ProfitStars Enables Financial Institutions to Expand Financing Options for Growing Healthcare Industry

- Heritage Bank strengthens accounts receivable financing and management for medical service providers -

MONETT, Mo., March 7, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --  Jack Henry & Associates, Inc. (NASDAQ:JKHY) is a leading provider of technology solutions and payment processing services primarily for the financial services industry. Its ProfitStars® division today introduced BusinessManager® for healthcare providers.

BusinessManager is a proven program that enables financial institutions to provide initial and ongoing cash to creditworthy businesses in exchange for their accounts receivables. It has now been enhanced to meet the dynamic cash flow requirements of healthcare providers and medical service facilities that rely on payments from private insurance carriers and government payers. This expanded functionality enables financial institutions to strategically grow their deposits and loan business. 

The aging population, government reform and technology advancements are among the factors that support the projected 7 percent annual growth in the healthcare industry through 2025. Many healthcare providers and medical facilities that depend on payment reimbursement require short-term working capital to maintain cash flow and accommodate growth. ProfitStars' BusinessManager now provides financial institutions a solution for providing the working capital and financing options to surgery centers and local hospitals; medical equipment suppliers; ambulance services; providers of pharmaceutical, medical staffing and physical therapy services; and other related businesses. BusinessManager provides accurate views into true accounts receivable assets, allowing financial institutions to more confidently fund profitable companies.

Heritage Bank's home base of Jonesboro, Ark., is a hub for a variety of healthcare service providers. Gary Higgins, senior vice president of lending for Heritage Bank, explained, "Our institution values the integrity and profitability afforded through BusinessManager, and can now extend its benefits to an entirely new audience that needs ongoing cash availability. Having other commercial accounts experience strong results on the original BusinessManager program, we hope to partner with more local healthcare participants for A/R funding and management."

More than 200 banks currently employ the BusinessManager accounts receivable financing solution, with approximately 1,000 merchants on the platform. BusinessManager is backed by more than 20 years of helping institutions maintain profitable relationships with small- and mid-sized businesses across a variety of industries including transportation and oil and gas. Though it has been available on a limited basis to the healthcare space since 1997, the enhanced solution provides the functionality to better analyze reimbursement data and support financial institutions' decisions to fund newly generated claims. It also provides ad hoc reporting capabilities at the claim level, a Business Associate Agreement, which is generally required by HIPAA, and specific language in the lien for "Healthcare Insurance Receivables." 

David Foss, president of ProfitStars, commented, "Many financial institutions are more comfortable supporting accounts receivable financing for larger hospitals and physician practices, leaving other entrepreneurial-like healthcare and medical service providers vastly underserved. As Heritage Bank is demonstrating, BusinessManager can help fill that void by accurately assisting creditworthy customers with the management and funding of accounts receivable financing while generating recurring fee income for the institution."

About ProfitStars

As a diverse, global division of Jack Henry & Associates, ProfitStars combines JHA's solid technology background with the latest breakthroughs in four performance-boosting solution groups – Financial Performance, Imaging & Payments Processing, Information Security & Risk Management, and Retail Delivery. Explore the power of ProfitStars-enhanced performance at www.profitstars.com.

About Jack Henry & Associates, Inc.

Jack Henry & Associates, Inc. (NASDAQ: JKHY) is a leading provider of technology solutions and payment processing services primarily for financial services organizations. Its technology solutions serve more than 11,900 customers nationwide, and are marketed and supported through four primary brands. Jack Henry Banking™ supports banks ranging from de novo to mid-tier institutions with information processing solutions. Symitar™ is the leading provider of information processing solutions for credit unions of all sizes. ProfitStars provides highly specialized products and services that enable financial institutions of every asset size and charter, and diverse corporate entities to mitigate and control risks, optimize revenue and growth opportunities, and contain costs. iPay Technologies™ operates as a leading electronic bill pay provider supporting banks and credit unions with turnkey, highly configurable retail and small business electronic payment platforms. Additional information is available at www.jackhenry.com.

Statements made in this news release that are not historical facts are forward-looking information.  Actual results may differ materially from those projected in any forward-looking information.  Specifically, there are a number of important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated by any forward-looking information.  Additional information on these and other factors, which could affect the Company's financial results, are included in its Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings on Form 10-K, and potential investors should review these statements.  Finally, there may be other factors not mentioned above or included in the Company's SEC filings that may cause actual results to differ materially from any forward-looking information.

SOURCE Jack Henry & Associates