COVENTRY TO SELL MEDICAL OFFICES ASSOCIATED WITH ST. LOUIS HEALTH PLAN.

NASHVILLE, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 12, 1997--Coventry Corporation (Nasdaq/NM:CVTY) today announced that Group Health Plan (GHP), its health plan in St. Louis, Missouri, and BJC Health System(SM) (BJC) reached an agreement in principle to form a ten-year, strategic partnership. The proposed agreement includes BJC's acquisition of GHP's nine medical centers located throughout the St. Louis area. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed, and the ultimate definitive agreement is subject to approval by the Boards of both organizations.

Today's announcement was made by Allen F. Wise, president and chief executive officer of Coventry Corporation, and Dr. Samuel R. Nussbaum, BJC's executive vice president for medical affairs and system integration.

Under the agreement, BJC acquires GHP Medical Centers located in Arnold, Missouri; Bridgeton, Missouri; Chesterfield, Missouri; Fairview Heights, Illinois; Florissant, Missouri; St. Peters, Missouri; St. Louis (Lindell Blvd. and Southtown offices); and Sunset Hills, Missouri. The group practice includes 75 primary care and specialty physicians and 475 employees, all of whom become affiliated with BJC(SM) Medical Group and Children's Health Care Group.

"This agreement reflects a nationwide trend in which managed care firms are reorganizing or divesting the proprietary medical groups that were a key component in the early stages of managed care," said Mr. Wise. "As managed care has grown, the need for insurance organizations to own and operate their own medical practices has diminished. This strategic arrangement with BJC aligns us with one of the nation's preeminent healthcare systems and allows us to focus on what we do best -- provide marketing, medical management and the administration of health services."

Dr. Samuel R. Nussbaum said, "This agreement is beneficial to both parties. The acquisition of the Medical Centers represents yet another step in our efforts to build strong relationships with physicians and serve GHP members and our patients with excellence in clinical care and service. The locations of the Centers complements our existing network of aligned physicians' offices and enables us to increase accessibility to medical services throughout the St. Louis metropolitan area."

The financial agreement between GHP and BJC calls for BJC to receive a percentage of the premium to cover all of the medical treatments GHP members receive from GHP/BJC-affiliated physicians. This is expected to involve over 92,000 members of GHP's commercial and Medicare HMO product lines, as well as HealthCare USA Medicaid members. This type of percentage of premium reimbursement arrangement is consistent with GHP's preferred arrangement for provider partners.

This transaction is similar to another recent agreement announced by Coventry Corporation last week that involved the formation of a strategic relationship between HealthAmerica and Allegheny Health, Education and Research (AHERF) in Pittsburgh. That agreement includes a risk-sharing arrangement and AHERF's acquisition of HealthAmerica's medical practices, including Penn Group Medical Associates which has nine offices located throughout the metropolitan Pittsburgh area.

BJC Health System was established in 1993 and is the second-largest non-profit healthcare system in the United States. Serving two distinct markets, mid-Missouri and the St. Louis/southern Illinois region, the system provides community-based and academic healthcare services at more than 100 inpatient and ambulatory sites throughout Missouri and southern Illinois. Recognizing that its strength lies in fostering relationships with physicians, BJC involves physicians at all levels of strategic planning. Nine physicians are members of the system's board of directors and physicians lead numerous quality, clinical and performance improvement initiatives.

As the St. Louis region's second-largest provider of managed care, Coventry, through GHP and HealthCare USA, serves customers both in Missouri and Illinois and provides healthcare benefits to over 262,000 members. The managed care company contracts with 680 employer groups and offers HMO, point-of-service, and open access plans to their employees.

Coventry Corporation, headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, is a managed health care company that provides a wide range of health benefits and services to a broad cross section of employer and government-funded groups in Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, Missouri, Illinois, Virginia and Florida. The Company operates from regional headquarters in Pittsburgh and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; St. Louis, Missouri; Richmond, Virginia; and Jacksonville, Florida.

This press release contains forward-looking information. The forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements may be significantly impacted by certain risks and uncertainties described herein and in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission for the year ended December 31, 1995.

CONTACT: Coventry Corporation, Nashville

Dale B. Wolf, 615/391-2448