COMPANY'S NEW DRUG/ALCOHOL TEST SET FOR RELEASE

Law Enforcement, Businesses Will Have Option To Purchase Device By April.

RANCHO CUCAMONGA -- A local company is about to introduce a product that
uses saliva to test levels of drugs and alcohol in the blood.

LifePoint Inc. will start marketing the testing device to law enforcement
and industrial workplaces around April, company officials say. Marketing to
emergency rooms will begin in late spring or early summer, said President
and Chief Executive Linda Masterson.

The company intended to sell the product by the third quarter of last year.
But changes in Federal Drug Administration rules and product design have
brought delays, Masterson said.

The disposable device, which will sell for $25 for six tests, can determine
whether there is marijuana, opiates, cocaine, amphetamines, PCP or alcohol
in the blood by sampling a few drops of saliva.

Results are ready in about five minutes, much faster than the days or weeks
for traditional blood or urine tests. Some law enforcement officials say
the device could make the Breathalyzer obsolete. Masterson said she expects
law enforcement agencies, businesses and emergency rooms to use the test.

By the end of this quarter, the company will send the product to users for
evaluation. While Masterson said she couldn't disclose which sites would be
doing the evaluation, she said they could be places such as hospitals and
police stations. Seven sites will test for drugs and three will test for
the presence of alcohol. The data from those tests will be gathered and
forwarded to the FDA, Masterson said.

Because the FDA does not oversee law enforcement or the workplace, the
company can release the product to those institutions before the agency
approves the device. The company must wait for FDA approval, however,
before distributing it to emergency rooms, a process that should take less
than 100 days, Masterson said.

Though the product has yet to be released, there are already plans to
expand its use.

"I think the availability of a simple and easy-to-use product will expand
the market," Masterson said.

Masterson said the device could one day be used for health screenings to
test levels of cholesterol and various enzymes or to rule out heart
attacks, for example. Paramedics who first arrive at a scene could use it
to determine why someone is unconscious.

Emergency rooms will be able to use it to test for prescription drugs
common to overdoses, such as Valium, antidepressants and barbiturates. And
the public could use it to monitor drug levels, say if someone was taking
insulin shots or was on a toxic drug that requires a regular blood test to
determine how much of the drug was in their system.

Since it's been all development and no sales, LifePoint has no profits, and
its stock (AMEX: LFP) has gone from a 52-week high of $9.25 to a low of
$2.69. It was trading Tuesday at $4.75.