PHS Pacificare Hlth Sys

SANTA ANA, Calif., Oct. 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- PacifiCare Dental & Vision, a subsidiary of Cypress, Calif.-based PacifiCare Health Systems Inc. (NYSE:PHS) has expanded its dental and vision access plan, PacifiCare SignatureSavings, nationally from its predominately Western U.S. presence. Now available in 42 states and starting as low as $5 a month, SignatureSavings is an affordable alternative to traditional dental and vision insurance that offers individuals and employers direct access to PacifiCare's dental and vision provider network with set fee schedules that save 20 to 70 percent off retail charges. There are no limitations, participation requirements, waiting periods, claim forms, deductibles, annual maximums or age restrictions. "As more consumers are required to pay for dental and vision care directly, they are demanding more broadly available and generally affordable solutions," said Kelly McCrann, president of PacifiCare Dental & Vision. "We believe SignatureSavings members will realize significant savings when they visit their dental or vision providers. Participants, and their covered family members, whether seeking routine care or even cosmetic procedures such as orthodontics, teeth whitening and LASIK can also realize tremendous savings through the SignatureSavings plan." For example, defining annual routine care for an individual as two dental exams, two dental cleanings, one Bitewing X-Ray, one vision exam and one set of $100 (retail) frames, in Phoenix, the Usual & Customary Rates for these services can total up to $500. The actual out-of-pocket costs for SignatureSavings members is about $200. Adding the program's annual cost for an individual employee of $60, SignatureSavings members can save approximately $220 on their annual routine dental and vision care. "PacifiCare SignatureSavings is an ideal solution for the millions of Americans who may not be able to purchase dental and vision coverage, but still have significant dental and vision care needs," said McCrann. "This also furthers our efforts to present new programs to employers that are trying to better manage their dental and vision costs or cannot currently provide dental and vision coverage; such as employers who have newly hired or part-time employees, associations, or groups unable to meet minimum-participation requirements." For more information about PacifiCare SignatureSavings, such as Fee Schedules, Participating Providers and convenient payment options, please visit http://www.signaturesavings.net/. About PacifiCare Dental & Vision PacifiCare Dental & Vision provide HMO and fee-for-service dental, and both Discount and PPO dental and vision benefits directly to individuals and employer groups and to seniors through Secure Horizons. PDV is a wholly owned subsidiary of PacifiCare Health Systems, one of the nation's largest consumer health organizations. PDV is based in Santa Ana, Calif., and may be reached at 800-622-6388 or at http://www.pacificare-dental.com/ and http://www.pacificare-vision.com/. About PacifiCare Health Systems PacifiCare Health Systems is one of the nation's largest consumer health organizations with nearly 3.3 million health plan members and approximately 11.3 million specialty plan members nationwide. PacifiCare offers individuals, employers and Medicare beneficiaries a variety of consumer-driven health care and life insurance products. Specialty plan operations include behavioral health, dental and vision, and complete pharmacy benefit management through its wholly owned subsidiary, Prescription Solutions. More information on PacifiCare Health Systems is available at http://www.pacificare.com/. DATASOURCE: PacifiCare Health Systems CONTACT: Dan Miller of PHS Media Relations, +1-714-226-3726, Web site: http://www.pacificare-vision.com/ Web site: http://www.pacificare-dental.com/ Web site: http://www.signaturesavings.net/ Web site: http://www.pacificare.com/

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