FRANKLIN LAKES, N.J., Dec. 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Medco Health Solutions, Inc. and Mayo Collaborative Services, Inc., today announced a strategic collaboration to jointly evaluate the medical, clinical and cost-savings potential of genetic testing, while improving patient safety and care. A comprehensive, community-based analysis of patients using warfarin is intended to be the first in a series of personalized medicine collaborations between Medco and Mayo Clinic.
Medco and Mayo will evaluate the genetic test results from more than 1,000 patients taking warfarin, a widely used blood thinner initially marketed as Coumadin. Eligible subjects will be invited to participate from the more than 200,000 patients who are annually identified as new to warfarin therapy in Medco's prescription drug database. Each year, approximately two million people in the United States begin therapy with warfarin to prevent blood clots and bleeding. Genetic testing can provide valuable information about the rate at which patients will metabolize the drug, helping physicians prescribe the most appropriate dose of the medication for a particular patient. In routine practice, reaching the proper dose amounted to trial and error.
The initiative is designed to use Medco's vast clinical capabilities and experience with patient safety programs. This study will be implemented in typical community practice settings during a patient's normal course of treatment. The Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology at Mayo Clinic on behalf of Mayo Medical Laboratories will conduct the genetic testing and communicate results directly to the prescribing physician for use in determining the optimal dosing of the drug. The program is scheduled to begin enrolling patients in the first quarter of 2007 and be complete by the end of that year.
"The science of personalized medicine has the potential to completely redefine how medications are prescribed and used in this country, and a growing body of clinical evidence points to the benefits of personalized medicine," said Dr. Robert Epstein, Medco's chief medical officer. "With the size and scope of our clinical data resources, Medco is uniquely positioned to view the whole patient - both medical and prescription drug usage - adding a deeper level of understanding in the area of personalized medicine. Collaborating with Mayo Clinic we intend to accelerate the adoption of these new technologies."
"Mayo is committed to individualized medicine and is exploring the many benefits this approach offers to patients including, improved patient safety," said Dr. Franklin R. Cockerill, III, CEO, Mayo Collaborative Services, Inc. and Chair, The Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology at Mayo Clinic.
About Mayo Medical Laboratories/The Department of Laboratory Medicine
The Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology at Mayo Clinic maintains an active diagnostic test development program. This program also incorporates discoveries from other diagnostic and biotechnology companies and academic organizations. Mayo utilizes these proven diagnostic technologies in the care of its patients and offers them to more than 3,500 health care institutions around the world through Mayo Medical Laboratories. Revenue from Mayo Medical Laboratories testing is used to support medical education and research at Mayo Clinic. Mayo Collaborative Services, Inc. is the parent company.
About Medco
Medco Health Solutions, Inc. is the nation's leading pharmacy benefit manager based on its 2005 total net revenues of nearly $38 billion. Medco's prescription drug benefit programs are designed to drive down the cost of pharmacy health care for private and public employers, health plans, labor unions and government agencies of all sizes, and for individuals served by the Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Program. Medco's technologically advanced mail-order pharmacies and award-winning Internet pharmacy have been recognized for setting new industry benchmarks for pharmacy dispensing quality. Medco serves the needs of patients with complex conditions requiring sophisticated treatment through its specialty pharmacy operation, which became the nation's largest with the 2005 acquisition of Accredo Health, Incorporated. Medco is the highest-ranked pharmacy benefit manager on the 2006 Fortune 500 list. On the Net: http://www.medco.com.
This press release contains "forward-looking statements" as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements involve risks and uncertainties that may cause results to differ materially from those set forth in the statements. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed, and actual results may differ materially from those projected. We undertake no obligation to publicly update any forward- looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. Forward-looking statements in this press release should be evaluated together with the risks and uncertainties that affect our business, particularly those mentioned in the Risk Factors section of the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Medco Health Solutions, Inc.CONTACT: Ann Smith, Medco Health Solutions, +1-201-269-5984,ann_smith@medco.com; or Margaret Dougherty, Mayo Clinic, +1-507-284-5005,dougherty.margaret@mayo.edu
Web site: http://www.medco.com/
