technology and the Virginia Biosciences Development Center, the biosciences business accelerator at the Virginia BioTechnology Research Park. In September, Castle joined the VBDC's biosciences incubation program and established a new office in downtown Richmond at the BioTech Park.
"The VBDC is pleased to welcome Castle Technologies into our highly selective biosciences development program." said David Lohr, the VBDC's executive director. "Our program targets high performance bioscience companies, like Castle, that have qualified management teams with expertise in developing health care applications and products, and significant potential for growth through commercializing innovative, new products. VBDC's full compliment of business support services and mentoring will be available to assist Castle in achieving its business goals and to become a leader among health care information technology companies."
In addition to the VBDC's support, Castle also has strong support from the Richmond-area office of the CIT, a state-supported center that focuses on accelerating research and development in the commonwealth.
At a recent Greater Richmond Technology Center event, the state's newly appointed Secretary of Technology Eugene Huang expressed Virginia's goal to become one of the nation's premier biotech regions, with CIT as a major driver of this process.
Dan Mills, CIT's vice president of regional operations, echoes Huang's sentiment, emphasizing that Virginia's progress will depend on companies such as Castle.
"The Commonwealth of Virginia is very focused on being a national leader in innovative technologies that improve services and the quality of life everywhere," Mills said. "And Castle Technologies is a part of this movement. The company has proven its ability to create innovative solutions to problems in health care, and CIT is pleased to offer Castle its support and encouragement as we all move forward."
Contact:
Jack Cooksey
Phone: (804) 747-3761 or (804) 366-3586
E-mail: jcooksey@castletechnologies.com
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