VITAS Innovative Hospice Care(R) of Connecticut Receives Medicare Licensure

7 million, or $0.04 per diluted share. As the success of our
effort to build patient referrals from hospitals has grown, we have been
invited to develop IPUs with some of our new hospital partners and we have
elected to make these additional investments during the current fiscal year to
enhance our ability to serve the more acutely ill patients that relationships
with hospitals require.0 to $8. To access the live webcast
of the call, go to VistaCare's website at http://www.

Company Contact:

Rick Slager
Chief Executive Officer
480-648-4545
ir@vistacare.

pediatrics childs

The Connecticut
program, which began operations in late 2004 , is one of the newest of VITAS'
34 programs nationwide and serves patients and their families living in the
greater Waterbury area. These risks and uncertainties arise from, among other
things, possible changes in regulations governing the hospice care industry,
periodic changes in reimbursement levels and procedures under Medicare and
Medicaid programs, difficulties predicting patient length of stay and
estimating potential Medicare reimbursement obligations, patient discharge
rate, challenges inherent in VistaCare's growth strategy, the current shortage
of qualified nurses and other healthcare professionals, VistaCare's dependence
on patient referral sources, and other factors detailed under the caption
"Factors that May Affect Future Results" or "Risk Factors" in VistaCare's most
recent report on form 10-Q or 10-K and its other filings with the Securities
and Exchange Commission.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(unaudited )
(in thousands)

Three Months Ended Six Months Ended
March 31, March 31,
2005 2004 2005 2004

Operating activities
Net income $1,131 $3,708 $1,839 $8,440
Adjustments to reconcile net income
to net cash provided by operating
activities:
Depreciation and amortization 1,363 963 2,418 1,816
Amortization of deferred compensation
related to stock options and grants 42 81 145 171
Deferred income tax benefit -- 156 (163) (1,085)
Loss on disposal of assets 105 -- 237 --
Changes in operating assets and
liabilities:
Patient accounts receivable net (373) 2,699 (2,449) 1,122
Prepaid expenses and other 758 2,098 521 235
Accounts payable and accrued expenses 2,632 (742) 90 1,486

Net cash provided by operating
activities 5,658 8,963 2,638 12,185

Investing activities
Purchases of equipment (540) (613) (1,257) (1,683)
Short-term investments purchased (8,520) (58,805) (22,774) (106,657)
Short-term investments sold 8,375 58 ,731 12,480 106,527
Internally developed software
expenditures (182) (337) (618) (498)
Other assets (51) (223) (322) (760)
Net cash used in investing
activities (918) (1,247) (12,491) (3,071)

Financing activities
Net payments on long -term debt -- -- (5) (23)
Proceeds from issuance of common
stock from exercise of stock options
and employee stock purchases 739 1,160 861 2,741

Net cash provided by financing
activities 739 1,160 856 2,718

Net increase (decrease) in cash 5 ,479 8,876 (8,997) 11,832
Cash and cash equivalents, beginning
of period $14,211 $14,328 $28,687 $11,372
Cash and cash equivalents, end of
period $19,690 $23,204 $19,690 $23,204
Cash and short-term investments end
of period $63,149 $56,143 $63,149 $56,143

threatening bereavement

He is also Chair in Professional Rabbinics at Yeshiva
University. Its participating agencies and programs include home
care, adult day health care, skilled nursing facilities, HomeFirst and
Elderplan. I know that bringing the VITAS brand of compassionate,
responsive, professional care to Connecticut means so much to families living
here. - Admissions Increase 20 Percent to Reach Record High Level

- Median Length of Stay Drops to 28 Days

- IPU and New Site Development Program Expanded

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.
For the six month period ended March 31, 2005, net patient revenue was
$114.8 million, or $0.
VistaCare's average daily census (ADC ) for the second quarter of fiscal 2005
was 5,358 as compared with 5,144 for the three-month period ended March 31,
2004, an increase of four percent, and 5,318 for the three-month period ended
December 31, 2004, an increase of one percent. While our average length of stay increased by three
days to 117 from the December 31, 2004 level, our median length of stay
declined to 28 days from 31 days .webmd.

catastrophic canda

Lefkowitz added. Hanlon is a healthcare industry veteran, having served as a
senior patient care administrator, team manager and palliative care liaison at
VITAS' Dallas, Texas, program. Volunteers are warmly encouraged to contact the office
for opportunities to participate in patient care.
VistaCare's patient admissions for the fiscal second quarter of 2005 set a
company record at 4 ,601, compared with 3,842 patient admissions for the three-
month period ended March 31, 2004, an increase of 20 percent, and 4,314 for
the three-month period ended December 31, 2004, an increase of seven percent.

sick pediatrics

And, we continue to focus on managing our
patient care expenses."
The results for the fiscal second quarter of 2005 included a charge for
Medicare Cap exposure of $1.
A taped replay of the conference call will also be available beginning
approximately one hour after the call's conclusion.

About VistaCare
VistaCare is a leading provider of hospice services in the United States. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on
such forward-looking statements and there are no assurances that the matters
contained in such statements will be achieved.

symtoms childs

In addition to Dr.
The Jewish Hospice is a participating program of Metropolitan
Jewish Health System (MJHS), a leader in the field of integrated
health care.
Michelle Hanlon, RN, BSN, leads the VITAS Connecticut program as its
general manager.
VITAS' Connecticut program provides responsive, round-the-clock hospice
care at patients' homes, in area hospitals, assisted living facilities, and in
nursing homes.1 million, or
$0. Slager, Chairman and Chief
Executive Officer of VistaCare.5 million of
positive cash flow and ended the period with approximately $63. Slager continued.22 $0.

paediatric grief

In addition to its home based
program, the Jewish Hospice also has an in-patient unit for short-term
acute care. A full interdisciplinary team, including a medical director,
registered nurses, home health aides, a full-time chaplain and social workers,
now serves patients. Net income for the three-month period ended March
31, 2004 was $3.01 par value;
authorized 33,000,000 shares;
16,330,677, and 16,209,282
shares issued and outstanding at
March 31, 2005 and
September 30, 2004, respectively.

limiting critically

Business Editors/Medical Editors/Religion Editors

BROOKLYN, N." Eli S. The care team
integrates family members in this unique partnership to make the
patient as comfortable as possible. These statements are based on current expectations and
assumptions and involve various risks and uncertainties, which could cause
VistaCare's actual results to differ from those expressed in such forward-
looking statements .

threatening compassionate

Lamm, the National Institute consists of a
prestigious board of rabbis, physicians and other notable community
leaders.

VistaCare Reports Improved Fiscal Second Quarter Results

The dial in number for the conference call

is 800-218-0204 for domestic participants and 303-262-2140 for international
participants. The replay will remain
available through Midnight Eastern Time on Monday, May 16 , 2005 and can be
accessed by dialing 800-405-2236 for domestic callers and 303-590-3000 for
international callers, using pass code 11029007#.
Through interdisciplinary teams of physicians, nurses, home healthcare aides,
social workers, spiritual and other counselors and volunteers, VistaCare
provides care primarily designed to reduce pain and enhance the quality of
life of terminally ill patients, most commonly in the patient's home or other
residence of choice. 163 162
Additional paid-in capital 107,689 107,084
Deferred compensation (775) (1,175)
Accumulated deficit (16,704) (18,544)
Total stockholders' equity 90,373 87,527

Total liabilities and stockholders' equity $134,366 $137,792

VISTACARE, INC.11 $0.

hospice illnesses

MJHS services nearly 20,000 individuals and their families
in the New York-metropolitan area.

Net patient revenue for the fiscal second quarter of fiscal 2005 was $57.6 million and net income of $0.4
million, or $0 .07 $0.

catastrophic threatening

Feldman, President and CEO of MJHS, said: "We are gratified that such
a prestigious national accreditation board has recognized our
pioneering efforts to integrate religious sensitivity into a very
complex medical and patient care setting.

Conference Call
VistaCare will host a conference call and webcast on Monday, May 9, 2005
at 5:00 p.11 $0.

supportive limiting

The accreditation of the Jewish Hospice is "of great
importance to a Jewish institution that serves one of the largest
communities of Holocaust survivors and other religious Jews outside of
Israel," Mr. VITAS'
compassionate care focuses on the medical, social and spiritual needs of
patients and their families, from employing VITAS' own hospice-specific pain
formulary and protocols to manage pain to offering rewarding treatments such
as pet therapy.
Importantly, our patient referrals from hospitals increased substantially
during the period.

palliative threatening

"As I've traveled around the area meeting healthcare providers and members
of the community, I've learned that this truly is an underserved market for
end-of-life care, " said Hanlon."
VITAS hospice programs around the country are committed to continually
improving clinical care by using an interdisciplinary approach to providing
hospice care and caregiver education . VITAS employs 7,159 professionals who care for terminally ill
patients daily, primarily in the patients ' homes, but also in the company's 24
inpatient hospice units as well as in hospitals, nursing homes and assisted
living facilities/residential care facilities for the elderly.
(Nasdaq: VSTA), a leading provider of hospice services in the United States,
today announced improved results for the fiscal second quarter 2005 ended
March 31, 2005.
During the quarter, the Company generated approximately $5.1 million in
cash and short-term investments.
"Despite our strong growth in admissions, we have yet to realize the ADC
growth we had expected," Mr.m. Eastern Time to discuss VistaCare's fiscal second quarter results
and recent corporate developments.com

Media Contact:

Steve DiMattia
EVC Group
415-896-6820
sdimattia@evcgroup .

threatening palliative

The National Institute for Jewish Hospice is headed by Rabbi
Maurice Lamm, a noted scholar and authority on Hospice related issues
in Jewish law. Hanlon earned
her bachelor's degree in nursing from D'Youville College in Buffalo, New York,
and now resides in Vernon, CT.6 million reported for the quarter ended
March 31, 2004."
"We've also been able to invite the National Hospice and Palliative Care
Organization (NHPCO) to participate with us in heightening public awareness
and dialogue about end of life care through our web-based courses on WebMD,"
continued Mr. We're honored to be working with NHPCO on
this effort and believe that NHPCO's participation will expand the information
available, to consumers and medical professionals alike, which is extremely
important given our nation's aging demographics. The investment of approximately $300,000 in
development expense per program start-up will continue to impact our earnings
in fiscal 2005 and 2006. We expect to have greater
visibility on our progress, especially relative to Cap, during the next
quarter, and will then be able to provide initial fiscal 2006 guidance with
the reporting of our quarterly results in August," Mr.

critically desire

Y.
In addition to offering a full team of medical professionals, the
Hospice is staffed by a full-time rabbi who is involved in every
aspect of care for patients who rely on Jewish law, custom and
tradition in dealing with their terminal illness. At the
conclusion of the fourth quarter of 2004, VITAS reported an average daily
census of 9,134., VistaCare, Inc.22 per diluted share.
VistaCare's results for the fiscal second quarter of 2005 compare
favorably with the results of the fiscal first quarter, ended December 31,
2004, of net patient revenue of $56. With this as a strong foundation,
we look forward to the launch of our new collaboration with NHPCO and WebMD
later this year at http://www.35 to $0.

critically ill

The Jewish Hospice of Greater New York Accredited by National Institute for Jewish Hospice

, VITAS Innovative Hospice
Care(R), the nation's leading hospice provider, today announced that its
Connecticut program has received its Medicare licensure .
VITAS' Connecticut office is located at 1579 Straits Turnpike, Unit C, in
Middlebury.

About Hospice
Because hospice is not a "place" as many believe, VITAS caregivers make
visits throughout the community to care for patients in their own home. In fact, recent research
published by the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization found that
most Americans would prefer to receive end-of-life care at home and think
hospice professionals are the most knowledgeable in helping them do so. Our efforts to generate patient referrals that typically
lead to a shorter length of stay have been extremely successful and are
illustrated by the ten percent drop in the median length of stay. "Last year, we worked with WebMD to launch both a
unique consumer university for caregivers and a medical education course on
hospice care for healthcare professionals. With more than 45 million
family members in the United States today caring for an aging or disabled
relative , questions about care issues for families coping with a life-limiting
illness are becoming more frequent and WebMD will continue to be an extremely
comprehensive resource to help those families.0 million . The words "believe," "expect," "hope,"
"anticipate," "plan," "expectations," "forecast," "goal ," "targeted" and
similar expressions identify forward-looking statements, which speak only as
of the date the statement was made.

catastrophic psychosocial

"
The accreditation recognizes that the Jewish Hospice meets all its
requirements, including training its health care professionals and
volunteers about the unique needs of patients and their families who
use the home-based Hospice for terminally-ill patients.

She also has served as an admissions
coordinator, nurse manager, and case manager for a northern New York hospice. "VITAS is committed to treating all patients
eligible for hospice services, whether they're suffering from the devastating
affects of Alzheimer's disease, various cancers, end-stage dementia or any
other terminal illness.

About VITAS
VITAS Innovative Hospice Care (R), a pioneer and leader in the hospice
movement since 1978, is the nation's largest provider of end-of-life care.
Headquartered in Miami, Florida, VITAS (pronounced VEE-tahs) operates 34
hospice programs in 12 states (Arizona, California, Connecticut, Delaware,
Florida, Georgia, Illinois, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and
Wisconsin). Elliot, President and Chief Operating Officer,
"Execution of our regional expansion strategy continued this quarter with the
acquisition of a hospice program in Houston, Texas that will further develop
our ability to serve the underserved African American community, and the
development of five new licensed and Medicare-certified hospice programs in
Sun City, AZ, Cushing, Purcell and Wagoner, OK and Amarillo, TX that will
broaden several of our current markets.com and click on
Investor Relations.com

Investor Contacts:

Douglas Sherk, Jennifer Beugelmans
EVC Group
415-896-6820
dsherk@evcgroup .

grief coping

----The Jewish Hospice
of Greater New York, a participating program of Metropolitan Jewish
Health System (MJHS), has received accreditation from the National
Institute for Jewish Hospice.
"The efforts that we've made to resume growth are beginning to generate
consistently improving results ," said Richard R. "As the tenure of our marketing team has
increased so has their productivity, which resulted in a 20 percent year over
year increase in patient admissions during the second fiscal quarter.0 million. For the full fiscal year
ending September 30, 2005, the Company continues to forecast an accrual for
Medicare Cap of $6.

supportive catastrophic

Shmuel Lefkowitz, Chairman of the Board of MJHS, called the
accreditation "a natural for a health system that has been a
trailblazer in serving the religious needs of the community. All of these requirements have long been
standard practice for the Jewish Hospice. His latest book published last year, The Spiritual
Journey Beyond Grief, has won accolades from rabbinic and
professional health care leaders.11 per diluted share,
compared with net income for the six-month period ended March 31, 2004 of $8.

sick desire

MIDDLEBURY, Conn. The Company's net income for the quarter was $1. Our focus
on hospital relationships is influencing this trend, as evidenced by the
growth in hospital referral admissions of 38% percent as compared with the
quarter ended March 31, 2004, with 23% of our total admissions now coming from
hospital referrals. By continuing to deliver high quality care, we are
increasingly able to distinguish ourselves with these more sophisticated
patient referral sources. Slager.07 $0.

Focus is on the care, comfort, and quality of life for children living with a life-threatening, life-limiting, or progressive illness.

symtoms edmarc

These openings follow the opening of
four new programs in the prior quarter and we are currently on target to
develop a total of 12 new sites during fiscal 2005. In addition, we have
four In-Patient Units (IPUs) in development, with an additional two IPU
opportunities ready to enter the development stage. "Our lower ADC growth rate
year-to-date has been principally due to our successful efforts to decrease
our length of stay to minimize future Cap exposure, which has positive
implications for our profitability .45 per share.

Forward-Looking Statements:
Certain statements contained in this press release and the accompanying
tables, including statements with respect to VistaCare's anticipated growth in
net patient revenue, organic patient census and diluted earnings per share,
are "forward -looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

canda dying

The accreditation is a reflection of the
high standards of religious sensitivity already in practice at the
Jewish Hospice. In the Chevra Kadisha world, his
book The Jewish Way in Death and Mourning is practically mandatory
reading. Its proprietary information technology,
"Vx," was created to track the effectiveness of that care.1 million, up six percent from $107."
According to David W. Slager continued.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
(unaudited)
(in thousands, except per share information)

Three Months Ended Six Months Ended
March 31, March 31,
2005 2004 2005 2004

Net patient revenue $57,456 $53,649 $114 ,071 $107,213
Operating expenses:
Patient care expenses 35,325 31,084 70,433 63,357
General and administrative expenses
(exclusive of stock based
compensation charges reported
below) 18,993 15,161 38 ,211 29,535
Depreciation and amortization 1,363 963 2,418 1,816
Stock based compensation 42 81 145 171
Total operating expenses 55,723 47,289 111,207 94,879

Operating income 1 ,733 6,360 2,864 12,334

Non-operating income (expense):
Interest income 258 99 475 194
Interest expense -- (30) (7) (40)
Other expense (127) (19 ) (304) (33)
Total non-operating income 131 50 164 121
Net income before income taxes 1,864 6,410 3,028 12,455
Income tax expense 733 2,702 1,189 4,015
Net income $1,131 $3,708 $1,839 $8,440

Net income per common share:
Basic net income per common share $0.

grief threatening

All programs are glatt kosher and fully observe Shabbats
and all Yomim Tovim . Patients and families in the Waterbury/Middlebury area will be
able to access VITAS staff day or night through a 24-hour Telecare(R) call
center staffed by VITAS triage nurses.
Hospice is provided in the home to better provide comfort, pain control and
symptom management for a patient at the end of life. The Company's net income for the six-month
period ended March 31, 2005 was $1.com

VISTACARE, INC.
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

(in thousands, except share information)

March 31, September 30,
2005 2004
(unaudited)

ASSETS
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents $19,690 $28,687
Short-term investments 43,459 33,165
Patient accounts receivable 16,891 17 ,495
Patient accounts receivable-room + board 5,531 8,789
Prepaid expenses 3,283 3,404
Other current assets 2,313 3,014
Deferred tax assets 10 ,794 10,676
Total current assets 101,961 105,230

Fixed assets, net 5,637 5,379
Goodwill 20,852 20,564
Other assets 5,916 6,619
Total assets $134 ,366 $137,792

LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable $328 $1,367
Accrued expenses 39,934 45,117
Current portion of capital lease obligations -- 5
Total current liabilities 40,262 46,489

Deferred tax liability-non-current 3,731 3,776

Stockholders' equity:
Class A Common Stock, $0.23 $0.53
Diluted net income per common share $0.51

Weighted average shares outstanding:
Basic 16,295 16,056 16,253 15,950
Diluted 16,817 17,071 16,744 16,569

VISTACARE , INC.

symtoms dying

07 per diluted share. Our overall success with these efforts will play a
major role in achieving the lower end of our range for our previous guidance
for fiscal 2005 of $0.vistacare. VistaCare does not undertake and
specifically disclaims any obligation to publicly update or revise any
forward -looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future
events or otherwise.

supportive bereavement

It also
confirms that the Hospice works with halachic authorities and the
rabbi of the family in coordinating care issues and dealing with
complex issues of Jewish law.
She began her career as a registered nurse at a Buffalo, New York, medical
center, and then moved on to a position as a home care nurse. Families and volunteers may
call the VITAS Connecticut program at 203-437-3111 for more information or to
schedule a free consultation.5
million, up seven percent from $53.7 million,
or $0.2 million reported for the six-month
period ended March 31, 2004.51 per diluted share.com.5 million, bringing the Company's year-to-date
accrual for Medicare Cap exposure to $3. Looking forward over the remainder of
fiscal 2005, and into fiscal 2006, we will be focused on enhanced productivity
of our marketing force and executing on the increased IPU and new site
development that is targeted to minimize potential exposure to Cap and
generate additional ADC growth, while preserving a patient mix that will
minimize Cap exposure. An archived webcast will also be available on VistaCare's
website.