Mundelein, IL - Medline Industries, the nation's largest privately held manufacturer and distributor of health care supplies, announced today that Novation, the health care contracting services company for VHA, Inc. and the University HealthSystem Consortium(UHC) has awarded Medline a five-year national agreement to operate as an authorized distributor for medical and surgical products.

VHA and UHC are national health care alliances that represent more than 2,500 health care organizations. The agreement, effective September 1, 2006, will provide medical and surgical products and services to VHA and UHC's member hospitals nationwide. The contract further strengthens Medline's position as a leading supplier to the U.S. health care marketplace.

"We're very pleased to have been chosen as a primary distributor of medical supplies. Medline will help VHA and UHC hospitals realize significant savings and increased service through this agreement," said Kurt Krieghbaum Senior Vice President, Medline National Accounts.

About Novation
Based in Irving, Texas, Novation is the leading health care contracting services company, delivering unmatched savings and value to nearly 2,500 members of VHA Inc. and the University Health System Consortium (UHC), two national health care alliances. Through its public competitive bid process, Novation develops and manages contracts with more than 700 suppliers, both large and small. By combining scale and agility with clinical knowledge and product expertise, Novation offers the most extensive range of innovative contracting services, including: contract development, contract and supplier management, custom contracting, enhanced savings programs, online contract management and analytical tools, order management and online supplier connectivity. VHA and UHC members used Novation's contracts to purchase more than $25 billion in supplies in 2005.