Access Health teams with CaliforniaKids to provide underprivileged kids with Personal Health Advisor.

RANCHO CORDOVA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 2, 1996--Beginning this month, Access Health Inc. (NASDAQ:ACCS) will provide its Personal Health Advisor (PHA) to children enrolled in the CaliforniaKids healthcare program.

It will be available to approximately 10,000 children by March of this year. CaliforniaKids offers health insurance on a not-for-profit basis to children between the ages 2-18 from low-income families who cannot afford coverage but do not qualify for Medi-Cal.

Personal Health Advisor is a 24-hour, personal health management program providing consumers with a broad range of healthcare information including symptom assessment, health education and general medical information. Parents will be able to call registered nurses 24 hours a day, seven days a week, including holidays, to ask questions or receive help in deciding the most appropriate medical course of action to take based on the caller's symptoms.

Additionally, Access Health will provide its AudioHealth Library, another 24-hour telephone service that provides callers with pre-recorded information on over 430 health topics. Topics range from fevers and bee stings to basic first aid and food poisoning.

"We are pleased to be chosen by CalKids to provide these children with better healthcare options," said Kenneth B. Plumlee, president and chief executive officer of Access Health Inc. "Our experience with similar programs indicates that Personal Health Advisor makes a noticeable impact on children and adults alike by offering them access to healthcare information, including preventive care education and advice on the appropriate direction to take when in need of care."

CaliforniaKids, based in Woodland Hills, Calif., helps to relieve some of the financial strain on struggling families by focusing on the goal of preventive care rather than responding to the health problems after they have already developed. Through health services including doctor office visits, x-rays, prescriptions and emergency care, CaliforniaKids provides children with the type of basic medical care they need.

"Personal Health Advisor is a wonderful addition to the preventive care services we offer to children," said Michael Koch, executive director of CaliforniaKids. "Kids are often overlooked by the healthcare system and in turn do not have the opportunity to stop health problems before they start. Personal Health Advisor is essential in helping us insure that these children are getting their medical needs met."

Access Health, Inc. is a leading provider of personal health management services designed to help healthplans, HMO's, self-insured employers, and hospital-based delivery systems improve the quality of care, reduce costs, and improve member satisfaction. Its services include health information, prevention, and care management programs that are designed to improve access and promote individual responsibility for managing health among consumers. Access Health is headquartered at 11020 White Rock Rd., Rancho Cordova, Calif., 95670. The phone number is 916/851-4000, fax is 916/852-3890 and World Wide Web address is http://www.access-health.com.

CONTACT: Access Health, Inc.

David Pincus, 916/851-4000

or

White & Company

Laura Hawkins or Amy Moran, 415/274-8100