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BIO 2006 Luncheon to Focus on Reimbursement for Diagnostics

WASHINGTON, D.C. (April 4, 2006) –Reimbursement for breakthrough medical products is among the many issues companies face when preparing to launch an innovative biologic, drug, device or diagnostic.

To provide companies with an insight into the government’s position on reimbursement, Louis B. Jacques M.D., a policymaker with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), will speak at a luncheon, titled “Molecular Diagnostic Reimbursement,” at the BIO 2006 Annual International Convention.

BIO 2006 will take place April 9-12 at the McCormick Place Convention Center in Chicago.

Jacques, Director, Division of Items and Devices, Coverage & Analysis Group, will serve as the luncheon speaker at 12:30 p.m. Monday, April 10, in Room S101B of the convention center. Jacques will focus on evidentiary standards when considering coverage and reimbursement for molecular diagnostics.

Following the lunch, Jacques will join a panel of experts from 2-3:30 p.m. to discuss “Who’s Going to Pay for It?” Panelists will consider how payer reform will impact the financial success of a device or diagnostic, as well as the impact of personalized medicine on payer decisions. Other topics will include planning for insurance coverage and lobbying for the appropriate reimbursement.

Tom Grissom, Partner, Foley Hoag, LLP, will chair the panel. Aside from Jacques, other panelists are:

· Perry Dimas, Director, Reimbursement Planning and Payer Relations, XDx

· Susan Reardon, Director, Federal Affairs and Reimbursement, Johnson & Johnson

· Lucy Jean Sannes, Principal, Sannes & Associates, Inc.

· Burt Zweigenhaft, Consultant, Zweigenhaft Ventures

For more information on the BIO 2006 Annual International Convention, visit BIO’s website at http://www.bio.org/events/2006/. To attend the Molecular Diagnostic Reimbursement lunch, e-mail Emily Oster, BIO’s Medical Reimbursement and Policy Assistant, at eoster@bio.org.

Advance media registration for BIO 2006 is now closed. Registration is complimentary for credentialed members of the news media. Only reporters and editors working full-time for print or broadcast news organizations may register onsite with valid media credentials. Freelance journalists and online publications may not register onsite.

BIO represents more than 1,100 biotechnology companies, academic institutions, state biotechnology centers and related organizations across the United States and 31 other nations. BIO members are involved in the research and development of healthcare, agricultural, industrial and environmental biotechnology products.

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