NEW YORK, NY--(MARKET WIRE)--Aug 21, 2008 -- MultiPlan, Inc., the nation's oldest and largest provider of independent PPO networks, today announced the recipients of its 2008 Rural Health Outreach Grant Program.

The ten facilities receiving this year's grant were selected from 138 applications and represent a diverse array of programs designed to help improve the health of people living in rural areas. Grant recipients will each receive $3,000 that will go toward introducing or expanding health services, educational programs, screenings and other healthcare related endeavors that support their communities.

MultiPlan introduced its Rural Health Outreach Grant in 1995 and since then has awarded nearly $300,000 to rural healthcare facilities across the country that participate in MultiPlan's networks. Dr. Paul Goldstein, Vice President and Chief Medical Officer for MultiPlan, recognizes the challenges faced by rural healthcare providers, "The healthcare needs of people in rural communities may vary greatly from one area to the next. The medical providers who live and work in these areas are best suited to know the unique needs of their community. Through this grant, we're able to support our participating providers and their communities in a way that lets them decide the best use of these funds."

The recipients of the 2008 MultiPlan Rural Health Outreach Grant are:

 
--  Alliance Healthcare System in Holly Springs, Mississippi will use
    their grant to kick off the Holly Springs Hoofers walking club, which seeks
    to improve community public health through a focused, community-wide
    physical activity.
--  Atlanta Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, Texas will purchase balance
    therapy equipment used in its Senior Falls Prevention Program.
--  Fairmont General Hospital in Fairmont, West Virginia will provide
    instructional, nutritional, and physical activities for 100 fifth graders
    through their Get Fit Fifth Graders program.
--  Fisher-Titus Medical Center in Norwalk, Ohio is expanding their CPR
    Anytime program for at-risk infants and infants born to teenaged parents.
--  Licking Memorial Hospital in Newark, Ohio will provide ECG or EKG
    testing to their pre-participation sports screening evaluations.
--  Logan Medical Center in Guthrie, Oklahoma will continue improvements
    of their emergency pediatric services.
--  Lourdes Health Network in Pasco, Washington will offer education about
    breast cancer prevention and screening procedures as well as free
    mammograms to uninsured and underinsured women.
--  Mercy Hospital in Independence, Kansas will institute a program that
    provides diabetic patients with primary care, health education, and support
    that encourages positive lifestyle changes and improves control of the
    disease.
--  New London Hospital in New London, New Hampshire is using their grant
    to provide free mammograms and breast cancer diagnostic services.
--  Unity Family Healthcare in Little Falls, Minnesota will put their
    grant towards their Bridges: Youth, Family, Community program to improve
    the lives of at-risk children and their respective families through
    intervention, support and education.

For more information about the MultiPlan Rural Health Outreach Grant and other community-related programs offered to MultiPlan hospitals, visit the MultiPlan website at www.multiplan.com/providers.

About MultiPlan

MultiPlan is the industry's most comprehensive provider of medical cost management solutions. The company provides over 2,100 clients with a single gateway to a host of primary, complementary and out-of-network strategies for managing the financial risks associated with healthcare claims. Clients include large and mid-sized insurers, third-party administrators, self-funded plans, HMOs and other entities that pay claims on behalf of health plans. Services include PHCS Network, the country's leading independent primary PPO network, The MultiPlan Network, the national network most often used to complement a primary PPO, fee negotiation services, a Wisconsin-based primary PPO and a national transplant network. Well over 600,000 providers participate with MultiPlan through these networks. Incorporated in 1980, MultiPlan is owned by a group of investors led by The Carlyle Group. For more information, visit www.multiplan.com.

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