SAN RAMON, Calif., July 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Valley Oak Systems, Inc., an Aon company and leading provider of insurance solutions, today announced that Workforce Safety & Insurance (WSI), North Dakota's exclusive workers' compensation carrier, has selected Valley Oak's flagship iVOS solution as its new workers' compensation system.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20041215/CGW049LOGO )
WSI will implement the claims management and policy administration components of iVOS, the "one-system" claims management solution that integrates core insurance processes, including medical bill review, policy underwriting, case management, billing, events management, and other related functions for multiple lines of insurance.
As the exclusive provider of coverage, all businesses in North Dakota are required to purchase workers' compensation insurance through WSI. Leveraging iVOS, WSI anticipates significant efficiency gains and a potential savings of $2.7 million annually, as its team will be able to offer more effective claims management and loss control services.
WSI has a tradition of functioning more like a business than a government agency. The organization operates entirely on premiums to pay claims and administrative expenses, not state taxes. As a tribute to WSI's program leadership, North Dakota's workers' compensation benefits rank among the top half of states, and for the last six years, it has achieved outstanding financial performance, allowing it to be ranked as the state charging the lowest premiums.
"Even with our outstanding accomplishments, we have been hindered by a 10-year-old claims system that has no global architecture. Written in outdated code and requiring significant maintenance, it was basically the 'burning platform' that forced us to look for a new system," said James Long, Chief of Support Services at WSI. "Of the solutions we evaluated, iVOS is hands down the best claims system on the market, and it provides a truly 'one-system' approach, which means we'll have claims and policy administration on one modern, browser-based platform. We'll also be able to integrate our Optical Character Recognition (OCR) system, and offer online reporting of injuries to reduce paper by an additional 10 percent."
"WSI is passionate about delivering cost-effective coverage for employers and maximum safety for North Dakota's workforce," said Randy Wheeler, founder and CEO of Aon's Valley Oak Systems. "With iVOS, their organization will realize additional cost-savings and operational efficiencies, and will be able to identify and target problem areas with safety and loss prevention initiatives. In addition, our browser-based technology is a 24/7 solution that creates a collaborative platform on which employers can electronically submit information; adjusters can work remotely, and claims are managed for best- possible outcomes."
About Workforce Safety & Insurance
Workforce Safety & Insurance (WSI) is North Dakota's exclusive workers' compensation carrier. Its core vision is to provide quality coverage and services to employers and injured workers. WSI emphasizes safety in the workplace and enlists the help of every business in North Dakota to prevent and reduce injuries. Its Loss Prevention Department and Education Unit provide a wide range of services to employers, including free safety consultations, assistance in qualifying for safety discounts, and resource material on occupational safety and health topics.
About Aon's Valley Oak Systems, Inc.
Founded in 1994, Aon's Valley Oak Systems (http://www.valleyoak.com/) provides high quality software that enables clients to achieve outstanding efficiency and performance in insurance administration, including claims management, medical bill review, policy underwriting, case management, billing and events. Due to its client-focused approach, Valley Oak Systems has established itself as an industry leader in insurance solutions, and its comprehensive iVOS system was recognized for its business impact with the 2006 IASA Technology Achievement Award.
About Aon
Aon Corporation (http://www.aon.com/) is a leading provider of risk management services, insurance and reinsurance brokerage, human capital and management consulting, and specialty insurance underwriting. There are 43,000 employees working in Aon's 500 offices in more than 120 countries. Backed by broad resources, industry knowledge and technical expertise, Aon professionals help a wide range of clients develop effective risk management and workforce productivity solutions.
Contact:
Jennifer Lee
Valley Oak Systems
925-242-4600
jlee@valleyoak.com
This press release contains certain statements related to future results, or states our intentions, beliefs and expectations or predictions for the future which are forward-looking statements as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from either historical or anticipated results depending on a variety of factors. Potential factors that could impact results include: general economic conditions in different countries in which we do business around the world, changes in global equity and fixed income markets that could affect the return on invested assets, fluctuations in exchange and interest rates that could influence revenue and expense, rating agency actions that could affect our ability to borrow funds, funding of our various pension plans, changes in the competitive environment, our ability to implement restructuring initiatives and other initiatives intended to yield cost savings, our ability to execute the stock repurchase program, potential regulatory or legislative changes that would affect our ability to sell, and be reimbursed at current levels for, our Sterling subsidiary's Medicare health product, changes in commercial property and casualty markets and commercial premium rates that could impact revenues, changes in revenues and earnings due to the elimination of contingent commissions, other uncertainties surrounding a new compensation model, the impact of investigations brought by state attorneys general, state insurance regulators, federal prosecutors, and federal regulators, the impact of class actions and individual lawsuits including client class actions, securities class actions, derivative actions, ERISA class actions, the impact of the analysis of practices relating to stock options, the cost of resolution of other contingent liabilities and loss contingencies, and the difference in ultimate paid claims in our underwriting companies from actuarial estimates. Further information concerning the Company and its business, including factors that potentially could materially affect the Company's financial results, is contained in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20041215/CGW049LOGO" mime-type="application/octet-stream"/>
Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20041215/CGW049LOGO
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org/
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
>
Aon Corporation
CONTACT: Jennifer Lee of Valley Oak Systems, +1-925-242-4600,
jlee@valleyoak.com
Web site: http://www.aon.com/
http://www.valleyoak.com/
