NEW YORK, NY, June 20, 2002—Fortis, Inc., part of international financial services provider Fortis, announced today that Howard L. Carver, Hartford Office Managing Partner, Ernst & Young, has joined the Fortis, Inc. Board of Directors. Mr. Carver will be retiring from Ernst & Young effective June 30, 2002 after 35 years with the firm. The addition of Mr. Carver increases the membership of the Fortis, Inc. Board to 11, four of whom are independent directors.

Kerry Clayton, President and CEO, Fortis, Inc. said, "I am delighted to welcome Howard to the Fortis, Inc. Board. We look forward to leveraging his expertise, knowledge and vision as we continue the successful execution of our strategy to build and manage a select portfolio of U.S. specialty businesses that are leaders in their respective markets."

Mr. Carver, a recognized authority in the financial services industry, has been a member of the E&Y National Insurance Steering Committee and past Co-chairman of E&Y's International Insurance Network. Mr. Carver's career with Ernst & Young has spanned five decades. His audit clients have included numerous insurance companies as well as several HMOs and more than 15 Blue Cross Blue Shield plans (and their related managed care operations) and a variety of asset management organizations.

Mr. Carver is also a fellow of the Life Management Institute. In addition, he has acted as Chairman of the Insurance Companies Committee of the Wisconsin Institute of CPAs and has served on the Wisconsin Commissioner of Insurance's Financial Advisory Council and HMO Financial Stability Task Force. Mr. Carver received his Bachelor's of Science degree from Bradley University and his Master's of Business Administration from the University of Wisconsin.

In addition to Mr. Carver, the Fortis, Inc. Board of Directors is composed of the following members:

Anton van Rossum (Chairman)

Mr. van Rossum is Chief Executive Officer of Fortis and Chairman of the Boards of Fortis Bank and Fortis Insurance. He is responsible for managing Fortis' extensive global insurance, investment and banking operations. Prior to joining Fortis, Mr. van Rossum was a Senior Partner at McKinsey and Company with management responsibility for its Brussels office. Mr. van Rossum holds a master's degree in Economics and Business Administration from the Rotterdam Erasmus University.

Hendrik Jochem Hielkema (Vice-Chairman)

Mr. Hielkema is a member of the Board of Directors of Fortis. Prior to his current position Mr. Hielkema was Vice Chairman of the Fortis Executive Committee and Chairman of the Management Committee of Fortis Insurance N.V. Mr. Hielkema started his career with Fortis in 1988 when he joined the Executive Board of Fortis AMEV N.V. (formerly N.V. AMEV, now Fortis N.V.). Before joining Fortis, Mr. Hielkema was a Senior Vice President at Chase Manhattan Bank and Chairman of the Executive Board of Nederlandse Crediet Bank. He earned a bachelor's degree in business administration from University of Oregon and a master's degree of business administration from Texas Tech.

Robert J. Blendon

Dr. Blendon has been a professor at the Harvard School of Public Health and the Kennedy School of Government since 1987. Previously, he served as Vice President of The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Mr. Blendon earned his bachelor's degree at Marietta College in Marietta, OH. He has a master's degree of business administration and an Sc.D. from Johns Hopkins University.

Beth Bronner

Ms. Bronner is the former President and COO of ADVO, Inc., the nation's largest full-service targeted direct mail marketing company. Before her position at ADVO, Inc. Ms. Bronner was President of the Health Division at Sunbeam Corporation. She has also held senior management positions at Citibank and AT&T. Ms. Bronner received a bachelor's degree from Vassar College and has a master's degree of business administration from the University of Chicago. She is currently a member of the Board of Directors of The Hain-Celestial Group.

J. Kerry Clayton

Mr. Clayton is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Fortis, Inc. Previously, Mr. Clayton held a variety of management positions at Fortis, Inc. including Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President of Fortis, Inc. and President of Fortis Benefits Insurance Company. Mr. Clayton earned an engineering degree from Georgia Tech and a master's degree of business administration from Harvard Business School.

Arie Aristide Fakkert

Mr. Fakkert is General Manager, Fortis International N.V. Prior to assuming his current position, Mr. Fakkert served as the General Manager, AMEV Praktijkvoorziening N.V. Mr. Fakkert began his career at Royal Dutch Shell Group serving in the U.S. and the U.K. He has a master's degree in business from Rotterdam Erasmus University.

Allen R. Freedman

Mr. Freedman joined Fortis, Inc. as its first president in 1979 and retired from his position as Chairman and CEO in 2000. With over three decades in the financial services industry, Mr. Freedman's experience includes banking, venture investing and tax law. Mr. Freedman has an undergraduate degree from Tufts University and a law degree from the University of Virginia. He has been Chairman of Systems & Computer Technology Corp., the leading provider of infrastructure software to the higher education marketplace, since January, 2002.

H. Carroll Mackin

Mr. Mackin was an Executive Vice President at Fortis, Inc. from 1982 to 1997. Before joining the company, he was Director for Investments at Forstmann, Leff. Mr. Mackin has a bachelor's degree from Georgia Institute of Technology and a master's degree of business administration from the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School.

John Michael Palms

Dr. Palms has been President of the University of South Carolina since 1991. Earlier in his career, Dr. Palms served as President of Georgia State University and was a professor and administrator at Emory University. Dr. Palms received a bachelor's degree in physics from the Citadel. He received his master's degree in physics from Emory University and his Ph.D. from the University of New Mexico. Dr. Palms also serves on the boards of Exelon Corporation, Computer Tasks Group, SIMCOM Corporation and is Chairman of the Board of the Institute for Defense Analysis.

Georges Valckenaere

Before retiring from Fortis as Advisor to the Chief Executive Officer in January, 2002, Mr. Georges Valckenaere was Chief Excutive Officer of Fortis International. Before joining Fortis International, Mr. Valckenaere was Director - General Manager of Fortis AG. In addition to serving on the Fortis, Inc. and Fortis International Boards of Directors, Mr. Valckenaere also served on the boards of Fortis Bank, AMEV/VSB, ASLK--CGER Bank and CAIFOR. Georges Valckenaere holds a masters degree in mathematics and a masters degree in actuarial science from Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (KUL).

About Fortis, Inc.

Fortis, Inc. is a financial services company that, through its operating companies and affiliates, has built leadership positions in a number of specialty insurance market segments in the U.S. The companies of Fortis, Inc. are leading providers of individual, temporary and small group health insurance; group disability, life and dental insurance; preneed funeral insurance; credit related insurance products and services; and membership and extended service programs. For more information, visit the company's website at http://www.us.fortis.com.

Fortis, Inc. is part of Fortis, an international financial services provider active in the fields of insurance, banking and investment. Fortis employs approximately 70,000 people worldwide and offers a broad range of financial services. In its home market, the Benelux countries, Fortis occupies a leading position and offers a broad range of financial services to individuals, companies and the public sector. Outside its home market, Fortis concentrates on selected market segments. Fortis had total assets in excess of $400 billion. As one of the world's largest financial services companies, Fortis ranks 31st based on assets and 73rd based on revenues on the Fortune 'Global 500' and 42nd based on revenues on the Forbes 'International 500' list (July 23, 2001).

Media Contact:
Melissa Kivett
Fortis, Inc.
212-859-7029
[email protected]