CHICAGO, August 5, 2004 - GE Healthcare Financial Services, a unit of GE Commercial Finance, continues to extend its presence in the skilled nursing industry by structuring a $24 million long-term fixed rate first-mortgage loan to Life Care Centers of America, the nation's largest privately held skilled nursing operator. Life Care Centers, which operates 212 skilled nursing facilities and 40 independent and assisted living centers, is using the loan to refinance two properties and exercise its lease-purchase option on a third facility.

"GE Healthcare Financial Services designed a financing option that suited our needs and business objectives," said David Weiss, financial advisor to Life Care Centers of America. "We locked in a long-term rate in an environment of rising interest rates and were able to complete the transaction quickly. The GE team delivered with speed, flexibility and cooperation in completing the complex transaction."

Innovative financing such as Life Care Centers' loan, along with its industry knowledge and financial strength, has significantly enhanced GE Healthcare Financial Services' presence in the skilled nursing market. In fact, nine of the 20 largest skilled nursing providers, as ranked by Provider magazine, are GE Healthcare Financial Services' clients.

"While other lenders dropped out of this market during the recent downturn, GE Healthcare Financial Services seized the opportunity to build and strengthen long-term relationships with skilled nursing operators," said Tamera Gundersen, vice president of long-term care for GE Healthcare Financial Services. "Over the past five years, our approach has remained the same: We will continue to work with clients and prospects through business cycles to create tailored financing solutions to meet their business objectives."

GE Healthcare Financial Services, a unit of GE Commercial Finance, is a provider of capital, financial solutions, and related services for the global healthcare market. With over $13 billion of capital committed to the healthcare industry, GE Healthcare Financial Services offers a full range of capabilities from equipment financing and real estate financing to working capital lending, vendor programs, and practice acquisition financing. With its knowledge of all aspects of healthcare from hospitals and long-term care facilities to physicians' practices and life sciences, GE Healthcare Financial Services works with customers to create tailored financial solutions that help them improve their productivity and profitability. For more information, visit .

Media Contacts

Deia Campanelli
GE Healthcare Financial Services
312-441-6169