Tenet Reaches Agreement with Blue Cross of California

Tenet Healthcare Corporation (NYSE: THC) announced today that it has entered into a new multi-year agreement with Blue Cross of California, which is Tenet's second largest managed care payer nationally. The contract will be effective Feb. 1, 2008. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Under the agreement, members of Blue Cross of California's managed care plans will retain continued access to Tenet's 16 acute care hospitals, a specialty hospital, and outpatient centers for their in-network health care services.

"The new agreement allows us to continue providing uninterrupted services to our patients who are covered by Blue Cross of California. We are excited by this opportunity to continue providing high-quality care for their members" said Stephen L. Newman, M.D., Tenet's chief operating officer.

The following Tenet hospitals are covered by these agreements and will continue to serve the health care needs of Blue Cross members in California:

• Community Hospital of Los Gatos, Los Gatos
• Desert Regional Medical Center, Palm Springs
• Doctors Hospital of Manteca, Manteca
• Doctors Medical Center, Modesto
• Fountain Valley Regional Hospital and Medical Center, Fountain Valley
• Garden Grove Hospital and Medical Center, Garden Grove
• Irvine Regional Hospital and Medical Center, Irvine
• John F. Kennedy Memorial Hospital, Indio
• Lakewood Regional Medical Center, Lakewood
• Los Alamitos Medical Center, Los Alamitos
• Placentia-Linda Hospital, Placentia
• San Dimas Community Hospital, San Dimas
• San Ramon Regional Medical Center, San Ramon
• Sierra Vista Regional Medical Center, San Luis Obispo
• Twin Cities Community Hospital, Templeton
• USC University Hospital and USC/Norris Cancer Center, Los Angeles

Brian A. Sassi, president of Blue Cross of California said, "We are delighted that Tenet Healthcare Corporation and Blue Cross of California will continue working together to provide outstanding access and the highest quality of care for Blue Cross members across the state. At Blue Cross, we strive to empower our members to make the health care choices that are right for them and their families. The broad network of hospitals within the Tenet Corporation provides members the opportunity to select the medical facilities and care to best meet their needs."

Clint Hailey, Tenet's chief managed care officer, said, "This agreement provides our hospitals with financial incentives as they meet certain quality criteria under the company's industry-leading Quality-In-Sights®: Hospital Incentive Program (Q-HIP), which assesses the quality of patient care provided by our hospitals. With Tenet's emphasis on providing high quality care to our patients, our hospitals fully anticipate receiving incremental benefit from this program."

Tenet Healthcare Corporation, through its subsidiaries, owns and operates acute care hospitals and related ancillary health care businesses, which include ambulatory surgery centers and diagnostic imaging centers. Tenet is committed to providing high quality care to patients in the communities we serve.

Source: Tenet