CINCINNATI, Apr 12, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) --Meridian Bioscience, Inc. (NASDAQ: VIVO) today announced it has signed a
new group purchasing agreement with the Premier healthcare alliance to
offer illumigene(R) C. difficile
and illumigene Group B Streptococcus to its members
at specially negotiated pricing. Premier serves more than 2,500 U.S.
hospitals and 81,000-plus other healthcare sites. This agreement allows
Premier alliance facilities to implement rapid, sensitive molecular
tests for C. difficile and Group B Streptococcus without
individual negotiations.
Premier's mission is "to improve the health of communities" and using
the power of collaboration to lead the transformation to high-quality,
cost-effective care aligns with Meridian's promise to provide a new
standard for patient care with our innovative diagnostic testing
solutions. Meridian is privileged to be awarded this agreement with
Premier and Premier members to assist their efforts to improve quality
of patient care and reduce healthcare costs.
The illumigene molecular system utilizes loop-mediated
isothermal DNA amplification (LAMP) technology. The test procedure is
remarkably simple, highly sensitive, and yields results in less than one
hour. It requires no expensive capital equipment. The test relies upon a
simple procedure that includes heat treatment, amplification and
detection. The entire amplification is isothermal and results are read
on the illumipro-10(TM) instrument. All reagents and
disposables are contained in the test kit and can be stored at room
temperature. Meridian believes that the "point-of-care" simplicity of
this technology, along with its cost efficiency, make illumigene
ideal for helping in early diagnosis and proper management of
preventable and treatable diseases, especially in those instances where
there is a low level of the biological target.
Richard L. Eberly, Chief Commercial Officer, commented, "This is an
exciting opportunity for Meridian to accelerate illumigene placements
to Premier members. We are privileged to collaborate with the Premier
healthcare alliance to assist Premier members in their efforts to
improve the quality of patient care and drive costs out of their
facilities."
About the Premier Healthcare Alliance, Malcolm Baldrige National
Quality Award recipient
Premier is a performance improvement alliance of more than 2,500 U.S.
hospitals and 81,000-plus other healthcare sites using the power of
collaboration to lead the transformation to high-quality, cost-effective
care. Owned by hospitals, health systems and other providers, Premier
maintains the nation's most comprehensive repository of clinical,
financial and outcomes information and operates a leading healthcare
purchasing network. A world leader in helping deliver measurable
improvements in care, Premier has worked with the Centers for Medicare &
Medicaid Services and the United Kingdom's National Health Service North
West to improve hospital performance. Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C.,
Premier also has an office in Washington. https://premierinc.com.
Stay connected with Premier on Facebook,
Twitter
and YouTube.
FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS
The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides a safe
harbor from civil litigation for forward-looking statements accompanied
by meaningful cautionary statements. Except for historical information,
this report contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of
Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E
of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, which may be identified by words
such as "estimates", "anticipates", "projects", "plans", "seeks", "may",
"will", "expects", "intends", "believes", "should" and similar
expressions or the negative versions thereof and which also may be
identified by their context. Such statements, whether expressed or
implied, are based upon current expectations of the Company and speak
only as of the date made. The Company assumes no obligation to publicly
update or revise any forward-looking statements even if experience or
future changes make it clear that any projected results expressed or
implied therein will not be realized. These statements are subject to
various risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual
results to differ materially, including, without limitation, the
following:
Meridian's continued growth depends, in part, on its ability to
introduce into the marketplace enhancements of existing products or new
products that incorporate technological advances, meet customer
requirements and respond to products developed by Meridian's
competition. While Meridian has introduced a number of internally
developed products, there can be no assurance that it will be successful
in the future in introducing such products on a timely basis. Meridian
relies on proprietary, patented and licensed technologies, and the
Company's ability to protect its intellectual property rights, as well
as potential for intellectual property litigation, would impact its
results. Ongoing consolidations of reference laboratories and formation
of multi-hospital alliances may cause adverse changes to pricing and
distribution. Recessionary pressures on the economy and the markets in
which our customers operate, as well as adverse trends in buying
patterns from customers can change expected results. Costs and
difficulties in complying with laws and regulations, including those
administered by the United States Food and Drug Administration, can
result in unanticipated expenses and delays and interruptions to the
sale of new and existing products. The international scope of Meridian's
operations, including changes in the relative strength or weakness of
the U.S. dollar, can make results difficult to predict. One of
Meridian's main growth strategies is the acquisition of companies and
product lines. There can be no assurance that additional acquisitions
will be consummated or that, if consummated, will be successful and the
acquired businesses will be successfully integrated into Meridian's
operations. There may be risks that acquisitions may disrupt operations
and may pose potential difficulties in employee retention and there may
be additional risks with respect to Meridian's ability to recognize the
benefits of acquisitions, including potential synergies and cost savings
or the failure of acquisitions to achieve their plans and objectives.
The Company cannot predict the possible impact of recently-enacted
United States healthcare legislation and any similar initiatives in
other countries on its results of operations. In addition to the factors
described in this paragraph, Part I, Item 1A Risk Factors of our Form
10-K contains a list and description of uncertainties, risks and other
matters that may affect the Company.
Meridian is a fully integrated life science company that manufactures,
markets and distributes a broad range of innovative diagnostic test
kits, purified reagents and related products and offers
biopharmaceutical enabling technologies. Utilizing a variety of methods,
these products and diagnostic tests provide accuracy, simplicity and
speed in the early diagnosis and treatment of common medical conditions,
such as gastrointestinal, viral and respiratory infections. Meridian's
diagnostic products are used outside of the human body and require
little or no special equipment. The Company's products are designed to
enhance patient well-being while reducing the total outcome costs of
healthcare. Meridian has strong market positions in the areas of
gastrointestinal and upper respiratory infections, serology,
parasitology and fungal disease diagnosis. In addition, Meridian is a
supplier of rare reagents, specialty biologicals and related
technologies used by biopharmaceutical companies engaged in research for
new drugs and vaccines. The Company markets its products and
technologies to hospitals, reference laboratories, research centers,
diagnostics manufacturers and biotech companies in more than 60
countries around the world. The Company's shares are traded through
NASDAQ's Global Select Market, symbol VIVO. Meridian's website address
is www.meridianbioscience.com.
SOURCE: Meridian Bioscience, Inc.
Meridian Bioscience, Inc.
John A. Kraeutler, Chief Executive
Officer, 513-271-3700