NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) July 21, 2003--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services lowered its long-term rating on Eastman Kodak Co. to 'BBB' from 'BBB+' based on the company's planned purchase of PracticeWorks Inc. for $500 million in cash. At the same time, Standard&Poor's long-term and short-term ratings on Kodak remain on CreditWatch with negative implications where they were placed on June 18, 2003. The Rochester, N.Y.-based firm had $2.7 billion in debt on March 31, 2003. "The purchase of PracticeWorks for cash will hinder Kodak's debt reduction efforts as this business is not expected to generate meaningful discretionary cash flow in the near term," according to Standard&Poor's credit analyst Steve Wilkinson. He continued, "Benefits of the
