MCLEAN, Va., April 28, 2008 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) has been awarded a task order under the Enterprise System Development (ESD) contract to provide the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) with software services that will better assist Medicare beneficiaries.

The ESD program is a 10-year, $4 billion indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract. Northrop Grumman's Information Technology (IT) sector was awarded the ESD contract in 2007.

Under the terms of the task order, Northrop Grumman will provide computer software services to the Medicare Beneficiary Database Suite of Systems (MBDSS) including system enhancements and maintenance.

The MBDSS is a collection of individual applications and services that provide a single, enterprise-wide authoritative source for Medicare beneficiary demographic data to support the collection and maintenance of Medicare beneficiary information.

"Northrop Grumman will help CMS optimize its computing resources by delivering better functionality and performance enhancements to the Medicare Beneficiary Database Suite of Systems," said George Peach Taylor Jr., M.D., vice president of Health and Human Services for Northrop Grumman IT's Civilian Agencies group. "Our technical expertise and advanced business solutions will provide a comprehensive and efficient application for Medicare beneficiaries."

The task order is valued at $36.5 million, which includes one base year and four option years.

Northrop Grumman has provided design, development and ongoing maintenance of critical CMS programs for 10 years. The company was also the prime contractor that supported all phases of the CMS MBDSS development effort since 1998.

Work on the contract will be conducted in Woodlawn, Md.

Northrop Grumman is a trusted integrator of advanced health solutions, including health and benefits systems management and information security. The company's services span the public health, healthcare delivery and life sciences domains, and include cutting-edge information exchange for electronic health records, Web-enabled workflow processing and large-scale information management.

Northrop Grumman Corporation is a global defense and technology company whose 120,000 employees provide innovative systems, products, and solutions in information and services, electronics, aerospace and shipbuilding to government and commercial customers worldwide. 

  CONTACT:  Christy Whitman
          Northrop Grumman Information Technology
          (571) 213-5302
          christine.whitman@ngc.com

          Juli Ballesteros, APR
          Northrop Grumman Information Technology
          (703) 556-2736
          juli.ballesteros@ngc.com