CVS ProCare To Acquire Stadtlander Pharmacy

ProCare Becomes Leader In Fast-Growing Specialty Pharmacy Field

WOONSOCKET RI (BUSINESS WIRE) - CVS Corporation announced today that its CVS ProCare subsidiary has signed a definitive agreement under which ProCare will acquire the assets of Stadtlander Pharmacy of Pittsburgh, Pa., a subsidiary of Bergen Brunswig Corporation for an undisclosed cash price. The transaction also includes a distribution agreement that calls for Bergen Brunswig to provide ProCare with $2.5 billion of pharmaceuticals over the next five years. The transaction is subject to normal closing conditions and review under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976. The acquisition is expected to be neutral to earnings this year and to add 2 cents per share in 2001. Credit Suisse First Boston Corporation provided advice to CVS for this transaction.

Stadtlander is a leading specialty pharmacy, providing full-service care to patients requiring special prescription needs for challenging and long-term health conditions. These long-term health needs include HIV/AIDS, organ transplants, cancer and biotechnology-based products for conditions such as multiple sclerosis. While Stadtlander's operations will be combined with CVS's own specialty pharmacy subsidiary, ProCare, the company will continue to maintain a presence in Pittsburgh.

"For the last year and a half, we have been building the management team, the infrastructure and the technology platform for an acquisition such as this. We have been striving to make CVS ProCare the largest, most integrated specialty pharmacy company in America," said CVS Chairman, President and CEO, Tom Ryan. "With this transaction we are well on our way to achieving that goal," said Ryan.

CVS ProCare, a division of CVS Corporation, was created to support complex and expensive drug therapies for conditions such as HIV/AIDS, cancer, organ and bone marrow transplant and other disease states requiring biotechnology-based drugs. CVS ProCare currently operates one centralized mail service pharmacy and 29 ProCare apothecaries in urban areas across the nation, and expects to operate approximately 50 apothecaries by year-end.

CVS/pharmacy is the nation's largest retail provider of prescriptions, with total sales of $18.1 billion in 1999. The company is the #1 drugstore chain in the U.S. with approximately 4,100 stores in the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Southeast and Midwest regions. General information about CVS, including corporate background and press releases, is available at CVS's web site at http://www.cvs.com/.

Bergen Brunswig Corporation, headquartered in Orange County, California, is a leading supplier of pharmaceuticals, medical-surgical supplies and specialty healthcare products as well as information management solutions and consulting services. Bergen's customers include the nation's healthcare providers (hospitals, nursing homes, physicians), drug stores, manufacturers and patients. Through its subsidiaries, Bergen provides product distribution; logistics; pharmacy management programs; and Internet fulfillment strategies designed to reduce costs and improve patient outcomes across the entire healthcare spectrum. Bergen Brunswig press releases are available on the Company's Web site at http://www.bergenbrunswig.com/.

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties. The potential risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from these expressed in the forward-looking statements are discussed in the Company's SEC filings.

Contact: Investor Contact: CVS Corporation Nancy Christal 914-722-4704 or Media Contact: CVS Corporation Todd Andrews 401-770-5717.

Copyright © 2000 At Home Corporation.

This article posted July 12, 2000.