INVO Bioscience Enters New Distribution Agreements in Africa to Commercialize the INVOcell In Vivo Fertilization System
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SARASOTA, Fla., Nov. 7, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- INVO Bioscience, Inc. (OTCQB: IVOB), a medical device company focused on creating alternative treatments for patients diagnosed with infertility and developers of INVOcell®, the world's only in vivo Intravaginal Culture System, today announced it has entered into commercialization agreements in the continent of Africa, covering Nigeria, Uganda, Sudan and Ethiopia, to distribute the revolutionary INVOcell system. The agreements represent INVO Bioscience's initial entry into the highly populated, yet in our opinion severely underserved infertility markets in Africa. The African commercialization agreements support INVO Bioscience's planned worldwide expansion of INVOcell and follow the recent agreement with Ferring Pharmaceuticals to distribute INVOcell in the United States.
According to research, approximately 31% of Nigerian couples fail to conceive a child after 12 months of unprotected sex—a rate at least as high as in the West. Across the continent, infertility is on the rise. Infertility comes with devastating social, cultural, emotional and economic consequences for young couples in Africa. However, access to assisted reproductive services remains a big challenge as traditional IVF treatment is limited in many areas of Africa. The INVOcell system is a novel fertility treatment that uses a woman's own body as a natural incubator for the incubation of eggs and sperm during fertilization and early embryo development. This cost-effective process has shown comparable pregnancy rates to IVF and in our opinion has the ability to significantly increase patient access. The INVOcell system can eliminate the need for costly infrastructure and overhead associated with IVF, one of the primary hindering factors to fertility treatment in many areas of the continent. Additionally, we believe our unique in vivo fertilization process is a powerful motivator for many patients and in our opinion the only acceptable option available to some patients for religious and cultural reasons. INVO Bioscience has entered into distribution agreements with G-Systems covering Nigeria, and Quality Medicine covering Uganda, Sudan and Ethiopia. Following standard administrative requirements by each company to begin supplying INVOcell in the country, the Company believes distribution will commence in 2020. Each agreement includes minimum annual purchase requirements. Full terms of the agreement were not disclosed. Steve Shum, CEO of INVO Bioscience, commented, "One of our key objectives moving forward is the rapid adoption of the INVOcell system across the world by entering into commercialization agreements that make sense for the Company and the particular market they serve. G-Systems and Quality Medicine have long-standing experience in the fertility equipment and services market and are enthusiastic about offering the INVOcell solution to their customer base." Pressly Ahammed, Director of Business Development for INVO Bioscience, added, "I have had great experience working with the teams at G-Systems and Quality Medicine during my tenure at Cooper Surgical. Both of these companies have a reputation for high quality customer service and are trusted by top medical device companies from around the world. Further, both have a specialized focus within infertility that will serve INVO Bioscience well. We look forward to a long and prosperous relationship." Worldwide, the fertility treatment market is severely underserved. Currently, only 1% to 2% of the 150 million infertile couples worldwide are treated, with the primary prohibiting factor being cost and access to treatment. About INVO Bioscience® We are a medical device company focused on creating simplified, lower cost treatments for patients diagnosed with infertility. Our solution, the INVO® Procedure, is a revolutionary in vivo method of vaginal incubation that offers patients a more natural and intimate experience. Our lead product, the INVOcell®, is a patented medical device used in infertility treatment and is considered an Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART). The INVOcell is the first Intravaginal Culture (IVC) system in the world used for the natural in vivo incubation of eggs and sperm during fertilization and early embryo development, as an alternative to traditional In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) and Intrauterine Insemination (IUI). Our mission is to increase access to care and expand fertility treatment across the globe with a goal to lower the cost of care and increase availability of care. For more information, please visit http://invobioscience.com/ Safe Harbor Statement This release includes 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, as amended. The Company invokes the protections of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements regarding our expected future financial position, results of operations, cash flows, financing plans, business strategies, products and services, competitive positions, growth opportunities, plans and objectives of management for future operations, as well as statements that include words such as "anticipate," "if," "believe," "plan," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "could," "should," "will," and other similar expressions are forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements involve risks, uncertainties and contingencies, many of which are beyond our control, which may cause actual results, performance, or achievements to differ materially from anticipated results, performance, or achievements. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements include those set forth in our filings at www.sec.gov. We are under no obligation to (and expressly disclaim any such obligation to) update or alter our forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. For more information, please contact: INVO Bioscience Investors
SOURCE INVO Bioscience, Inc. |
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Company Codes: OTC-PINK:IVOB, ISIN:US44984F1049 |
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