Frequently Asked Questions
1.) What is a group purchasing organization?
A group purchasing organization (GPO) is an entity that is created to aggregate the purchasing volume of a group of businesses to obtain discounts from vendors based on the collective buying volume of the GPO members. Managing purchasing effectively is critical to achieving overall operational success and providing optimal patient/customer service, and can present a substantial financial advantage.
2.) Are there membership fees to join UISS?
UISS receives administrative fees that are paid by the suppliers based on purchasing volume. Under this methodology, our members do NOT pay a membership fee to belong.
3.) What classes of trade can become members of UISS?
UISS has more than 45 years of experience representing the interests of healthcare facilities, in both acute and non-acute settings. In recent years, however, our member base has evolved to include non-healthcare entities such as educational institutions, business and industry organizations, recreational facilities and hospitality venues.
4.) What is your relationship with Premier, Inc.?
Premier, Inc. has more than 2,000 national contracts available to our members with suppliers from small business models to market share leaders. Premier’s experienced staff uses innovative tools to negotiate leading prices on the widest selection of high-quality products and services across departments and integrated delivery networks. Through Premier, our members have access to the purchasing power that comes with over $44 billion in purchasing volume and over $4.2 billion in savings. Premier’s sourcing strategy delivers an overall best price-in-practice portfolio that provides flexibility and leverages national scale and efficiencies, with many opportunities for aggregation to drive greater value combined with benchmarking and market intelligence support for local initiatives.
5.) What is your relationship with Acurity, Inc.?
Acurity, Inc., formerly known as GNYHA Services, is a strategic group purchasing organization and supply chain resource for hospitals and healthcare systems. One of the biggest benefits of Acurity is the enhancement of Premier contracts as well as negotiated regional contracts to provide increased savings opportunities regardless of facility size. Acurity also manages a pharmacy program that affords members access to a comprehensive portfolio of contracts. In addition, Acurity offers numerous value-added services and programs, including access to subject-matter experts and spend management technology.