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In-Office Testing from Cholestech Facilitates More Effective Patient Interaction HAYWARD, Calif., Dec. 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The increased rate Medicare is set to pay physicians in 2007 for simple conversations with their patients legitimizes what doctors and patients have long known: an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Many doctors are taking the opportunity to heart by incorporating physician office testing into routine visits in order to obtain data for an initial assessment or monitoring the effectiveness of cholesterol and diabetes therapy, instead of sending blood samples to off-site labs and waiting days for the results. (Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20060504/NYTH042 ) Effective January 1, 2007, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, will increase the reimbursement paid to physicians for the time they spend talking with Medicare patients, evaluating their health, and advising them on preventative care measures. According to a recent statement from CMS, "The hallmark of this rule is a stronger emphasis on the physician-patient relationship." Physician office testing offers three distinct advantages: convenience, compliance and cost efficiency. The simple fingerstick makes the procedure easy and is less painful for the patient than a blood draw. The on-the-spot results facilitate immediate patient counseling and treatment recommendations during the primary appointment. Physician office testing also eliminates the burden on the patient to travel to a lab, pay a second copay and then follow up with the doctor to discuss the results. "For patients who aren't at their target goals, we are able to make appointments for educational counseling while they are in our office. And, for those doing well, nothing is better than face-to-face recognition for trying so hard to control their lifestyle choices, including diet and exercise," said Donna Gemme, Director of Cardiovascular Ambulatory Services at UMass Memorial Medical Center. "We perform point of care cholesterol screening on over 500 patients each month and we rely on the CRMLN-certified LDX(R) System from Cholestech Corporation (NASDAQ:CTEC) to make sure we get lab-accurate results. We conduct a correlation with our hospital lab twice a year, to confirm that our point of care results are on target, and we've always been right on the mark." "The new Medicare reimbursement schedule will allow doctors to spend more time assessing potential medical risks and counsel their patients immediately on appropriate interventions," said Warren E. Pinckert II, President and CEO of Cholestech. "Physician office testing is a valuable tool that not only increases patient healthcare compliance, but instrumentation such as the LDX or GDX, that is certified to the appropriate standard, offers laboratory accurate results." About the LDX System With accuracy comparable to a reference lab, results using the Cholestech LDX are achieved in five minutes or less. The health professional collects a blood sample using a simple fingerstick, inserts a cassette into the portable LDX system, and receives results within minutes. Patient counseling can begin immediately, while practice efficiency begins to accrue. The LDX is CLIA-waived and is certified to the Cholesterol Reference Method Laboratory Network (CRMLN) standard established by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). About the GDX System The CLIA-waived Cholestech GDX System is both NGSP-certified and traceable to the Diabetes Control and Complications Trial (DCCT). Utilizing a simple fingerstick, medical professionals can obtain lab-accurate results in just five minutes, facilitating immediate patient consultation and therapy modification, if needed. About Cholestech Cholestech is committed to enabling people to lead longer, healthier and more active lives. Cholestech provides easy to use, accessible diagnostic tools and information to health care practitioners in over 35 countries around the world. Cholestech offers efficient and economic diagnostic testing for cholesterol and related lipids, blood glucose and glycemic control, and liver enzymes at the point of care. Health care providers can use the CLIA-waived Cholestech LDX(R) and GDX(TM)* Systems and the hs-CRP test, which is cleared by the FDA for use in moderate complexity labs, to initiate and monitor the progress of patient therapy. By providing effective disease management solutions, Cholestech's goal is to be a leading provider of diagnostic tools and information for immediate risk assessment and therapeutic monitoring of heart disease, inflammatory disorders and diabetes. *The GDX system is 510(k) cleared for prescription home use and, accordingly, is CLIA waived. NOTE: Cholestech LDX is a registered trademark and Cholestech GDX is a trademark of Cholestech Corporation. All other trademarks mentioned in this document are the property of their respective owners. For more information about Cholestech and its products visit us on the web at http://www.cholestech.com/. CTEC-G Media contact: Angie Cecil 516-536-6811 http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20060504/NYTH042 http://photoarchive.ap.org/ DATASOURCE: Cholestech Corporation CONTACT: Angie Cecil, +1-516-536-6811, or , for Cholestech Corporation Web site: http://www.cholestech.com/

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