COVENTRY HEALTH CARE LATEST TO PROVIDE ACCESS TO SBi's STAR™ TOTAL ANKLE REPLACEMENT SYSTEM
NEW YORK, NY: April 11, 2011 –Small Bone Innovations, Inc. (SBi) announced today that 1.7 million people nationwide covered by Coventry Health Care (NYSE: CVH) will have access to SBi's STAR™ Total Ankle Replacement system following a policy revision issued last week by the insurer.
STAR is the only total ankle replacement approved through the FDA's rigorous pre-market approval (PMA) process. SBi, a privately-owned orthopedics company, is focused exclusively on treatments for joint replacement or 'arthroplasty' and post-traumatic reconstruction of the small bones & joints of the thumb, fingers, hand, wrist, elbow, toes, foot & ankle.
Jeffrey Johnson, MD, Associate Professor and Chief, Foot & Ankle Service at Washington University Orthopedics in St. Louis, Missouri, said: "Next generation total ankle replacement technology is an effective treatment alternative to fusion in carefully selected patients with severe ankle arthritis.
"Knee and hip replacements are common among older Americans but ankle replacement is increasingly an option when the ankle joint wears out from injury or arthritis. Ankle replacement surgery allows patients to regain full range of motion in the ankle joint, and enables many to return to an active lifestyle," he added.
In recent months, total patient access to the STAR ankle in private health plans has risen to 91 percent. U.S. government health care plans, such as Medicare and TRICARE, extend STAR ankle coverage to almost 100 million eligible individuals, according to SBi's reimbursement consultant, Musculoskeletal Clinical Regulatory Advisers, LLC (MCRA).
About Small Bone Innovations, Inc.
Small Bone Innovations, Inc. (SBi) was founded in 2004 by Viscogliosi Brothers, LLC (VB), a New York-based merchant banking firm that specializes in the musculoskeletal/orthopedics sector. VB created SBi as the first company to focus purely on small bones & joints. By integrating established companies and professionals in the field, SBi offers a broad, clinically proven portfolio of products and technologies to treat trauma and diseases in small bones & joints. Today, SBi has facilities in New York, NY, Morrisville, PA, Bourg-en-Bresse, France, Donaueschingen, Germany, and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and has sold its products in 46 countries. For more information on SBi, please visit: www.totalsmallbone.com
Forward-looking statements
This news release contains forward-looking statements as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by these forward-looking statements as a result of risks and uncertainties impacting SBi’s business including increased competition; the ability of SBi to expand its operations and to attract and retain qualified professionals; technological obsolescence; general economic conditions; and other risks.