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                                                                    EXHIBIT 99.1



                                            Contact:  Daniel Garrison
                                                      Assistant to the President
                                                      UICI
NEWS RELEASE                                          4001 McEwen, Suite 200
                                                      Dallas, Texas 75244
                                                      Phone: (972) 392-6700

(For Immediate Release)

UICI ANNOUNCES HOLDINGS OF WORLDCOM INC. SECURITIES

UICI CONFIRMS TERMINATION OF SERVICES AGREEMENT WITH HEALTHAXIS, INC.

DALLAS, TX, June 28, 2002---- In the wake of announced accounting irregularities
at WorldCom Inc., UICI (the "Company" NYSE: UCI) today announced that its
insurance company subsidiaries hold an aggregate of $7.525 million principal
amount of WorldCom bonds (with a carrying value on the Company's books of $7.3
million), of which $4.0 million principal amount matures in 2005 and $3.525
million principal amount matures in 2031. In accordance with Financial
Accounting Standards Board Statement No. 115, the Company is currently in the
process of evaluating the magnitude of the other-than-temporary decline in fair
value of the WorldCom bonds. The amount of such decline will be reflected as a
realized loss and charged to income in the quarter ending June 30, 2002.

         Separately, the Company confirmed that, effective June 15, 2002, UICI
and Healthaxis, Inc. terminated an Information Technology Services Agreement,
pursuant to which Healthaxis provided information systems and software
development services (including administration of the Company's computer data
center) to the Company and its insurance company affiliates at Healthaxis's cost
of such services (including direct costs of Healthaxis's personnel dedicated to
providing services to the Company plus a portion of Healthaxis's overhead costs)
plus a 10% mark-up. The Services Agreement was otherwise scheduled to expire by
its terms in January 2005. As part of the termination arrangement, UICI made a
one-time payment to Healthaxis in the amount of $6.5 million and tendered
500,000 shares of Healthaxis common stock to Healthaxis. Substantially all of
the Healthaxis technical personnel formerly supporting UICI under the Services
Agreement transferred to UICI on June 17, 2002. Following the transaction, UICI
continues to hold approximately 45% of the issued and outstanding shares of
Healthaxis.




CORPORATE PROFILE:

UICI (headquartered in Dallas, Texas) through its subsidiaries offers insurance
(primarily health and life) and selected financial services to niche consumer
and institutional markets. Through its Self Employed Agency Division, UICI
provides to the self-employed market health insurance and related insurance
products, which are distributed primarily through the Company's dedicated agency
field forces, UGA-Association Field Services and Cornerstone Marketing of
America. Through its Group Insurance Division, UICI provides tailored health
insurance programs for students enrolled in universities, colleges and
kindergarten through grade twelve and markets, administers and underwrites
limited benefit insurance plans for entry level, high turnover, hourly
employees. Through its Life Insurance Division, UICI offers life insurance
products to selected markets, and the Company's Senior Markets Division provides
long-term care insurance and Medicare supplement insurance products to the
senior age market. The Company's Academic Management Services Corp. unit
(headquartered in Swansea, MA) seeks to provide financing solutions for college
and graduate school students, their parents and the educational institutions
they attend by marketing, originating, funding and servicing primarily federally
guaranteed student loans and by providing student tuition installment payment
plans. In 2002, UICI was added to the Standard & Poor's Small Cap 600 Index. For
more information, visit www.uici.net.

SAFE HARBOR STATEMENT UNDER THE PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACT OF
1995:

Certain statements in this press release are "forward-looking statements" within
the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Act of 1995. Such statements
involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause
actual results to differ materially from those included in the forward-looking
statements. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties
including, but not limited to, the following: changes in general economic
conditions, including the performance of financial markets, and interest rates;
competitive, regulatory or tax changes that affect the cost of or demand for the
Company's products; health care reform; the ability to predict and effectively
manage claims related to health care costs; and reliance on key management and
adequacy of claim liabilities.

The Company's future results will depend in large part on accurately predicting
health care costs incurred on existing business and upon the Company's ability
to control future health care costs through product and benefit design,
underwriting criteria, utilization management and negotiation of favorable
provider contracts. Changes in mandated benefits, utilization rates, demographic
characteristics, health care practices, provider consolidation, inflation, new
pharmaceuticals/technologies, clusters of high-cost cases, the regulatory
environment and numerous other factors are beyond the control of any health plan
provider and may adversely affect the Company's ability to predict and control
health care costs and claims, as well as the Company's financial condition,
results of operations or cash flows. Periodic renegotiations of hospital and
other provider contracts coupled with continued consolidation of physician,
hospital and other provider groups may result in increased health care costs and
limit the Company's ability to negotiate favorable rates. Recently, large
physician practice management companies have experienced extreme financial
difficulties, including bankruptcy, which may subject the Company to increased
credit risk related to provider groups and cause the Company to incur
duplicative claims expense. In addition, the Company faces competitive pressure
to contain premium prices. Fiscal concerns regarding the continued viability of
government-sponsored programs such as Medicare and Medicaid may cause decreasing
reimbursement rates for these programs. Any limitation on the Company's ability
to increase or maintain its premium levels, design products, implement
underwriting criteria or negotiate competitive provider contracts may adversely
affect the Company's financial condition or results of operations.

The Company's Academic Management Services Corp. business could be adversely
affected by changes in the Higher Education Act or other relevant federal or
state laws, rules and regulations and the programs implemented thereunder may
adversely impact the education credit market. In addition, existing legislation
and future measures by the federal government may adversely affect the amount
and nature of




federal financial assistance available with respect to loans made through the
U.S. Department of Education. Finally the level of competition currently in
existence in the secondary market for loans made under the Federal Loan Programs
could be reduced, resulting in fewer potential buyers of the Federal Loans and
lower prices available in the secondary market for those loans.

UICI press releases and other company information are available at UICI's
website located at www.uici.net.