Health Management Associates, Inc. Appoints Divisional Leader

Business Wire, August 27, 2008

NAPLES, FLORIDA -- Health Management Associates, Inc. (NYSE:HMA) announced today that Page H. Vaughan has been appointed Senior Vice President and Divisional CEO for HMA's Midwest City area hospital operations, including the Oklahoma Heart Hospital South Campus joint venture.

Mr. Vaughan most recently served as Senior Vice President and Divisional CEO for HMA's North and South Carolina hospitals where he assisted in the successful completion of HMA's seven-hospital joint venture with Winston Salem-based Novant Health. Mr. Vaughan began his career with HMA in 1991 as an Assistant Administrator at Highland's Regional Medical Center in Sebring, Florida, and has steadily progressed in leadership roles within the company including CEO responsibilities at several of HMA's replacement hospitals.

"Page's track record as a successful hospital operator, together with his reputation as a champion of collaboration between physicians and hospitals, makes him an excellent choice for this important position," said Kelly Curry, HMA's Chief Operating Officer. "With a recently completed hospital joint venture with local physicians and a developing multifaceted joint venture with the Oklahoma Heart Hospital, HMA's Midwest Regional Medical Center requires Page's twenty years' of experience and expertise to ensure continued success."

HMA's mission is the delivery of compassionate and high quality health care services that improve the quality of life for its patients, physicians, and the communities it serves. HMA owns and operates 57 hospitals, with approximately 8,100 licensed beds, in non-urban communities located throughout the United States. All references to "HMA" or the "Company" used in this release refer to Health Management Associates, Inc. or its affiliates.

Certain statements contained in this release, including, without limitation, statements containing the words "believes," "anticipates," "intends," "expects," "optimistic," and words of similar import, constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements may include projections of revenue, income or loss, capital expenditures, debt structure, bad debt expense, capital structure, or other financial items, statements regarding the plans and objectives of management for future operations, statements of future economic performance, statements of the assumptions underlying or relating to any of the foregoing statements, and other statements which are other than statements of historical fact.

Statements made throughout this release are based on current estimates of future events, and HMA has no obligation to update or correct these estimates. Readers are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties, and that actual results may differ materially as a result of these various factors.