Health Net Appoints Former Senior Defense Official to TRICARE Advisory Committee.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Health Net Federal Services, LLC (HNFS), the government operations division of Health Net, Inc. (NYSE:HNT), announces the appointment of former Principal Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, Charles L. Cragin to its TRICARE Advisory Committee, formed to provide guidance and support in achieving and maintaining operational excellence to Health Net Federal Services' leadership.

Prior to his appointment, Cragin also served as the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs and was the first presidential-appointed, Senate-confirmed, Chairman of the Board of Veterans Appeals of the Department of Veterans Affairs. He served for over 36 years in the U.S. Navy and U.S. Navy Reserve and retired at the rank of Captain. In 1982 he was the Republican nominee for governor of Maine. Cragin is the recipient of numerous awards and decorations including the Distinguished Service Award of the National Military Family Association. Cragin brings a wealth of established relationships with senior leadership within the Department of Defense, the military community and with political leaders, expanding the breadth of the committee's expertise.

"Health Net Federal Services is honored to welcome Charles Cragin to its TRICARE Advisory Committee. His leadership and extensive experience in the political and government arenas will be invaluable as we develop and maintain government health care programs that extend military health care standards," said Steve Tough, president, Health Net Federal Services.

Cragin will serve with current advisory committee members, former Surgeon General of the Army, retired Lieutenant General Jim Peake; former Surgeon General of the Air Force, retired Lieutenant General Rusty Sloan; former Deputy Surgeon General of the Navy, retired Rear Admiral Kathy Martin; and former Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Office of the Chief, National Guard Bureau, CSM John J. Leonard, Jr.

About Health Net

Health Net Federal Services, a subsidiary of Health Net, Inc., has a long history of providing cost-effective, quality managed health care programs for government agencies including the Department of Defense and Veterans Affairs. As the managed care support contractor for the TRICARE North Region, Health Net provides health care services to over 3 million uniformed services beneficiaries, active and retired, and their families.

Health Net, Inc. is among the nation's largest publicly traded managed health care companies. Its mission is to help people be healthy, secure and comfortable. The company's HMO, POS, insured PPO and government contracts subsidiaries provide health benefits to approximately 6.6 million individuals in 27 states and the District of Columbia through group, individual, Medicare, Medicaid and TRICARE and Veterans Affairs programs. Health Net's behavioral health services subsidiary, MHN, provides behavioral health, substance abuse and employee assistance programs (EAPs) to approximately 7.3 million individuals in various states. The company's subsidiaries also offer managed health care products related to prescription drugs, and offer managed health care product coordination for multi-region employers and administrative services for medical groups and self-funded benefits programs.

For more information on Health Net, Inc., please visit the company's Web site at www.healthnet.com. For more information on Health Net Federal Services, please visit www.healthnetfederalservices.com.

Cautionary Statements

This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. All statements, other than statements of historical information provided herein, may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. These statements are based on management's analysis, judgment, belief and expectation only as of the date hereof, and are subject to uncertainty and changes in circumstances. Without limiting the foregoing, the words "believes," "anticipates," "plans," "expects," "may," "should," "could," "estimate," "intend" and other similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Actual results could differ materially due to, among other things, rising health care costs, negative prior period claims reserve developments, trends in medical care ratios, issues relating to provider contracts, litigation costs, operational issues, health care reform and general business conditions. Additional factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those reflected in the forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the risks discussed in the "Risk Factors" section included within the company's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q filed with the SEC. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. The company undertakes no obligation to publicly revise these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that arise after the date of this release.