Novation Enters Into First Sole-Source Heart Valve Agreement With Edwards Lifesciences

IRVINE, Calif. and IRVING, Texas, Sept. 3, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Novation and Edwards Lifesciences Corporation (NYSE: EW) today announced they have entered into a three-year, sole-source strategic relationship that provides the world's market leading heart valve therapies to the more than 100,000 members and affiliates of VHA, UHC, Children's Hospital Association and Provista.

The new agreement with Edwards for its heart valve product portfolio enables Novation to enter the heart valve category for the first time, and expands on the previous relationship between the companies for critical care technologies.

"This heart valve agreement enables Novation to provide marked additional value to hospitals and their patients with Edwards Lifesciences' clinically proven, life-saving heart valve devices," said David Richman, vice president, Sourcing Operations, Novation.  "We are proud that Edwards believes in Novation's unique capabilities and we look forward to working with them to deliver value to the members we serve."

More than 100,000 heart valve procedures are performed in the United States every year.  There are more than 750 hospital facilities purchasing products via Novation contracts to perform heart valve surgeries and interventions.

"Edwards invests significantly in the development of new treatment options that can provide meaningful benefits to patients, and we look forward to working in partnership with Novation so that heart valve patients can get the treatments they need from Edwards' comprehensive valve portfolio," said Donald E. Bobo, Jr., Edwards' corporate vice president, heart valve therapy.

Novation awards product agreements to suppliers by using member-driven criteria and a weighted award decision tool that considers product specification, quality and patient safety, as well as financial factors.  This comprehensive competitive contracting process involves clinicians from participating member organizations to the greatest practical degree and follows established principles of the American Bar Association's Model Procurement Code.

About Novation, Winner of the Ethics Inside® Certification

Founded in 1998, Novation is a leading health care services company for the more than 100,000 members and affiliates of VHA Inc. and UHC, two national health care alliances, Children's Hospital Association, an alliance of the nation's leading pediatric facilities, and Provista, LLC. Novation provides alliance members with sourcing services, as well as information and data services. Based in Irving, Texas, Novation develops and manages competitive contracts with more than 700 suppliers. Members of VHA, UHC, Children's Hospital Association and Provista used Novation contracts to purchase approximately $49 billion in 2013. Novation has earned the coveted Ethics Inside Certification from Ethisphere Institute, a leading international think tank dedicated to the research and promotion of best practices in corporate ethics and compliance. Novation was also named on Ethisphere's World's Most Ethical Companies list, and is the only company in the health care industry to earn both distinctions for three consecutive years. To learn more about Novation, please follow @NovationNews.

About Edwards Lifesciences

Edwards Lifesciences is the global leader in the science of heart valves and hemodynamic monitoring.  Driven by a passion to help patients, the company partners with clinicians to develop innovative technologies in the areas of structural heart disease and critical care monitoring, enabling them to save and enhance lives. Additional company information can be found at www.edwards.com. 

SOURCE Novation