Toronto Stock Exchange Symbol: SXC

SYSTEMS XCELLENCE TO PROVIDE PHARMACY BENEFIT SERVICES FOR THREE NEW CLIENTS

MILTON, Ontario October 4, 2004, Systems Xcellence Inc., ("SXC") (TSX: SXC) a leading provider of healthcare information technology solutions throughout the pharmaceutical supply chain, today announced the sale of its InformedRx pharmacy benefit administration services to a Massachusetts-based Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM), and its ASP claims processing services to Neighborhood Health Plan of Rhode Island (NHPRI) of Providence, RI; and Pharmacy Providers of Oklahoma (d/b/a MaxCare Rx) of Oklahoma City, OK. The contracts have a combined value of approximately $700,000 over three years. All figures in U.S. dollars.

The PBM will use InformedRx to design healthcare benefit plans for its members, adjudicate prescription drug claims, manage reimbursement of retail pharmacy network contracts, analyze drug utilization, manage rebate contracts with pharmaceutical manufacturers and establish a web portal to extend the point-of-contact with their members. As an InformedRx customer, the PBM will utilize SXC's pharmacy network to process prescription drug benefits generated by their Medicare-approved discount drug card program.

"In order to qualify as a Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) sponsor, this PBM leveraged our expertise and experience, and as a result, they are entering the marketplace with a unique offering that will continue to drive transparency in the management of prescription drug benefits," said Gordon S. Glenn, President and CEO of SXC. "SXC intends to further build upon the positive response to its InformedRx offering by adding other value-added services, and will support this initiative by launching a new branding campaign in first quarter 2005."

Meanwhile, NHPRI and Pharmacy Providers of Oklahoma (PPOk) will use SXC's RxCLAIM and RxTRACK® ASP solutions to provide on-line adjudication of prescription drug claims at the point of service, and to effectively manage health plan benefit design and implementation for their members.

"NHPRI was looking for a solutions provider who could help them to take more control of their pharmacy management programs and was attracted to SXC for our superior functionality and transparent pricing," added Mr. Glenn. "This contract, as well as that with PPOk, is expected to go live in October of this year and will help us to reach the 2004 growth targets in our claims processing business."

About InformedRx

InformedRx is a broad suite of à la carte pharmacy benefit administrative services that provide a flexible and cost-effective alternative to traditional pharmacy benefit management offerings typically employed by managed care organizations. InformedRx is built around SXC's industry leading pharmacy claims processing system, RxCLAIM® and features pricing on a fee-for-service basis. RxCLAIM is a transaction processing system designed to provide instant on-line adjudication of third party prescription drug claims at the point of service, including trouble-free claims management and cost-effective review, as well as payment and billing support and real-time functionality for updating benefit, price, member, provider and drug details.

About Neighborhood Health Plan of Rhode Island Neighborhood Health Plan of Rhode Island (NHPRI) is a 70,000 member non-profit HMO founded in 1994 by Rhode Island's Community Health Centers. It primarily serves enrolees of the state's managed Rite Care Health Program. NHPRI is proud to be the first health center affiliated health plan in the country to be rated as "Excellent", the highest accreditation status by NCQA. Website: www.nhpri.org

About Pharmacy Providers of Oklahoma

Pharmacy Providers of Oklahoma, Inc. (PPOk) was organized in 1985 to provide efficient, effective, cost controlled administration of managed care prescription drug programs. PPOk is committed to cost containment strategies and information management. Known for its superior level of service, PPOk is committed to providing administrative services necessary to meet desired levels of program benefit while controlling the overall program cost. Website: www.ppok.com

About Systems Xcellence Inc.

Systems Xcellence (SXC) is headquartered in Milton, Ontario with offices and processing centres in Lombard, Illinois, Scottsdale, Arizona and Victoria, British Columbia. SXC is a leading provider of healthcare information technology solutions and services to the healthcare benefits management industry. The company's product offerings and solutions combine a wide range of software applications, application service provider (ASP) processing services and professional services, designed for many of the largest organizations in the pharmaceutical supply chain, such as pharmacy benefit managers, managed care organizations, retail pharmacy chains and other healthcare intermediaries. SXC can be found on the Internet at www.sxc.com.

This press release contains forward-looking statements based on current expectations. These forward-looking statements entail various risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those reflected in these forward-looking statements. Risks and uncertainties about the Company's business are more fully discussed in the Company's Annual Information Form.



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