Guidant Elaborates on its Distribution Agreement With COOK.

Business Editors, Health/Medical Writers

INDIANAPOLIS--(BW HealthWire)--Aug. 20, 2001

Agreement Intended to Accelerate Time to Market and

Complements Guidant's Drug-Coated Stent Program

Guidant Announces Live Webcast of its Drug-Coated Stent Briefing

Guidant Corporation (NYSE:GDT)(PCX:GDT), a global leader in cardiac and vascular therapy technology, today announced that its new drug-coated stent distribution agreement with COOK(R) Incorporated is intended to accelerate the timetable for Guidant marketing a drug-coated stent in the U.S. and international markets. The agreement also complements Guidant's ongoing internal drug-coated stent program.

"This announcement is the consummation of several agreements with COOK that will ultimately expand our competitive flexibility in the drug-coated stent market worldwide," stated Ronald W. Dollens, Guidant president and CEO. "Guidant is now uniquely positioned with a broad drug-coated stent program that provides multiple options that we believe will shorten the time-to-market of this important new therapy to physicians and their patients."

"This relationship strengthens the competitive position of both companies," commented John M. Capek, Ph.D., president, Vascular Intervention, Guidant. "With this series of agreements, Guidant is the only company with the opportunity to bring to market two of the most significant compounds currently under clinical investigation. In addition, Guidant now has the opportunity to bring to the U.S. market a paclitaxel stent system approximately six months ahead of our internal drug-coated stent program."

Guidant's Internal Drug Coated Stent Program Continues to Make

Progress

Guidant continues to make significant progress with its European ACTION clinical trial supporting Guidant's PHARMA-LINK(TM) Drug Eluting Stent Program. Guidant began the randomization phase of the study last week and continues to enroll patients. Data from the first 90 patients of this study will be used to file with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for Guidant's pivotal study in the United States. The company anticipates completion of enrollment of these first 90 patients during September.

"The strength of our internal drug-coated stent program coupled with our new distribution agreement with COOK affirms our leadership in developing therapies to treat coronary artery disease," stated Dollens. "Guidant's industry leading portfolio of coronary and peripheral stents, dilatation catheter systems and now the emerging therapies of drug-coated stents and intravascular radiotherapy ensure that we are in the forefront of providing innovative medical solutions to our customers."

Webcast Information

Guidant will conduct a live webcast and conference call regarding its drug-coated stent program tomorrow, Tuesday, August 21, at 8:00 a.m. EDT. The webcast of Guidant's conference call will be accessible to all investors through Guidant's website at http://www.guidant.com/financial/webcast/ or at http://www.streetfusion.com.

Guidant Corporation pioneers lifesaving technology, giving an opportunity for better life to millions of cardiac and vascular patients worldwide. To date, more than seven million patients have been treated with Guidant products. The company, driven by a strong entrepreneurial culture of 10,000 employees, develops, manufactures and markets a broad array of products and services that enable less invasive care for some of life's most threatening medical conditions. For more information visit www.guidant.com.

System requirements for the webcast include Internet Explorer 5.0 (or higher) or Netscape Navigator 4.0 (or higher). Users also should have the most recent version of Windows Media Player, which can be downloaded for free at http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/en/download/. Users may experience varying levels of performance based on their connection speed, system capabilities and presence of a corporate firewall. To ensure a connection, users should go to the program five to 15 minutes before its start.

This release contains forward-looking statements about the company's future financial results, the company's prospects and products in research and development. This information is based upon management's current expectations, but actual results may differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements. Other factors affecting future results include those outlined in Exhibit 99 to the company's Form 10-Q for the quarter ending June 30, 2001.