(Source: PRNewswire)LOUISVILLE, Colo., Sept. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- GHX is working with its member hospitals and suppliers to enable the healthcare industry to utilize the GS1 industry standard for organization and location identification, the Global Location Number (GLN), in transactions through the GHX exchange, which is a key component to meeting the published sunrise date for use of the standard. With guidance from members of the GHX industry standards user group, GHX has successfully tested the use of the GLNs in actual order-to-cash related transactions and produced a guide to show hospitals and suppliers how to include the GLN in EDI transactions sent through the exchange. GHX is also developing new service offerings that will help hospitals and suppliers begin to replace the proprietary account numbers used to conduct business with trading partners with GLNs.

In the United States, GHX currently enables hospitals representing more than 80 percent of the licensed beds to conduct business electronically with the suppliers from which they purchase the majority of their products. Given the large percentage of healthcare trading partners using GHX to conduct business, many of its participating members have called on GHX to assist them in the use of standards, and in particular to help them meet the December 2010 sunrise date when major group purchasing organizations and healthcare systems say they will require use of GLNs as opposed to custom account numbers in supply chain transactions.

To meet member needs in this area, GHX has:

-- Formed a GHX Industry Standards User Group, which is currently comprised

of more than 100 healthcare supply chain representatives interested in

leveraging their common use of GHX and accelerating the use of industry

standards, including GLNs

-- Participated in pilots and enabled use of GLNS in transactions sent

through the exchange between a set of early adopters, including:

-- Mayo Clinic

-- BJC HealthCare

-- Owens & Minor, Inc.

-- BD

-- Resource Optimization and Innovation, subsidiary of the Sisters of

Mercy

-- The Ohio State University Medical Center

-- WellSpan Health

-- VHA Inc.

-- Made significant changes to the way information is mapped between

trading partners on the exchange to enable use of GLNs without

disrupting current service levels

-- Issued new specifications for EDI transactions through the exchange to

incorporate GLNs

-- Published the Using GLNs With GHX supplemental guide, designed to

complement the GS1 Healthcare Provider Toolkit.