Blue Cross of California & Catholic Healthcare West Resolve Lawsuit Issues Cooperatively; Organizations Agree to Partner On Action Plan Benefiting Members and Patients

Business Wire, Feb 14, 2001

Blue Cross of California, with 5.6 million medical members, is the California operating subsidiary of WellPoint Health Networks Inc., one of the nation's largest publicly traded managed-care companies. WellPoint serves the health-care needs of about 7.9 million medical and approximately 40 million specialty members nationally.

WellPoint offers a broad spectrum of quality network-based health products including open access PPO, POS and hybrid products, HMO and specialty products. Specialty products include pharmacy benefit management, dental, utilization management, vision, mental health, life and disability insurance, long-term-care insurance, flexible spending accounts, COBRA administration, and Medicare supplements.

Catholic Healthcare West is the largest Catholic health-care system based in the Western United states with 47 hospitals and five medical practice groups in California, Arizona and Nevada.

CHW is sponsored by nine religious orders and works to further the healing ministry of Jesus by delivering compassionate, high-quality, affordable health services; providing direct services to our brothers and sisters who are poor and disenfranchised; advocating on their behalf and partnering with others to improve the quality of life in the communities we serve.

CHW annually cares for more than 300,000 patients; provides more than $400 million in community benefits and care for the poor; and employs approximately 40,000 people.

         40 CATHOLIC HEALTHCARE WEST HOSPITALS PARTICIPATING IN
             BLUE CROSS OF CALIFORNIA'S CARE GIVER NETWORK

Northern California Division:
Mercy General Hospital, Sacramento
Mercy Hospital of Folsom, Folsom
Mercy San Juan Hospital, Carmichael
Methodist Hospital of Sacramento, Sacramento
Sierra Nevada Memorial Hospital, Grass Valley
Woodland Memorial Hospital, Woodland
St. Dominic's Hospital, Manteca
Oak Valley District Hospital, Oakdale
St. Joseph's Medical Center, Stockton
St. Joseph's Behavioral Health Center, Stockton
Mercy Hospital and Health Services, Merced
Mark Twain St. Joseph's Hospital, San Andreas

Greater Bay Area Division:
St. Mary's Medical Center, San Francisco
Seton Medical Center, Daly City
Seton Medical Center Coastside, Moss Beach
O'Connor Hospital, San Jose
St. Louise Regional Hospital, Gilroy
Saint Francis Memorial Hospital, San Francisco
Sequoia Hospital, Redwood City
Dominican Hospital, Santa Cruz

Southern California Area Region:
Robert F. Kennedy Medical Center, Hawthorne
California Hospital Medical Center, Los Angeles
St. Vincent Medical Center, Los Angeles
Glendale Memorial Hospital & Health Center, Glendale
St. Francis Medical Center, Lynwood
St. Mary Medical Center, Long Beach
Northridge Hospital Medical Center, Roscoe Campus
Northridge Hospital Medical Center, Sherman Way Campus
San Gabriel Valley Medical Center, San Gabriel
St. Bernadine Medical Center, San Bernardino
Community Hospital of San Bernardino, San Bernardino
Bakersfield Memorial Hospital, Bakersfield
Mercy Hospital, Bakersfield
Memorial Center, Bakersfield
Mercy Southwest Hospital, Bakersfield
Mercy Westside Hospital, Taft
Marian Medical Center, Santa Maria
St. Francis Medical Center, Santa Barbara
St. John's Pleasant Valley Hospital, Camarillo
St. John's Regional Medical Center, Oxnard