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The program, which is scheduled to roll out next year, will begin by assisting nurses who manage complex patient cases. It will help the insurer to review treatment requests from medical providers.

Stage two will put the technology out in the field to a limited number of oncology practices. There, the system�s ability to process 200 million pages of data in three seconds will allow doctors to ask questions, input symptoms, and compare reactions to treatments to streamline the process. The goal is to improve quality of care with cost-savings as the natural byproduct.

�There are breathtaking advances in medical science and clinical knowledge, however; this clinical information is not always used in the care of patients,� said Sam Nussbaum, M.D., WellPoint�s Chief Medical Officer. �Imagine having the ability to take in all the information around a patient�s medical care � symptoms, findings, patient interviews and diagnostic studies. Then, imagine using Watson analytic capabilities to consider all of the prior cases, the state-of-the-art clinical knowledge in the medical literature and clinical best practices to help a physician advance a diagnosis and guide a course of treatment.

�We believe this will be an invaluable resource for our partnering physicians and will dramatically enhance the quality and effectiveness of medical care they deliver to our members.�[/qb]

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