OLDSMAR, Fla., Dec. 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- CRYO-CELL International, Inc. (“CRYO-CELL” or the “Company”), the world’s largest U-Cord(R) stem cell bank, announced today that effective December 6, 2005, the Company has strategically restructured its U-Cord Service to improve clients’ value, increase the Company’s revenues and expand market share.
The restructured U-Cord Service includes several industry-unique features that the Company believes will be viewed very positively by clients when selecting a stem cell bank, by providing families with superior added value and comfort in their relationship with CRYO-CELL as their cord blood stem cell service provider of choice. In particular, the Company is very pleased to announce the availability of its unique, new CRYO-CELL Cares(TM) Program. This exciting new program, subject to its accompanying terms and conditions, has several premium components:
* $50,000 CRYO-CELL Payment Guarantee(TM). In the event that a client’s cord blood, which was processed and stored by the Company, is used for transplant and fails to engraft, CRYO-CELL will pay the client $50,000. * $10,000 CRYO-CELL Cares(TM) Payment. In recognition of the financial hardship many families experience during a cord blood stem cell transplant; in conjunction with a transplant of CRYO-CELL-banked cells, the Company will pay clients $10,000 to ease personal family/living expenses.
Additional enhancements to CRYO-CELL’s newly restructured U-Cord Service include:
* CRYO-CELL Client for Life(TM) Program. This program will enable new and existing clients to lock in today’s U-Cord Service prices for their family’s future children, independent of any future price changes. * Elimination of enrollment fee down-payments: Clients will not pay any service fees until their child’s cord blood is received, processed and safely stored. * Personal Courier Service: Any additional charges for shipping the kit(s) to clients upon enrollment and for return shipping of the blood samples is now included in the service price (U.S. and Puerto Rico clients only). CRYO-CELL uses an industry leading medical courier for highly personalized, door-to-door transport of its client’s samples from the delivery room to the Company’s state-of-the-art processing and storage facility. * Practitioner Service Reimbursement. Professional cord blood collection fees are increased to $175 per successful collection.
Continuing the Company’s tradition of providing a superior value service, the enhanced U-Cord Service processing and testing fee will be $1595 for new CRYO-CELL clients, and the new, fixed annual storage fee will be $125 per year. Returning clients will receive a $500 discount on the Processing and Testing Fee ($1095) and will pay a fixed $100 annual storage fee. CRYO-CELL will continue to offer 6- and 12-month interest free payment plans and a 48- month financing plan to interested and qualified clients.
Mercedes Walton, Chairman and CEO commented, “We are pleased and proud to introduce the new features of CRYO-CELL’s enhanced U-Cord Service. Our goal is to provide CRYO-CELL clients with a premium and effortless, end-to-end service that helps families establish a unique healthcare asset that we believe will increase in value over time as anticipated new therapeutic applications emerge. The CRYO-CELL Cares Program, in particular, is another industry innovation reflective of CRYO-CELL’s leadership as both a high-tech and high- touch service provider.”
CRYO-CELL is the first in the industry to offer the CRYO-CELL Client for Life(TM) Program that enables clients to lock-in today’s U-Cord Service prices for the family’s future newborns and the $10,000 CRYO-CELL Cares(TM) Payment that provides families with a lump-sum payment to assist with personal living expenses in the event that their child’s CRYO-CELL-processed and stored cord blood specimen is utilized for bone marrow transplant.
Ms. Walton continued, “We believe that CRYO-CELL’s enhanced U-Cord offer provides clients with the highest accredited quality, most innovative and superior-value private cord blood service available in today’s market. We also believe that this unique and sophisticated program underscores CRYO-CELL’s leadership as the best-in-class cord blood service provider, and reinforces our strategic platform as “THE Stem Cell Solution Source.”
Signaling its emphasis on quality, CRYO-CELL recently became the only cGMP-/cGTP-compliant cord blood bank that is both AABB accredited and ISO 9001:2000 certified. In addition, CRYO-CELL is the only cord blood bank that gives clients money back for college through its category exclusive relationship with Upromise(R), a leading college savings program. Verified in a recent independent client satisfaction survey, 98% of CRYO-CELL clients relate that the U-Cord Service meets and/or exceeds their expectations.
About CRYO-CELL International, Inc.
Based in Oldsmar, Florida, CRYO-CELL is the world’s largest U-Cord(R) stem cell bank, offering premium-quality, superior value cord blood preservation exclusively for the benefit of newborn babies and possibly other members of their family. In October 2005, CRYO-CELL announced an exclusive license with Plureon Corporation to develop the proprietary methodology to collect, process and cryogenically preserve Plureon Stem Cells (PSCs) collected from placental tissue at the time of birth. CRYO-CELL has exclusive U.S. rights to market the novel stem cell Service to expectant parents. With over 100,000 clients worldwide, CRYO-CELL is ISO 9001:2000 certified, AABB accredited and believes the Company is the first private cord blood bank to operate in a newly constructed state-of-the-art current Good Manufacturing Practice and Good Tissue Practice (cGMP/cGTP)-compliant facility, well in advance of newly established Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulation. Expectant parents or healthcare professionals may call 1-800-STOR-CELL (1-800-786-7235) or visit http://www.CRYO-CELL.com .
Forward-Looking Statement
Statements wherein the terms “believes,” “intends,” “projects” or “expects” as used are intended to reflect “forward-looking statements” of the Company. The information contained herein is subject to various risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the results anticipated in such forward-looking statements or paragraphs, many of which are outside the control of the Company. These uncertainties and other factors include any adverse effect or limitations caused by recent increases in government regulation of stem cell storage facilities; any increased competition in our business; any decrease or slowdown in the number of people seeking to store umbilical cord blood stem cells or decrease in the number of people paying annual storage fees; any adverse impacts on our revenue or operating margins due to the costs associated with increased growth in our business, including the possibility of unanticipated costs relating to the operation of our new facility; any technological breakthrough or medical breakthrough that would render the Company’s business of stem cell preservation obsolete; any material failure or malfunction in our storage facilities; any natural disaster such as a tornado, other disaster (fire) or act of terrorism that adversely affects stored specimens; the costs associated with defending or prosecuting litigation matters and any material adverse result from such matters; decreases in asset valuations; any continued negative effect from adverse publicity in the past year regarding the Company’s business operations; any negative consequences resulting from deriving, shipping and storing specimens at a second location; and other risks and uncertainties. The foregoing list is not exhaustive, and the Company disclaims any obligations to subsequently revise any forward- looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of such statements. Readers should carefully review the risk factors described in other documents the Company files from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the most recent Annual Report on Form 10-KSB, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-QSB and any Current Reports on Form 8-K filed by the Company.
CRYO-CELL International, Inc.
CONTACT: Investors: Francesca DeMartino, +1-646-536-7024,fdemartino@theruthgroup.com, or Media: Janine McCargo +1-646-536-7033,jmccargo@theruthgroup.com, both of The Ruth Group, Inc.
Web site: http://www.cryo-cell.com/
