MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN--(Marketwire - Sept. 3, 2008) - Extendicare Health Services, Inc. announced today that four of its facilities are the proud recipient of the American Health Care Association and the National Center for Assisted Living's (AHCA/NCAL) Quality Award in recognition of their strong commitment to continuous quality improvement.

The facilities receiving the award are:

Springfield Nursing and Rehabilitation Center
420 East Grundy Avenue
Springfield, Kentucky


Medco Center of Campbellsville
1980 Old Greensburg Road
Campbellsville, Kentucky


Cedar Springs Health & Rehabilitation Center
N27 W5707 Lincoln Blvd.
Cedarburg, Wisconsin


Menomonee Falls Health Care Center
N84 W1049 Menomonee Avenue
Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin

"The AHCA/NCAL Quality Awards - comprised of three levels, a Step I award; a more rigorous Step II award; and a comprehensive Step III award - are the most prestigious recognition of quality within the long term care profession," stated AHCA/NCAL President and CEO, Bruce Yarwood. This Step I award recognizes the facility's dedicated frontline caregivers, administrators, nurses and physicians, who demonstrate their commitment to quality of care in order to meet the needs for our nation's most vulnerable population.

As Step I recipients, these facilities demonstrated their organization-wide commitment to a customer-focused facility mission, defined their principal customers and their expectations, and indicated ways that they are striving to meet their needs.

"The Quality Award program is an independently judged, criteria-based, award program. This year, only 312 long term care facilities nationwide received this noteworthy award and we are pleased to be counted among them. We are proud of this accomplishment and thank our staff for their strong commitment to excellence," said Tim Lukenda, Chairman and CEO of Extendicare Health Services, Inc.

AHCA/NCAL's Quality Award is modeled after the criteria of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, the nation's premier award recognizing distinguished achievements. AHCA/NCAL's award is designed to support both continuous quality improvement efforts in long term care by promoting quality awareness and education and to recognize quality achievements.

Extendicare Health Services, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Extendicare Real Estate Investment Trust (TSX symbol "EXE.UN"). Extendicare Real Estate Investment Trust, through its wholly owned subsidiaries, is a major provider of short and long-term care services for seniors in North America. We operate 268 nursing and assisted living facilities in North America, with capacity for approximately 30,300 residents. As well, we offer medical specialty services such as subacute care and rehabilitative therapy services in the United States, and home health care services in Canada, and employ approximately 38,100 people in North America.

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