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Take Care Health Systems(SM) and Walgreens to Open ''Health Corner Clinics'' in Chicago Area

Posted on: Monday, 24 July 2006, 09:00 CDT

Take Care Health, a leading operator of convenient care clinics, announced today that it plans to open up to 20 Health Corner Clinics in Chicago this fall in partnership with Walgreen Co. (NYSE, NASDAQ: WAG), the nation's largest drugstore chain. This is the first phase of a multi-phase expansion. To support the new in-store clinics and ensure high-quality health care and integration of patient care, Take Care Health will work in collaboration with physicians at Advocate Health Partners, the care management and managed care joint venture between Advocate Health Care and 2,800 physicians.

"We are excited to bring this new generation of quality health care, in convenient and easily accessible Walgreens locations, to the Chicago area," said Peter Miller, Take Care Health President and CEO. "At Take Care Health, we look forward to assisting the people of Chicago with their health care needs by continuing to place a premium on excellent service and affordable, high quality health care and remaining committed to guidelines set forth by the American Academy of Family Physicians and the American Medical Association."

"These clinics can improve health care delivery by making it more convenient and affordable for patients with common ailments," said Don Huonker, Walgreens vice president of pharmacy services. "The services offered at a Health Corner Clinic will complement care provided by the patient's primary care physician. Our goal is to work with the physician so that they are aware of all of the patient's treatment and can properly coordinate care."

Health Corner Clinics are professional health care clinics, locally operated by Take Care Health Illinois, Inc. Take Care Nurse Practitioners (TCNPs) diagnose, treat and write commonly used prescriptions for standard family illnesses in each clinic, including strep throat; ear, sinus, upper respiratory and bladder infections; pink eye; poison ivy; season allergies; and other ailments. TCNPs perform standard diagnostic screenings for blood pressure, blood sugar, PPD/Tuberculosis and pregnancy and offer a limited number of vaccinations, including flu shots and boosters for tetanus shots.

Take Care Health treats patients 18 months and older, and clinics will be open seven days a week, including nights and weekends, with no appointments necessary. Specific locations for the Health Corner Clinics in Chicago will be released in coming months.

Health Corner Clinics will accept most commercial insurance plans as well as government-managed plans such as Medicare and Medicaid. For insured patients, the cost of a visit is generally the same as their office visit co-pay. For uninsured patients, the average fee for service ranges from $59-$74 per visit.

Take Care Health Collaborates with Advocate Health Partners

Advocate Health Partners will coordinate collaborative physician agreements for Take Care Nurse Practitioners who will staff the new Health Corner Clinics in Chicago.

"We are extremely pleased to partner with Take Care Health and Walgreens on this in-store clinic partnership," said Lee B. Sacks, M.D., President, Advocate Health Partners. "As leaders in their respective industries, both Take Care Health and Walgreens share Advocate's commitment to increasing access to high quality health care within our communities."

The partnership with Advocate Health Partners is representative of Take Care Health's commitment to working in cooperation with the greater health care community toward a shared goal of providing accessible, patient-focused, quality health care in Chicago. A select group of physicians affiliated with Advocate Health Partners will become part of Take Care Health's quality initiative, performing quality review on a portion of Take Care Health's patient health records, complementing Take Care Health's proprietary nurse practitioner peer review and other incident tracking and reporting programs.

The Advocate Health Partners physician network will serve as a key source of referrals for TCNPs when a patient's condition falls outside of the Take Care Health's scope of practice. Likewise, Advocate Health Partners' physicians, where appropriate, can refer patients to Take Care Health during busy office hours or after-hours for minor conditions. In addition to the strong relationship with Advocate Health Partners, Take Care Health will also work with other primary care physicians and specialists in the Chicago region to foster a strong referral network for patients to get the care they need, when they need it. Take Care Health encourages all patients to have a medical home, which is a primary care provider who is aware of and coordinates all of that person's care.

To date, Take Care Health operates 17 centers in Portland, Ore. and the Greater Kansas City area. Take Care will open nine centers later this summer in St. Louis Walgreens stores, and will also expand on the East Coast later this year. Take Care Health plans to open 200 centers by June 2007 and 1,400 centers in U.S. cities by 2009.

About Take Care Health Systems

Take Care Health Systems (www.takecarehealth.com) of Conshohocken, Pa., a leading independent operator of convenient care clinics, is bringing high-quality, convenient and affordable health care to all Americans. Take Care Health's vision to combine best practices in medicine and the expertise and personal care of Take Care Nurse Practitioners (TCNPs) with world-class customer service is filling a critical need in America by providing easy access to health care. Take Care Health Centers are located inside national retail pharmacies, including Walgreens and Rite Aid, where TCNPs focus exclusively on diagnosis, treatment, screening and vaccinations for common family illnesses. Take Care Health collaborates with the medical communities in the markets where it operates and strongly supports the guidelines for convenient care clinics, set forth by the American Medical Association (AMA) and the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP). Take Care Health plans to open 200 centers by June 2007 and 1,400 centers in U.S. cities by 2009.

About Walgreens

Walgreen Co. is the nation's largest drugstore chain with fiscal 2005 sales of $42.2 billion. The company operates 5,294 stores in 46 states and Puerto Rico. Walgreens also provides additional services to pharmacy patients and prescription drug and medical plans through Walgreens Health Services, its managed care division, which includes Walgreens Health Initiatives Inc. (a pharmacy benefits manager), Walgreens Mail Service Inc., Walgreens Home Care Inc. and Walgreens Specialty Pharmacy.

About Advocate Health Partners

Advocate Health Partners is the care management and managed care contracting joint venture between Advocate Health Care and select physicians on the medical staffs of Advocate hospitals. With a physician network that includes more than 900 primary care physicians and 1,800 specialists, Advocate Health Partners is focused on improving health care quality and outcomes - while reducing the overall cost of care - in both the inpatient and ambulatory settings. Advocate Health Partners' award-winning clinically integrated approach to patient care utilizes best practices in evidence-based medicine, advanced technology and quality improvement techniques.

Oak Brook-based Advocate Health Care, the largest health care provider in Illinois, is ranked among the nation's top health care systems. A faith-based, non-profit system, Advocate is related to both the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and the United Church of Christ. Advocate's multiple sites of care in metropolitan Chicago include eight acute care hospitals and two children's hospitals, a home health care company and several of Chicago's largest medical groups.

With 25,000 employees, Advocate is the second largest private employer in Chicago. Through its three teaching hospitals, Advocate trains more resident physicians than any non-university teaching hospital in Illinois. For more information about Advocate Health Care, visit www.advocatehealth.com.

Source: Business Wire

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