Tenet Completes Sale of Doctors Hospital of Jefferson to East Jefferson General Hospital.

Aug. 31, 2004--Tenet Healthcare Corporation (NYSE: THC) announced today that a company subsidiary has completed the sale of Doctors Hospital of Jefferson, a 124-bed acute care hospital in Metairie, La., to East Jefferson General Hospital. For a short period of time following completion of the sale, Tenet will remain responsible for all day-to-day hospital operations to facilitate an orderly transition to East Jefferson General Hospital.

Gross proceeds to Tenet from the sale, including the liquidation of working capital, are estimated to be approximately $27 million, which includes approximately $24 million for property, plant and equipment. Net after-tax proceeds, including the liquidation of working capital, are expected to be approximately $33 million. The company expects to use the proceeds of the sale for general corporate purposes.

East Jefferson General Hospital, a community-owned, 460-bed hospital that has served Jefferson Parish since 1971, is located across the street from the Doctors Hospital of Jefferson campus. East Jefferson General Hospital will continue to offer health care services at the Doctors Hospital facility. Employees of Doctors Hospital of Jefferson will have the opportunity to apply for vacant positions at East Jefferson General Hospital and at the other Tenet hospitals and health care facilities in the New Orleans area that Tenet is retaining.

"We are pleased to be transferring Doctors Hospital of Jefferson to an experienced, community-based provider who will continue to use the facility to provide health care services to Jefferson Parish," said W. Randolph Smith, president of Tenet's former Western Division, who is overseeing the company's previously announced divestiture program. "New Orleans remains an important market for Tenet and we are committed to continue serving the community through the remaining network of acute care hospitals and related health care facilities that we are retaining in the area."

Doctors Hospital of Jefferson is one of the 27 facilities Tenet announced in late January that it was divesting -- 19 in California, two in Louisiana, three in Massachusetts, two in Missouri and one in Texas. In June, Tenet completed the sale of Brownsville Medical Center in Brownsville, Texas, to Valley Baptist Health System. Net after-tax proceeds, including the liquidation of working capital, are estimated to be approximately $68 million. In July, Tenet announced it had entered into a definitive agreement to sell four hospitals in the East Los Angeles area to AHMC Inc. Estimated net after-tax proceeds, including the liquidation of working capital, are expected to be approximately $95 million. That transaction is expected to be complete by Sept. 30. Also in July, Tenet returned 232-bed Doctors Medical Center - San Pablo in San Pablo, Calif., to the West Contra Costa Health Care District, the entity from which the company had been leasing the facility. In a separate announcement today, Tenet said it was transferring ownership of three West Los Angeles-area hospitals to Centinela Freeman HealthSystem, a new community-based health care delivery network in Los Angeles. In agreement with the new owner, terms of the transaction were not immediately disclosed. Negotiations with potential buyers for the remaining 17 hospitals are ongoing.

Tenet Healthcare Corporation, through its subsidiaries, owns and operates acute care hospitals and related health care services. Tenet's hospitals aim to provide the best possible care to every patient who comes through their doors, with a clear focus on quality and service. Tenet can be found on the World Wide Web at www.tenethealth.com.

Some of the statements in this release may constitute forward-looking statements. Such statements are based on our current expectations and could be affected by numerous factors and are subject to various risks and uncertainties discussed in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended Dec. 31, 2003, our quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and periodic reports on Form 8-K. Do not rely on any forward-looking statement, as we cannot predict or control many of the factors that ultimately may affect our ability to achieve the results estimated. We make no promise to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of changes in underlying factors, new information, future events or otherwise.