HOUSTON, Aug. 31, 2001 (PRIMEZONE) -- SurgiCare, Inc. (AMEX:SRG) a Houston-based Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC) provider, announced today that it has let the non-binding letter of intent it signed back in March for the possible acquisition of Surgery Centers of America II, LLC (SCOA) expire. After review, it was determined that the merger of the two companies was not in the best interest of either company or their shareholders.
"Our team has worked very diligently over the last year to identify suitable candidates for acquisition," said Dr. David Blumfield, Chief Executive Officer of SurgiCare. In that time we have successfully acquired two ASCs and have joint venture agreements in place to operate two other centers with Cirrus Health Services."
SurgiCare, which moved to the American Stock Exchange last month, has undertaken a plan of rapid expansion this year. The company has already begun consolidating the fragmented ASC industry by making a number of key acquisitions and signing a partnership agreement with Cirrus Health Services, Inc. SurgiCare currently has four ASCs under its control and has broken ground on its fifth.
"After we evaluated the potential merger with SCOA, we decided that it was not in everyone's best interest to pursue the deal at this time," added Charles Cohen, Chief Operating Officer of SurgiCare. "But we will keep the lines of communication open and may revisit a possible deal at some point in the future if the situation presents itself."
About SurgiCare, Inc.
SurgiCare, Inc. offers licensed, freestanding Ambulatory Surgery Centers and specialty hospitals for use by physicians and its physician partners and their patients. Freestanding refers to the fact that the facilities are physically and organizationally independent from a hospital. Ambulatory Surgery means surgical procedures that do not require overnight hospitalization after the surgery. The ASCs are run under the guidance of a committee of physician partners. SurgiCare's goal is to grow through mergers, acquisitions, and turnkey management contracts in conjunction with physician-involved supervision and potential equity participation within a public company model. For more information on SurgiCare, please visit the company's Website at www.surgicareinc.com.
Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This news release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, including statements that include the words "believes," "expects," "anticipates" or similar expression. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of SurgiCare, Inc. (the Company) to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. (Such factors include, among others, the risk factors contained in the Company's Annual Reports and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.) In addition, description of anyone's past success, either financial or strategic, is no guarantee of future success. This news release speaks as of the date first set forth above and the Company assumes no responsibility to update the information included herein for events occurring after the date hereof.