1
                                                                    Exhibit 99.1


August 7, 1997


            AETNA U.S. HEALTHCARE COMPLETES SALE OF HEALTHCARE DATA INTERCHANGE
CORPORATION TO ENVOY CORPORATION

NASHVILLE, Tennessee and BLUE BELL, Pennsylvania (August 7, 1997)-ENVOY
Corporation(Nasdaq/NM:ENVOY), a leading provider of health care electronic data
interchange (EDI) services, and Aetna U.S. Healthcare, the health business unit
of Aetna Inc. (NYSE:AET), announced today that they have completed the
previously announced sale of Aetna U.S. Healthcare's health care EDI subsidiary,
Healthcare Data Interchange Corporation (HDIC), to ENVOY. The purchase price was
approximately $36.4 million.

      In connection with this acquisition, the parties will enter into a
long-term agreement under which Aetna U.S. Healthcare has agreed to use ENVOY as
its single source clearinghouse and EDI network for all Aetna U.S. Healthcare
electronic health care transactions.

      "Aetna U.S. Healthcare is looking forward to a solid working relationship
with ENVOY Corporation which will allow us to continue to streamline our claims
and member referral processing areas," said Timothy E. Nolan, head of operations
for Aetna U.S. Healthcare. "We expect to significantly increase the numbers of
health care transactions processed electronically."

      Commenting on the announcement, Jim D. Kever, president and co-chief
executive officer of ENVOY, said "ENVOY is pleased to have been selected by
Aetna U.S. Healthcare, the nations largest health insurer, to be their single
source health care EDI technology partner. We believe this long-term
relationship has tremendous strategic significance and will substantially
accelerate the connectivity and depth of EDI transaction processing within the
health care market."

      ENVOY Corporation is a leading provider of electronic data interchange
services to participants in the health care industry, including pharmacies,
physicians, hospitals, dentists, billing services, commercial insurance
companies, managed care organizations, state and federal government agencies and
others.

      Aetna U.S. Healthcare is the nation's leading health and related benefits
organization with a total health enrollment of 14 million Americans nationwide.



                                      13