NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) May 15, 2002--Standard&Poor's said today it assigned its double-'A' rating to a private placement of the Indiana Heart Center LLC's $60 million in taxable auction-rate notes, based on a guaranty agreement executed by Ascension Health. The guaranty is secured on parity with Ascension Health's outstanding rated debt. In addition, Standard&Poor's said it affirmed its ratings and its Standard&Poor's underlying ratings (SPURs) on the outstanding debt issued for Ascension Health. The outlook is stable. The double-'A' rating reflects (1) the maintenance of a solid operating profile, highlighted by improved operations in each of the past two years, and continued improvement for the nine-month interim period ended March 31, 2002; (2)
