AdvancePCS Offers Another Drug Discount Card

March 11, 2002 - AdvancePCS (Nasdaq: ADVP), the nation's leading health improvement company, has teamed with major pharmaceutical companies to help cash-paying consumers without prescription drug coverage save more money on their medications. Consumers now will benefit directly from pharmaceutical manufacturer discounts that previously were available only to insurance companies and other large group purchasers.

"The people who end up paying the highest price for their medications often are the ones who can least afford it," said David D. Halbert, chairman and CEO of AdvancePCS. "By bringing manufacturer discounts to the individual consumer, we have begun to level the playing field. Individual patients now have purchasing power similar to giant corporations. We've used our relationships with manufacturers to help consumers spend less."

The addition of manufacturer discounts represents a significant enhancement to the AdvancePCS RxSavings Plan, already one of the most widely used prescription discount card programs in the country. The program combines multiple pharmaceutical manufacturers and a nationwide network of more than 40,000 pharmacies under one plan to offer patients a single-source solution.

The program ensures consistent pricing no matter which pharmacy a cardholder uses. AdvancePCS RxSavings Plan members pay either the discounted rate or the pharmacy's usual and customary price, whichever is lower. The program is available free to all consumers, and there are no age or income restrictions to join.

The AdvancePCS RxSavings Plan provides consumers with discounts on all prescription medications, with overall program savings averaging 20 percent. Now, with manufacturer discounts added, cardholders will see even greater savings on select drugs including Accupril for hypertension, Novolin for diabetes and Mircette oral contraceptives. Manufacturer discounts initially will be available on 21 commonly prescribed medications and more drugs will be added soon.

The AdvancePCS RxSavings Plan addresses an important need in this country. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 1999 approximately 43 million Americans had no health insurance coverage, and AdvancePCS estimates that approximately 17 million more Americans do not have outpatient prescription drug coverage included with their health insurance. Additionally, millions of Americans with drug coverage have inadequate benefits. The AdvancePCS RxSavings Plan can help to make drugs more affordable for these people.

"One of the criticisms of some prescription discount plans is that they are too narrowly focused, feature only one manufacturer, or benefit only a limited number of people," noted Halbert. "Our program is structured to provide value to millions of consumers and offer savings on all drugs."

In addition, the program has built-in safety features to help protect cardholders against potentially harmful drug interactions. AdvancePCS sends an online alert to the pharmacist whenever one drug may conflict with another drug a patient is taking. This can be especially helpful to patients who may be taking several drugs that have been prescribed by different doctors.

The AdvancePCS RxSavings Plan also offers new services to cash-paying consumers. For example, retail pharmacies participating in the program will advise cardholders about equivalent treatment options that cost less and assist them in getting new prescriptions from their physicians if appropriate.

Consumers can obtain an AdvancePCS RxSavings Plan card free of charge at www.AdvanceRx.com or by calling 1-800-ADVANCE.

About AdvancePCS

AdvancePCS (www.advancepcs.com) is the nation's largest independent provider of health improvement services, touching the lives of more than 75 million health plan members and managing more than $21 billion in annual prescription drug spending. AdvancePCS offers health plans a wide range of health improvement products and services designed to improve the quality of care delivered to health plan members and manage costs. AdvancePCS is ranked by Fortune magazine as one of America's 100 fastest-growing public companies and is included on the Forbes Platinum 400 list of best big companies.

The company's capabilities include integrated mail service and retail pharmacy networks, innovative clinical services, customized disease management programs, specialty pharmacy, clinical trials and outcomes research, information management, and prescription drug services for the uninsured. AdvancePCS clients include Blue Cross and Blue Shield organizations, insurance companies and HMOs, Fortune 500 employers, Taft-Hartley groups, state and local governments, and other health plan sponsors.

AdvancePCS' award-winning health improvement Web site, www.AdvanceRx.com, is a robust e-health portal upon which millions of consumers rely for a broad spectrum of health care needs and information.