FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., Jan 03, 2011 (BUSINESS WIRE) --

MEDNAX, Inc., (NYSE: MD) today announced the acquisition of a neonatal physician group in Long Beach, CA.

The practice, Neonatal Medical Associates, Inc., consists of 14 physicians who staff the Level III neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at Miller Children's Hospital in Long Beach. Miller Children's Hospital has the largest NICU in Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties. The group also provides neonatal services at two other southern California hospitals - St. Mary Medical Center in Long Beach and Orange Coast Memorial Medical Center in Fountain Valley. Annual NICU patient volume exceeds 30,000 days.

The physicians will practice as part of MEDNAX's Pediatrix Medical Group, a national medical group that comprises the nation's leading provider of neonatal, maternal-fetal medicine and pediatric cardiology physicians, as well as other pediatric subspecialists.

"In the current era of healthcare reform, we were looking for a long-term partner to not only provide a stronger sense of sustainability and support for our practice, but that could also help further improve outcomes for our patients while strengthening our ability to grow the services we provide to the families in the communities we serve," said Arthur Strauss, M.D., who will serve as Pediatrix's medical director for the practice. "As part of Pediatrix we will be joining a group of physicians who share our vision and dedication for providing the highest level of care to our neonatal patients through continuous research, education and participation in clinical quality improvement initiatives."

MEDNAX paid cash for the practice, and the transaction is expected to be immediately accretive to its earnings. No additional terms of the transaction were disclosed.

With this acquisition, 15 physician group practices became part of Pediatrix Medical Group and American Anesthesiology in 2010.

ABOUT MEDNAX

MEDNAX, Inc., is a national medical group that comprises the nation's leading provider of neonatal, maternal-fetal and pediatric physician subspecialty services as well as anesthesia services. Physicians and advanced practitioners practicing as part of MEDNAX are reshaping the delivery of care within their specialties and subspecialties, using evidence-based tools, continuous quality initiatives and clinical research to enhance patient outcomes and provide high-quality, cost-effective care. Pediatrix Medical Group, a unit of MEDNAX, was founded in 1979 and now includes neonatal physicians who provide services at more than 275 neonatal intensive care units, who collaborate with affiliated maternal-fetal medicine, pediatric cardiology and pediatric critical care physician subspecialists to provide a clinical care continuum. Pediatrix is also the nation's largest provider of newborn hearing screens. In 2007, the Company expanded into anesthesia services. Today, American Anesthesiology includes more than 650 anesthesiologists and advanced practitioners. MEDNAX, through its affiliated professional corporations, employs more than 1,625 physicians in 33 states and Puerto Rico. Additional information is available at www.mednax.com.

Certain statements and information in this press release may be deemed to contain forward-looking statements which may include, but are not limited to, statements relating to our objectives, plans and strategies, and all statements, other than statements of historical facts,that address activities, events or developments that we intend, expect, project, believe or anticipate will or may occur in the future. These statements are often characterized by terminology such as "believe", "hope", "may", "anticipate", "should", "intend", "plan", "will", "expect", "estimate", "project", "positioned", "strategy" and similar expressions, and are based on assumptions and assessments made by MEDNAX's management in light of their experience and their perception of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other factors they believe to be appropriate. Any forward-looking statements in this press release are made as of the date hereof, and MEDNAX undertakes no duty to update or revise any such statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks and uncertainties. Important factors that couldcause actual results, developments, and business decisions to differ materially from forward-looking statements are described in MEDNAX's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and its Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, including the sections entitled "Risk Factors", as well MEDNAX's current reports on Form 8-K,filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

SOURCE: MEDNAX, Inc.

MEDNAX, Inc.
Bob Kneeley, 954-384-0175, x-5300
Vice President, Investor Relations
bob_kneeley@mednax.com