October 14, 2002

Dear Colleague:

On June 25, the Board of Trustees approved some exciting improvements to the retirement program, one of which is the new 403(b) matching program. These changes affect all of the Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center employees.

These and other recent benefit changes were based on your feedback from the 2001 Employee Satisfaction Survey. Once again, You Made Your Mark. Today, we are pleased to announce Lincoln Financial Group has been selected to be our provider for the new 403(b) program. As you may recall, the 403(b) program is your opportunity to save for retirement on a tax-deferred basis, and now, to receive a matching contribution from Hopkins.

Though many of you may already be using Lincoln, the new program that starts on January 1, 2003, will be significantly improved from your current program. Here are some of the many improvements:

- Better Customer Service. Lincoln will provide customer service representatives dedicated full time to Hopkins. They will be evaluated on their ability to provide service to you.

- Lower Investment Expenses. Under the new program, the average investment management fee will be significantly less than the previous program.

- Better Investments. The investment options selected for the 403(b) program will be some of the top-performing funds from some of the best-known and respected fund companies. Hopkins will monitor the performance of the funds on a regular basis and make changes when needed to benefit your investments.

- Financial/Investment Education. Beginning in 2003, Lincoln will offer regular educational sessions on various financial/investment topics.

Every employee will have the opportunity to meet with a Lincoln customer service representative in November - either through group or individual meetings. If you do not wish to meet with a customer service representative, you will be able to enroll in the new 403(b) program over the phone or Internet.

We are excited about our new partnership with Lincoln. We are committed to providing a broad and attractive array of benefits to you as a Hopkins employee. We appreciate your continued dedication and support, and that is why we are Investing In You.

If you have questions or comments, please e-mail Rick Ohmer, Pension Administrator, (rohmer@jhmi.edu) or fax to (443) 287-4224.

Sincerely,