To become a participant, a provider must:

• have privileges at a hospital in The First Health® Network;

• be board certified if a specialist;

• complete an application;

• satisfy First Health credentialing review requirements; and

• sign a Participating Provider Agreement.

STND B001 3/98

Dear Patient: To have your physician considered for The First Health® Network, please fill out the patient section of the attached card and bring or send the whole brochure to your physician. This initiates our physician nomination process and is followed by these steps: Your physician fills out and sends us the card requesting more information about The First Health Network. We send you a letter if and when we receive the card from your physician. Our letter explains whether your physician has met our initial screening criteria. If you do not receive this letter in about a month, you may want to follow up with your physician to see if he or she has sent the card to us. If your physician has hospital privileges at a network hospital and meets our needs for the location we are targeting, we call him or her to determine whether there is mutual interest in a relationship. If so, we send your physician an application. Your physician completes the application and returns it. We call the physician to discuss criteria for network acceptance (see below). Due to the number of steps involved, the physician nomination process usually takes up to six months to complete. If you have any questions, please call your benefits office or the First Health® telephonic provider directory at the toll-free number on your ID card.

Dear Physician: You have obviously worked hard to foster relationships with your patients---relationships built on respect and trust. As a result, you are being asked by the patient listed on the attached card to join The First Health Network. If you aren't already aware, The First Health® Network is the leading national preferred provider organization (PPO) in the country. Being a member of the network offers you considerable benefits, including: access to a large and growing patient population; reimbursement based on a fixed fee schedule; 30-day turnaround for complete and accurate claims; no fees, annual dues, or withholds; and affiliation with a select group of physicians. For more information, please complete the attached card and mail it today. Your patient will be glad you did.