Distinguished Healthcare Leaders Appointed to Conventus Board of Governors.

Business Editors/Health/Medical Writers

WOODBRIDGE, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 30, 2003

Conventus Inter-Insurance Exchange, New Jersey's only physician owned and governed medical malpractice insurance reciprocal, today announced that the five founding members of its Board of Governors have been chosen.

The founding members are a group of prominent physicians with a distinguished record of professional achievements and community leadership and service.

The Board held its first meeting on Thursday, June 26th, at the offices of the Conventus Attorney-In-Fact in Woodbridge, NJ, and elected Albert Talone, DO Chairperson and Wendy Warren, MD Vice Chairperson.

"The Board is responsible for providing the leadership necessary to shape Conventus into the long-term medical malpractice insurance solution New Jersey so desperately needs," said Dr. Talone. "We will work hard to ensure that the members of Conventus can obtain quality coverage at the lowest cost possible, while maintaining a healthy Exchange that will be there when members need it."

"It's very important not to lose sight of the values on which Conventus was founded," Dr. Warren added. "We must always remain a 100 percent physician-owned and physician-governed company. That is the only way to ensure that our members' best interests will always come first."

The Board also created committees to oversee claims management, professional affairs, risk management and underwriting. Conventus is actively seeking members who are interested in serving on these committees.

Conventus Inter-Insurance Exchange is a not-for-profit, non-assessable reciprocal insurance exchange providing medical malpractice insurance in New Jersey. Conventus is a mutual-type insurance company, owned and governed by its physician policyholders. Conventus provides quality medical malpractice insurance coverage that is affordable over the long term to individual physicians and surgeons who conduct more than 75 percent of their practice in the state of New Jersey.

Founding Board of Governors

Robert B. Hill, M.D., F.A.C.S. is a member of the Dulles Agnew Surgical Society, the Association of Military Surgeons of the U.S and the Camden County Medical Society. Dr. Hill was an Assistant Professor of Surgery at the University of Medicine and Dentistry, Rutgers, and a U.S. Navy Lieutenant Commander and attending Staff Surgeon. He completed his internship and residency in General Surgery at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and the Graduate Hospital in Philadelphia.

Michael H. Rieber, M.D., F.A.C.S. is a member of the New Jersey Orthopedic Society, the Arthroscopy Association of North America, the American College of Sports Medicine and the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. Dr. Rieber is an adjunct professor at Seton Hall University's School of Sports Sciences. He completed a Fellowship in Sports Medicine at Pennsylvania State University/Hershey Medical Center, and a residency in Orthopedic Surgery and internship in General Surgery at Albany Medical Center.

Albert Talone, D.O., F.A.C.O.F.P., F.C.P.P. has been a New Jersey medical community leader for 25 years. He is a past President of the New Jersey Association of Osteopathic Physicians and Surgeons, Medical Director for two medical groups and an associate professor at the University for Medicine and Dentistry. Dr. Talone is a member of the American Osteopathic Association, the Academy of Osteopathy and the Burlington County Association of Osteopathic Physicians and Surgeons. He is a Fellow of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia and the American College of Osteopathic General Practitioners. Dr. Talone completed his post-graduate training at JFK Medical Center. He is a graduate of the Kansas City College of Osteopathic Medicine, University of Health Sciences, and the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Sciences.

Wendy Warren, M.D. graduated from Cornell University Medical College and completed her residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She received her subspecialty training in Maternal-Fetal Medicine at Columbia University, College of Physicians & Surgeons in New York. She is certified by the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology in these specialties. As a faculty member at Columbia University, her research focused on placental hormones and their association with preterm labor for which she received numerous grants. She is currently in practice in Maternal-Fetal Medicine at Saint Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston, New Jersey.

Warren Wolfe, D.O., F.A.A.F.P., F.A.C.M.Q. was named Physician of the Year (2002) by the New Jersey Association of Osteopathic Physicians and Surgeons and received the Physicians Recognition Award by the American Medical Association. Dr. Wolfe is a member of the American Osteopathic Association, Camden County Society of Osteopathic Physicians and Surgeons, New Jersey Academy of Family Physicians, American College of Utilization Review Physicians, The American College of Osteopathic Family Physicians and the National Osteopathic Fraternity, Lambda Omicron Gamma. Dr. Wolfe is a Clinical Assistant Professor of Family Practice at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, School of Osteopathic Medicine and a Preceptor at Drexel University School of Medicine in Philadelphia. Dr. Wolfe completed a rotating internship at Metropolitan Hospital in Philadelphia.