The
Board of Directors
Orthodontic Centers of America, Inc.
We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of Orthodontic
Centers of America, Inc. as of December 31, 2000 and 1999, and the related
consolidated statements of income, shareholders equity, and cash flows
for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2000. These
financial statements are the responsibility of the Companys management.
Our responsibility is to express an opinion on these financial statements
based on our audits.
We conducted our audits in accordance with
auditing standards generally accepted in the United States. Those standards
require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance
about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement.
An audit includes examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts
and disclosures in the financial statements. An audit also includes assessing
the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management,
as well as evaluating the overall financial statement presentation. We believe
that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.
In our opinion, the consolidated financial
statements referred to above present fairly, in all material respects, the
consolidated financial position of Orthodontic Centers of America, Inc.
at December 31, 2000 and 1999, and the consolidated results of its operations
and its cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December
31, 2000, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in
the United States
As discussed in Note 2 to the consolidated
financial statements, the Company changed its method of accounting for revenue
in 2000 and start-up costs in 1999.
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New Orleans, Louisiana
April 12, 2001
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