HealthMarkets, through its insurance subsidiaries, provides affordable health insurance to individuals, the self employed, Medicare beneficiaries and small businesses. HealthMarkets Agency Marketing Group (AMG) is the marketing arm of the insurance subsidiaries.

"We consider ourselves fortunate to have had the opportunity to support the ongoing efforts of Promise House and The Stewpot,” said Troy McQuagge, President of HealthMarkets Agency Marketing Group. “The work being done by these two organizations is making a real difference in the lives of people most at-risk in society and in need of a helping hand."

Promise House has been serving teens and families in crisis in the Dallas community since 1984, offering crisis intervention, emergency shelter, transitional living, education, counseling and street outreach.

"When HealthMarkets Agency Marketing Group chose to assist Promise House, we supplied a wish list to serve as a general guide for items needed by our staff for the teens we serve,” said Judy Wright, Vice President of Resource Development for Promise House. “We were shocked and thrilled when we found out they were bringing a 17-foot truck full of items. Because of the size of AMG’s gift, we were able to divide the items among all nine Promise House programs, directly touching all Promise House clients for the next several months."

The Stewpot began in 1975 as an outreach program for the First Presbyterian Church of Dallas, and has grown into a comprehensive resource center for homeless and at-risk individuals.

“This donation of cash and critical operating supplies is a wonderful boost for our organization. As we begin 2008, we see significant challenges as we work to enhance our services and as the number of homeless people in our community rise.”

About HealthMarkets

HealthMarkets, headquartered in North Richland Hills, Texas, is a provider of health and life insurance products to individuals, families, the self-employed, Medicare beneficiaries and small businesses. HealthMarkets offers products and services through its licensed insurance subsidiaries The MEGA Life and Health Insurance Company, Mid-West National Life Insurance Company of Tennessee and The Chesapeake Life Insurance Company. The Company’s offerings include individual and self-employed health insurance, small employer group health insurance, Medicare Advantage Private Fee For Service plans, life insurance and reinsurance. Through its Consumer Guided Health Insurance plans, HealthMarkets seeks to provide affordable and accessible health coverage to individuals and small businesses. The Company is owned by a group of private equity investors, including affiliates of The Blackstone Group, Goldman Sachs Capital Partners and DLJ Merchant Banking Partners, members of management and the Company’s independent, licensed agents through the Company’s agent stock accumulation plans. For more information, visit http://www.healthmarkets.com.

SAFE HARBOR STATEMENT UNDER THE PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACT OF 1995: Some of the matters discussed in this news release may contain forward-looking statements that are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Such forward-looking statements are intended to be identified in this document by the words "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "objective," "plan," "possible," "potential" and similar expressions. Actual results may vary materially from those included in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those included in the forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, general economic conditions; the continued ability of the Company to compete for customers and insureds in an industry where many of its competitors may have greater market share and/or greater financial resources; the Company’s ability to accurately estimate medical claims and control costs; changes in government regulation that could increase the costs of compliance or cause the Company to discontinue marketing its products in certain states; the Company’s failure to comply with new or existing government regulations that could subject it to significant fines and penalties and/or result in restrictions on its operations; changes in the relationship between the Company and the membership associations that make available to their members the health insurance and other insurance products issued by the Company’s insurance subsidiaries; changes in the laws and regulations governing so-called “association group” insurance (particularly changes that would subject the issuance of policies to prior premium rate approval and/or require the issuance of policies on a “guaranteed issue” basis); significant liabilities and costs associated with litigation; failure of the Company’s information systems to provide timely and accurate information; negative publicity regarding the Company’s business practices and/or regarding the health insurance industry in general; the Company’s inability to enter into or maintain satisfactory relationships with networks of hospitals, physicians, dentists, pharmacies and other health care providers; failure of the Company’s regulated insurance company subsidiaries to maintain their current ratings by A.M. Best Company, Fitch and/or Standard & Poor’s; and the other risk factors set forth in the reports filed by the Company from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission.