Merit Medical Systems Awarded 3-Year HealthTrust Contract for Fluid Management and Safety Products

Business Wire, Sept 4, 2002

Business Editors & Health/Medical Writers

SOUTH JORDAN, Utah--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 4, 2002

Merit Medical Systems Inc. (Nasdaq:MMSI) announced a three-year product supply agreement with HealthTrust Purchasing Group, one of the nation's leading healthcare group purchasing organizations.

The new agreement provides an opportunity for almost 600 acute care hospitals in HealthTrust's member network base to purchase Merit's fluid management and safety products and accessories. The contract will become effective Oct. 1, 2002.

The contract for fluid management and safety products and accessories provides HealthTrust's member networks with a wide range of Merit products, including uniquely designed manifolds, angiography needles and control syringes, fluid administration sets, contrast management systems and blood pressure transducers.

Merit's portfolio of safety products is also included in the agreement and consists of the Merit Disposal Depot(R) line of waste containment products, Medallion(R) specialty syringes, Majestik(R) needles, BackStop(R) and DugOut(TM) fluid disposal safety basins, and ShortStop(TM) temporary sharps container.

"Merit is widely known for the quality and reliability of its products. As one of HealthTrust's new vendors, this contract provides Merit the opportunity to expand the use of its custom kits and safety products, which offer convenience and design innovation," said Fred P. Lampropoulos, chairman and chief executive officer of Merit.

"We are very pleased that HealthTrust has recognized Merit's products in their membership offerings."

The networks within HealthTrust's membership include: ASD; American MedTrust; Ardent Health Services LLC; Essent Healthcare; HCA (NYSE:HCA); Health Management Associates Inc. (NYSE:HMA); Iasis Healthcare Corp.; LifePoint Hospitals Inc. (Nasdaq:LPNT); MedVantage; Province Healthcare (Nasdaq:PRHC); Quorum Health Resources; SunLink Healthcare Corp. (AMEX:SSY); Symphony; Triad Hospitals Inc. (NYSE:TRI); and Vanguard Health Systems.

Merit produces disposable products such as manifolds for fluid path management, tubing, syringes, pressure transducers, disposal bags, and contrast management and configures them into kits made to order specifically for a hospital.

For added convenience, the kits are pre-assembled and sterilized at Merit and are laid out in a ready-to-use format by clinicians just prior to a diagnostic or therapeutic procedure in either the cardiology or radiology lab. Merit's safety products complement the use of custom kits during these procedures and provide clinicians with safe handling of fluids and sharp instruments.

About Merit

Founded in 1987, Merit Medical Systems is a publicly traded company engaged in the development, manufacture and distribution of proprietary disposable medical products used in interventional and diagnostic procedures, particularly in cardiology and radiology. The company serves client hospitals worldwide with a domestic and international sales force totaling approximately 70 individuals.

Merit Medical employs approximately 1,070 individuals worldwide, with manufacturing facilities in South Jordan and Salt Lake City; Santa Clara, Calif.; Angleton, Texas; and Galway, Ireland. For more information about Merit Medical, visit www.merit.com.

Statements contained in this release which are not purely historical are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and are subject to risks and uncertainties such as those described in the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended Dec. 31, 2001.

Such risks and uncertainties include introduction of products in a timely fashion, market acceptance of new products, cost increases, fluctuations in and obsolescence of inventory, price and product competition, availability of labor and materials, development of new products and techniques that render the company's products obsolete, delays in obtaining regulatory approvals, potential product recalls, foreign currency fluctuations, changes in health care markets related to health care reform initiatives and other factors referred to in the company's 10-K and other reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

All subsequent forward-looking statements attributable to the company or persons acting on its behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by these cautionary statements. Actual results may differ materially from anticipated results.