Andover, Mass., USA -- Royal Philips Electronics (NYSE: PHG; AEX: PHI) has announced an agreement with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to provide disaster recovery services that are dedicated to VA users with Philips iSite. Managed and hosted by Philips, the VA disaster recovery services will provide automated backup of all Philips iSite Radiology image data.

According to the 18th Annual Healthcare Information Management and Systems Society (HIMSS) Leadership Survey, 35 percent of IT executives from healthcare provider organizations identified business continuity/disaster recovery as one of their organization's top five IT priorities today. As seen during the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, natural disasters can paralyze a hospital's ability to provide quality care to patients in need. Whether it is a natural disaster or major power outage, it is important for hospitals to take precautionary measures to ensure that patient care can quickly resume following a time of crisis.

"The disaster recovery services add an advanced level of security for all VA clients and their patients, electronically protecting radiology image data in the VA's secure environment," said Matt Long, general manager of Healthcare Informatics, for Philips Medical Systems.
In the case of a total disaster where the iSite information at any VA site is lost, that institution's entire radiology electronic image data set can be restored from the VA Disaster Recovery site, with an initial restoration designed to begin within 96 hours. Current VA centers that are iSite customers include Veterans Integrated Service Networks (VISNs) 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 11, and 21. Moving forward, all additional VA centers that become Philips iSite customers will be using this disaster recovery option, intended to aid compliance with federal security standards.

iSite Picture Archiving and Communications System (PACS) is a proven, reliable solution for the efficient and timely delivery of medical images and reports to physicians throughout the hospital. Using iSyntax, an innovative and efficient transmission technology, Philips iSite PACS delivers medical images in less than three seconds throughout the hospital network. Its unique "pay-per-study" business model fits customer needs, where customers pay to view, distribute, and store medical images rather than buy a PACS system up front.

About Royal Philips Electronics

Royal Philips Electronics of the Netherlands (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHI) is a global leader in healthcare, lifestyle and technology, delivering products, services and solutions through the brand promise of "sense and simplicity." Headquartered in the Netherlands, Philips employs approximately 124,300 employees in more than 60 countries worldwide. With sales of USD 34 billion (EUR 27 billion) in 2006, the company is a market leader in medical diagnostic imaging and patient monitoring systems, energy efficient lighting solutions, personal care and home appliances, as well as consumer electronics. News from Philips is located at www.philips.com/newscenter.

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