CRANBURY, N.J., Jan. 24 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Palatin Technologies, Inc. announced today that the Committee for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has established a temporary HCPCS (Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System) reimbursement code for the payment of NeutroSpec. This reimbursement code for NeutroSpec allows Medicare reimbursement for infection imaging in an outpatient setting. NeutroSpec is Palatin's proprietary radiolabeled monoclonal antibody product for imaging and diagnosing infections.
"This is a significant milestone in the commercial development of NeutroSpec," said Carl Spana, Ph.D., President and CEO of Palatin Technologies. "The issuance of this reimbursement code is an important, initial step in ensuring broad reimbursement coverage for NeutroSpec as we continue to work in conjunction with Mallinckrodt Imaging, our strategic collaboration partner, to maximize NeutroSpec's commercial value."
CMS issues temporary HCPCS codes while permanent HCPCS codes are being established, a process that usually takes six to twelve months. CMS issues permanent HCPCS codes for medical technologies that may be reimbursed by Medicare and Medicaid. Private health insurance companies use these codes as a reference point in establishing their position on reimbursement coverage of new medical technologies like NeutroSpec.
About NeutroSpec(TM)
NeutroSpec(TM) is Palatin's proprietary radiolabeled monoclonal antibody product for imaging and diagnosing infections. NeutroSpec is marketed and distributed by Palatin's strategic collaboration partner, Mallinckrodt Imaging, a business unit of Tyco Healthcare. NeutroSpec has been approved by the FDA as an imaging agent for the diagnosis of equivocal appendicitis. The Company is also conducting additional clinical trials with NeutroSpec to evaluate its market potential as an imaging agent for other indications.
NeutroSpec includes a technetium-labeled anti-CD 15 monoclonal antibody which selectively binds to a type of white blood cell, neutrophils, involved in the immune response. When injected into the blood stream, NeutroSpec binds to neutrophils present at the infection site, labeling these cells with a radioactive tracer. As a result, physicians can rapidly image and detect an infection using a gamma camera, a common piece of hospital equipment that records radioactivity. NeutroSpec offers the advantage of direct injection and in-vivo labeling of white blood cells, leading to a rapid and highly specific functional image of an infection in less than an hour, whereas the current standard of care, ex-vivo labeled white blood cells, requires a blood sample to be taken from the patient, processed by a nuclear pharmacy and then re-injected into the patient, with diagnostic images usually not available until 12-24 hours later.
About Palatin Technologies, Inc.
Palatin Technologies, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing melanocortin (MC)-based therapeutics. NeutroSpec(TM), the Company's proprietary radiolabeled monoclonal antibody product for imaging and diagnosing infections, has been approved by the FDA as an imaging agent for the diagnosis of equivocal appendicitis. NeutroSpec is marketed and distributed by Palatin's strategic collaboration partner, Mallinckrodt Imaging, a business unit of Tyco Healthcare. The Company is currently conducting clinical trials with its lead drug candidate, PT-141, an MC receptor agonist, for the treatment of male and female sexual dysfunction. In August 2004, Palatin entered into a strategic collaboration agreement with King Pharmaceuticals, Inc. to jointly develop and commercialize PT-141. Palatin's patented drug discovery platform, MIDAS(TM), streamlines the drug design process with an efficient approach to identifying lead compounds from proteins. For further information, visit the Palatin web site at http://www.palatin.com/.
About Mallinckrodt Imaging
Mallinckrodt Imaging, a business unit of Tyco Healthcare, is an industry leader in imaging, providing a full line of contrast media and delivery systems, radiopharmaceuticals, and urology imaging systems for the diagnosis and treatment of disease in many imaging procedures. Headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, Mallinckrodt Imaging has been in the imaging business since 1913. Mallinckrodt Imaging develops and markets products for hospitals, freestanding imaging centers and radiopharmacies.
Statements about the Company's future expectations, including development and regulatory plans, and all other statements in this document other than historical facts, are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The Company intends that such forward-looking statements be subject to the safe harbors created thereby. Palatin's actual results may differ materially from its historical results of operations and those discussed in the forward-looking statements for various reasons, including, but not limited to the Company's ability to carry out its business plan, successful development and commercial acceptance of its products, ability to fund development of technology, the risk that products may not result from development activities, protection of its intellectual property, ability to establish and successfully complete clinical trials for product approval, need for regulatory approvals, dependence on its partners for development of certain projects, and other factors discussed in the Company's periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company is not responsible for events not updated after the date on this press release.
Palatin Technologies, Inc.CONTACT: For Palatin Technologies: Dennis Earle, Director - BusinessDevelopment, +1-609-495-2200, info@palatin.com; For Media: Tony Ho Loke, RxCommunications Group, LLC, +1-917-322-2164, tloke@RxIR.com; For InstitutionalInvestors: Janet Dally, MontRidge, LLC, +1-203-894-8038,jdally@montridgellc.com
Web site: http://www.palatin.com/