Exhibit 99.1

             Omnicare to Acquire Pharmacy Operations of Extendicare

         COVINGTON, Ky.--July 30, 1998--Omnicare, Inc. (NYSE:OCR) today
announced the execution of a definitive agreement pursuant to which Omnicare
will acquire the institutional pharmacy operations of Extendicare Health
Services, Inc. ("EHSI"), a wholly owned subsidiary of Extendicare Inc.
(TSE/ME:EXE and EXE.A; NYSE:EXE.A) for $250 million in cash, 125,000 shares of
Omnicare common stock and 1.5 million warrants to purchase Omnicare common stock
at $48.00 per share.

         The transaction, which is structured as a purchase of assets, has been
approved by the Board of Directors of both Omnicare and Extendicare, and is
subject to the expiration of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino
Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 and the satisfaction of certain other
conditions. It is expected that the transaction will close by September 30, 1998
and that, given the economies of scale and cost synergies anticipated from the
acquisition, it will be non-dilutive to Omnicare's per share earnings in 1998
and accretive in 1999 and beyond.

         Based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the pharmacy business of EHSI, operating
under the name United Professional Companies, Inc. ("UPC"), has contracts to
provide comprehensive pharmacy, related consulting and infusion therapy services
to approximately 55,000 residents in more than 550 facilities in 12 states. This
transaction also offers Omnicare the opportunity to provide pharmacy services to
an additional 77 Extendicare facilities with capacity for 9,300 residents in
Canada and the United Kingdom. UPC's pharmacy revenues are currently running at
the annualized rate of approximately $163 million.

         "Extendicare has built a sizeable and well-regarded institutional
pharmacy operation. Its addition to Omnicare will significantly expand our core
business of providing high quality pharmaceutical care to the nation's elderly
and will create economies of scale that allow both Omnicare and Extendicare to
operate more efficiently," said Joel F. Gemunder, Omnicare president.

         Upon the completion of this transaction, it is anticipated that
Omnicare will have contracts to provide institutional pharmacy services to more
than 551,000 residents in over 6,850 long-term care facilities in 40 states,
representing an increase of 11% over the number of residents currently served by
Omnicare. Based on revenues reported for the quarter ended June 30, 1998,
Omnicare's annualized revenues following this transaction are expected to be
nearly $1.6 billion.

         "The acquisition of UPC's pharmacy business also gives Omnicare the
opportunity to introduce its broad range of sophisticated clinical programs,
including our proprietary drug formulary, the Omnicare Geriatric Pharmaceutical
Care Guidelines'r' and disease management programs to all of the client
facilities of UPC. These programs, which promote the use of the most clinically
effective pharmaceutical care at the lowest cost are increasingly important to
all long-term care facilities and particularly so to skilled nursing facilities
under the new Prospective







 


Payment System (PPS) for Medicare residents. Also important to long-term care
facilities in this environment are advanced clinical information systems such as
our Accu-Med'tm' software products which we will have the opportunity to offer
to all UPC clients. Moreover, the transaction provides us with the foundation
for expansion of Omnicare's pharmacy services outside the United States. The
critical mass created by the addition of UPC's client base also offers
significant new opportunities to leverage our resources in contract research and
data management," Gemunder said.

         "This divestiture follows a late 1997 decision that the pharmacy is a
non-strategic asset," said Dr. Joy D. Calkin, President and Chief Executive
Officer of Extendicare Inc. "As the largest provider of institutional pharmacy
services in the U.S., Omnicare is exceptionally well-positioned to achieve
economies of scale and make cost-effective investments in the new technology
required for success.

         "The long-term implications of the transaction for Extendicare are very
positive. Omnicare is an excellent provider of services and advanced
pharmacy-related systems. We expect to build a close ongoing relationship with
Omnicare, including the potential for coordinated services," Dr. Calkin added.
"Extendicare will continue to focus on its core businesses of providing care in
skilled nursing and assisted living centers."

         Concluding, Mr. Gemunder said, "The evolution of the health care
industry, and long-term care specifically, is creating numerous opportunities
for alliances which not only can contain or lower costs but also enhance the
quality of care. In that vein, we see much potential for growth in our ongoing
relationship with Extendicare. As we build our respective organizations, we
share a common goal of providing outstanding geriatric care cost-effectively."

         Extendicare, based in Markham, Ontario, is one of the largest operators
of long-term care facilities in North America. On March 31, 1998, the
Corporation operated 312 facilities, with capacity for over 31,800 residents and
had more than 41,100 employees in the United States, Canada, and the United
Kingdom. Extendicare also provides medical specialty services, including
subacute care and rehabilitative therapy services and other medical supplies and
services in the United States and home care and rehabilitative therapy services
in Canada.

         Omnicare is a leading geriatric pharmaceutical care company. Currently
serving over 496,000 residents in more than 6,300 long-term care facilities in
40 states, Omnicare is the nation's largest provider of professional pharmacy,
related consulting and data management services for long-term care, assisted
living and other institutional health care providers. Omnicare also provides
comprehensive clinical research services for the pharmaceutical and
biotechnology industries.

         (Statements in this press release concerning Omnicare's business
outlook or future economic performances, anticipated profitability, revenues,
expenses or other financial items, anticipated cost synergies, the impact of the
Extendicare transaction on earnings, the anticipated closing date of such
transaction, the potential for expansion, and other expected benefits from the
Extendicare transaction, together with other statements that are not historical
facts, are forward-looking statements that are estimates reflecting the best
judgement of Omnicare based on










 


currently available information. Such forward-looking statements involve known
and unknown risks, uncertainties, contingencies and other factors that could
cause results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those
stated. Such risks, uncertainties, contingencies and other factors, many of
which are beyond the control of Omnicare, include overall economic and business
conditions, trends for the continued growth of the pharmacy businesses of
Omnicare, the realization of anticipated revenues, profitability and cost
synergies of the combined companies, the demand for Omnicare's products and
services, pricing and other competitive factors in the industry, new government
regulations and/or legislative initiatives, the consummation and successful
integration of the Extendicare transaction, and other risks and uncertainties
described in Omnicare's reports and filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission. There can be no such assurance that such factors will not affect the
accuracy of such forward-looking statements, and Omnicare assumes no obligation
to update the information in this release.)

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menu of news releases, visit our Corporate News on The Net site at
http://www.businesswire.com/cnn/ocr.htm.

Contact:
     Omnicare, Inc.
     Cheryl D. Hodges, 513/762-6967