Exhibit 99.1

         PDI, Inc. Announces Notice of Termination of Novartis Contract

          Reiterates 2004 guidance of $1.15 to $1.25 earnings per share

Upper Saddle River, NJ-- (February 18, 2004) PDI, Inc. (NASDAQ: PDII), a
healthcare sales and marketing company, today announced that it has received
notification from Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, the U.S. pharmaceuticals
affiliate of Novartis AG, that it will be terminating its sales program in
support of Diovan(R) and Lotrel(R). The program, comprised of approximately 300
representatives, will terminate on March 16, 2004.

PDI stated that it has taken steps to make the company more flexible and better
able to react to sudden contract terminations. As a result, the company has
improved its ability to reduce the impact of such events on its overall
business. Due to its ability to reduce expenses related to this field sales team
and to postpone certain discretionary spending initiatives, PDI is maintaining
its previous earnings per share guidance of $1.15 to $1.25 for 2004.

Steven K. Budd, President of PDI's Global Sales and Marketing Services Group,
said, "Novartis' decision to end our fee for service agreement is not a function
of performance related issues. We are proud of the contributions we have made to
Novartis over the last three years, and look forward to working with them again
in the future." About PDI

PDI, a premier healthcare sales and marketing company, provides strategic
alternatives to the portfolio challenges of biopharmaceutical and medical device
and diagnostics manufacturers. Focusing on two core businesses, sales and
marketing services and product commercialization, PDI leverages its expertise
and commercial infrastructure to maximize profitable brand growth. Manufacturers
choose the relationship which best meets their strategic and financial
objectives, ranging from individual or bundled service agreements to broader
commercial partnerships.

For more information, visit the Company's website at www.pdi-inc.com.

This press release contains forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned
that these forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and
uncertainties, known and unknown, which could cause actual results and
developments to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such
statements. Please see the risk factors detailed from time to time in PDI's
periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including without
limitation, PDI's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31,
2002, and PDI's periodic reports on Forms 10-Q and 8-K filed with the Securities
and Exchange Commission since January 1, 2003. The forward looking-statements in
this press release are based upon management's reasonable belief as of the date
hereof. PDI undertakes no obligation to revise or update publicly any
forward-looking statements for any reason.