Amedisys Ranked 12th on Forbes' '200 Best Small Companies' List.

- Company Near Top of List for Second Consecutive Year -

BATON ROUGE, La., Oct. 31 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Amedisys, Inc. (or the "Company"), one of America's leading home health nursing companies, today announced that it has been ranked 12th on Forbes Magazine's annual "200 Best Small Companies" list. According to the publication, in order to qualify for the "200 Best Small Companies" list, companies had to have shown themselves as solid and consistent performers over a five-year period, as well as during the last 12 months. With statistical help from William O'Neil & Co. in Los Angeles, Forbes selected companies with sales in the $5 million to $750 million range ("small" by Forbes' standards), net profit margins greater than 5 percent, and share prices above $5 as of September 29, 2005.

"Amedisys is honored to, once again, be near the very top of the prestigious Forbes 200 Best Small Companies List," said William F. Borne, Chief Executive Officer of Amedisys, Inc. "We have and will continue to execute on a growth strategy that focuses on organic growth and acquiring companies at attractive and accretive multiples, and the results of this strategy have been evident. Over the past five years, Amedisys has achieved 24 percent and 45 percent annual average revenue and EPS growth, respectively."

"Amedisys' success would not be possible without the presence of a strong and multi-talented team, which is led by Larry Graham, our President and Chief Operating Officer, Greg Browne, our Chief Financial Officer, as well as our Senior Vice Presidents," continued Mr. Borne. "Therefore, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our employees who have contributed to our numerous accomplishments over the past several years."

Amedisys, Inc., a leading provider of home health nursing services, is headquartered in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Its common stock trades on the Nasdaq National Market System under the symbol "AMED". ...