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Aetna U.S. Healthcare Names Edwin C. Hedblom, Pharm.D., Chief Pharmacy Officer

BLUE BELL, PA, February 16, 2000 — (NYSE: ΑET) After a 12-year career in the pharmaceutical and pharmacy benefits management industries, Edwin C. Hedblom, Pharm.D., has been named chief pharmacy officer for Aetna U.S. Healthcare. The appointment was announced today by Nicholas A. Hanchak, M.D., head of Pharmacy Management for Aetna U.S. Healthcare. Reporting directly to Dr. Hanchak, Dr. Hedblom will assume overall responsibility for Aetna U.S. Healthcare’s clinical pharmacy management functions, which include clinical support, formulary management, regional pharmacy management and program management.

"Ed’s demonstrated leadership skills and his knowledge of both the managed care and pharmaceutical businesses make him an excellent choice for this position," said Dr. Hanchak. "As Aetna U.S. Healthcare continues to focus on the benefits of integrated pharmacy and medical data, Ed’s background in disease management, pharmacoeconomics and outcomes measurement will be a valuable asset. I look forward to the positive contributions that Ed will make to our organization."

Immediately prior to joining Aetna U.S. Healthcare, Dr. Hedblom worked for nearly five years at AstraZeneca, L.P. While at AstraZeneca, he held numerous roles, most recently as Director of Global Health Economics. Previously, Dr. Hedblom held leadership positions in the AstraZeneca integration, as well as roles in disease and patient management, and in outcomes measurement at AstraZeneca, the former Astra Pharmaceuticals.

Beginning in 1993, Dr. Hedblom spent two years at Diversified Pharmaceutical Services as director of pharmacoeconomics and outcomes research. Prior to that, he held the position of manager of product development at United HealthCare Corporation’s Center for Health Care Policy and Evaluation.

Dr. Hedblom received his doctor of pharmacy degree from the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy. He is a member of the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy and previously served on the editorial advisory board of the Journal of Managed Care Pharmacy. He has presented extensively on a variety of managed care topics, and his work has been published in peer-reviewed publications.

Aetna U.S. Healthcare Pharmacy Management is the country’s largest integrated pharmacy health benefit manager with approximately 14 million members enrolled in pharmacy benefit plans. Aetna U.S. Healthcare’s ability to integrate medical and pharmacy data in a timely fashion to help improve health outcomes differentiates the company from stand-alone pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs). This integrated information is used to help improve health outcomes through a variety of efforts that include claims systems that assist providers in identifying potentially harmful drug-to-disease interactions at the time a prescription is dispensed, and an asthma early-warning program that uses real-time prescription data to help identify members who may be at risk for an acute asthma attack.

Aetna U.S. Healthcare is the nation’s leading health and related benefits organization, providing a full spectrum of products ranging from health maintenance organizations (HMO) to indemnity health insurance, and dental, vision, and pharmacy benefits to more than 21 million Americans. In addition, Aetna U.S. Healthcare provides quality measurement and improvement programs and data analysis for providers and purchasers of health care.

For more information about Aetna Inc., please visit the company's website at www.aetna.com.