CORRECTING and REPLACING Evercare Unveils Details of Nation's First Alzheimer's Disease Special Needs Plan in Phoenix

In the 2nd graph of the Evercare boilerplate, the URL should read http://www.evercarehealthplans.com/alzheimers (sted http://www.evercarehealthplans.com/alzheimer's) The corrected release reads: EVERCARE UNVEILS DETAILS OF NATION’S FIRST ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE SPECIAL NEEDS PLAN IN PHOENIX PLAN COUPLES INNOVATIVE CARE MODEL WITH BANNER ALZHEIMER’S INSTITUTE’S SPECIALIZED SERVICES TO DELIVER TAILORED SERVICES FOR PEOPLE WITH ALZHEIMER’S AND RELATED DEMENTIA Evercare, one of the nation’s, and Arizona’s, largest health care coordination programs, today unveiled the details of the first-ever Medicare Advantage Special Needs Plan designed exclusively for people with Alzheimer’s disease and chronic dementia. Residents of Maricopa County, Ariz. will be the first in the country to have access to this innovative health plan with tailored benefits and services, including special prescription drug coverage and the Alzheimer’s Association Safe Return® program. Evercare Care Managers will collaborate with memory disorder specialists from the prestigious Phoenix-based Banner Alzheimer’s Institute, with the goal of enhancing Evercare’s innovative model of care. The Evercare® Health Plan for People with Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementia provides benefits that go beyond traditional Medicare coverage. It is designed to meet the specific needs of families coping with the stress and issues of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia by providing personalized support from Evercare Care Managers. These trusted partners help guide members through the maze of health care services with the goal of delivering the kind of coordinated care and health outcomes that families have said in surveys gives them peace of mind. "For the first time, people with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia will be able to obtain health care specifically designed to address their complex health, behavioral and social support needs,” says Charles Dow, Regional Executive Director of Evercare Southwest Region and Executive Director of Evercare Arizona. "Evercare is proud to team with Banner Alzheimer’s Institute, one of the region’s most respected organizations for patients with memory loss and thinking problems. Through our shared focus on innovation and Evercare’s legacy of highly personalized health care coordination, we hope to advance the quality care for people with Alzheimer’s and their families in Maricopa County.” Specific member benefits include: Prescription drug coverage that provides access to prescriptions regularly utilized by people with Alzheimer’s disease and chronic dementia (including Aricept®); Enrollment in the Alzheimer’s Association’s Safe Return program, that helps reunite loved ones with the person with dementia who has wandered; Care Manager coordination of Alzheimer’s disease education, training and end-of-life planning services; Bereavement counseling and services to help caregivers cope with their emotions and stress; Emergency respite services that provide caregivers with a break so they can address their own health care needs, which are often overlooked due to the demands and stress of caregiving; and Access to Banner Alzheimer’s Institute’s care and treatment programs for those with Alzheimer’s and chronic dementia. The Evercare® Health Plan for People with Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementia is the first Special Needs Plan for Alzheimer’s disease approved for 2008 by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Enrollment begins November 15, 2007, and is effective January 1, 2008, for eligible Medicare beneficiaries living in Maricopa County. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, more than 5 million people nationwide are affected by Alzheimer’s disease or related dementia. According to the Arizona Department of Health, Alzheimer’s is the sixth leading cause of death in Arizona and accounted for five percent of all deaths in Maricopa County in 2005. The medical community does not yet fully understand what causes Alzheimer’s disease; and only 19 percent of people with it or other related dementias have this diagnosis recorded on their medical record. Teaming with Banner Alzheimer’s Institute Evercare has teamed with the prestigious Banner Alzheimer’s Institute in a collaboration that takes advantage of the complementary strengths of both organizations to address the needs of these patients and to give their families peace of mind. The new plan brings together Evercare’s nationally-recognized approach to caring for people with long-term chronic illness and their caregivers with Banner Alzheimer’s Institute’s care and treatment programs and services with the goal of meeting the needs of this population. This is critically important since 95 percent of Medicare beneficiaries 65 or older have at least two chronic conditions. The goal is to provide a holistic approach to address both dementia-related and other health issues under one plan with Evercare Care Managers coordinating the medical and non-medical needs of members and their caregivers. Evercare and Banner Alzheimer’s Institute share the following goals in supporting this special population: to slow the progression of the disease; to keep members in their desired living environment as long as possible; to preserve the member’s functional independence; and to provide the much-needed support to the family caregivers. Services available to members through the Banner Alzheimer’s Institute’s care programs include: Visits with a dementia specialist to evaluate dementia conditions and care planning; Assistance from memory loss specialists to help members and caregivers address non-medical needs; and Participation (for those who qualify) in clinical studies of possible disease-slowing treatments not yet available to the general public. "We are committed to addressing both the medical and non-medical needs of patients with Alzheimer’s disease and their families as fully as possible,” said Eric M. Reiman, M.D., Executive Director of the Banner Alzheimer’s Institute. "We are excited about the opportunity to work with Evercare in support of our shared goals.” Banner Alzheimer’s Institute is a Phoenix-based nonprofit treatment and research facility dedicated to helping people who suffer from memory and thinking problems. Since opening its doors in 2006, the Institute’s staff of memory loss specialists has established a care model specializing in memory disorders and devoted to meeting the medical and non-medical needs of these patients as well as the non-medical needs of their family caregivers. The Evercare Difference – A Care Model Based on Trusted Experts At the heart of the Evercare® Health Plan for People with Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementia is the unique and innovative Evercare Care Model – Professional Care Managers who serve as trusted partners to help orchestrate communication and services so that physicians, health care providers, members and their families are all working in concert to keep the member healthy and living as independently as possible. The Evercare Care Managers who will work with members of this plan will receive additional training and education to meet the needs of members with Alzheimer’s and related dementia. The Evercare Care Managers will also serve to support the family members who are often overwhelmed with their responsibilities in coping with this chronic disease. "Our Care Managers are essential to helping members and families navigate the maze of the health care system,” says Dr. Ana Fuentevilla, Medical Director for Evercare’s Arizona region. "We personalize our health care plans to meet the specific needs of our members and then we provide the trusted partner in our Care Managers who guide members and families along the way. That is what makes Evercare special.” About Alzheimer’s Disease and Chronic Dementia The number of people with dementia is growing at an alarming rate – every 72 seconds another person is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in the U.S. The most diagnosed dementia, Alzheimer’s disease is a chronic illness that affects an estimated 5 million Americans. It is a disease that is often diagnosed late, can last for many years and there is still no cure. Other types of dementia are caused by disorders such as Parkinson’s disease, Lewy Body disease, and vascular dementia. People living with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia, and their family caregivers, face special challenges in managing their illness: patients may forget to take their medications which can affect other medical conditions, they may wander off, they often become disoriented and are prone to falling, and they may become aggressive and violent. Medicare costs for people with Alzheimer’s disease will increase to nearly $50 billion by 2015, according to the Alzheimer’s Association. "In Maricopa County today, there are more than 50,000 individuals with Alzheimer’s disease and that number is steadily increasing,” says Deborah Schaus, Executive Director of Alzheimer’s Association Desert Southwest Chapter. "It is exciting that the first Medicare Advantage Special Needs Plan for people with Alzheimer’s disease in our nation is being initiated here in Arizona. We hope to see positive results in terms of quality of care and lower costs. We look forward to collaborating with companies such as Evercare and Banner Alzheimer’s Institute as we help families who are struggling with this devastating disease.” About Evercare Evercare is one of the nation’s largest health care coordination programs for people who have long-term or advanced illness, are older or have disabilities. Founded in 1987, Evercare today serves more than 150,000 people nationwide through Medicare, Medicaid and private-pay health plans, programs and services – from health plans for people in community and skilled nursing settings, to caregiver support and hospice care. Evercare offerings are designed to enhance health and independence, and in the complex world of health care, make getting care easier. Evercare is part of Ovations, a division of UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) dedicated to the health care needs of Americans over age 50. For more information about Evercare, call 1-888-834-3721 (TTY 1-888-685-8480) or visit http://www.evercarehealthplans.com/alzheimers. About Banner Alzheimer’s Institute The Banner Alzheimer’s Institute offers clinical care for patients with memory and thinking problems; education, referral and support services for family and caregivers; and research in clinical trials, brain imaging and genetics studies. The Institute is devoted to finding effective Alzheimer’s disease-slowing and prevention treatments in the shortest time possible. Banner Alzheimer’s Institute is owned and operated by Phoenix-based Banner Health, a nonprofit organization. It is also a member of the Arizona Alzheimer’s Consortium, a statewide "laboratory without walls” designed to leverage the complementary strengths of its seven member institutions to advance the scientific understanding, treatment and prevention of Alzheimer's disease. * ARICEPT® (donepezil HCl) is a registered trademark of Eisai Co., Ltd. * Safe Return® is a registered trademark of the Alzheimer's Association.