AmeriPath Acquires Oklahoma Practices; Establishes Significant Presence With Acquisition in Oklahoma.

Business Editors

RIVIERA BEACH, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 4, 2001

AmeriPath Inc, (Nasdaq:PATH), the nation's largest company focused on providing anatomic pathology, cancer diagnostic and related healthcare information services, announced today that it has acquired a large Oklahoma pathology practice, comprised of 19 well-respected pathologists who have been servicing the Oklahoma City and Tulsa markets for over 25 years.

The practice's Oklahoma City operation is a hospital-based pathology practice and services 6 hospitals in the area. The Tulsa operation serves 10 hospitals in the Tulsa and northeast Oklahoma area and also provides outpatient pathology services through its outpatient diagnostic laboratory and relationships with two outpatient surgery centers. The practice also provides pathologists to serve as the Medical Directors for one of the large national clinical laboratories in both locations.

AmeriPath's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, James C. New, commented, "This very significant transaction represents the Company's initial entry into the state of Oklahoma and we are pleased to have Tommy L. Hewett, M.D., who built the practice, join us as the practice's Managing Director, along with his staff of 19 pathologists. We are very excited about the new business opportunities this acquisition creates in expanding our southwest regional business model. Through the addition of sales and marketing, and the esoteric testing services of our Center for Advanced Diagnostics, we can enhance the breadth of services offered in Oklahoma. Combined with our presence in Texas, this acquisition is of strategic significance in that it better positions AmeriPath to contract with and serve the needs of larger regional third party payers and managed care plans."

AmeriPath, Inc. is the nation's largest company focused on providing anatomic pathology, cancer diagnostic and related healthcare information services to physicians, hospitals, national clinical laboratories and managed care organizations. The Company's 425 physicians provide medical services through 42 outpatient pathology laboratories, 224 hospital inpatient laboratories, and 64 outpatient surgery centers in 21 states.

The statements of James C. New and other statements contained in this press release are "forward-looking statements" which are based on current beliefs and expectations. Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. In addition, forward-looking statements - which are identified by words such as "may", "should", "believe," "expect," "anticipate" and similar expressions -- are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from historical results or those expected or anticipated. These include risks and uncertainties relating to satisfaction of closing conditions, demand for pathology services, pricing, federal and state regulation (and compliance), reimbursement rates, government and third party payments, the ability to attract, motivate, and retain pathologists, dependence upon pathologists and contracts, the development and expansion of managed care and national clinical lab contracts, completion and integration of acquisitions and affiliations (and achievement of planned or expected synergies), competitive factors and technology. Further information regarding risks, uncertainties and other factors that could affect the Company's financial results, or could cause actual results to differ materially from those expected or anticipated, are included in the Company's Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 1999 and subsequent filings with the SEC.

Editor's Note: This release is also available at http://www.ameripath.com