With Hospital Emergency Room Infrastructure To Provide Secure ID and Medical Record Access For VeriChip Patients, Thought and Opinion Leaders to Play Key Role in Adoption of VeriChip(TM)
DELRAY BEACH, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 22, 2005-- VeriChip Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Applied Digital, announced today that the Bergen County, New Jersey Chief of Police has been implanted with the VeriChip. Chief of Police Jack Schmidig, a member of the police force for over 30 years, received a VeriChip as part of the Company's strategy of enlisting key regional leaders to accelerate adoption of the VeriChip. With hospital emergency room infrastructure forming, patients will have the ability to provide secure ID and medical record access in an emergency or clinical situation.
"High-profile regional leaders are accepting the VeriChip, representing an excellent example of our approach to gaining adoption of the technology," said Kevin H. McLaughlin, VeriChip Corporation's CEO. "The northern New Jersey area represents one of our early regional targets, and in a short time period we have secured a leading hospital in the region which has agreed to adopt the VeriChip System to scan patients; initiated efforts to educate the physician community in conjunction with one of our distribution partners Henry Schein Corporation, and implanted several high-profile members of the community with the VeriChip. We intend to employ this approach on a regional basis to accelerate acceptance of this Class II medical device."
VeriChip Corporation has adopted three key elements to its marketing strategy to develop regional acceptance for VeriChip. They include developing the infrastructure at regional hospitals to support the VeriChip System (scanner and database) in the Emergency Rooms; educating the medical community in the region in conjunction with Henry Schein and other distribution partners; and seeking high-profile members of the community to receive the VeriChip to raise awareness of the device.
Initially, the Company has identified several groups of patients that are likely to benefit from the VeriChip due to medical conditions. These include diabetics, chronic and cardiac care patients, memory impaired patients and patients with implanted medical devices. These patients would benefit from having a VeriChip as a result of medical conditions that increase the likelihood of an emergency room visit, which could require time-sensitive procedures where access to medical records would be critical.
Using the VeriChip System, the emergency room attendant could scan the VeriChip in the patient's arm, accessing a unique 16-digit ID number. This number would be linked to a medical records database, which would provide detailed information on implanted medical devices and patient medical records, which could provide valuable information allowing the hospital to quickly implement the appropriate procedures on patients who otherwise might not be able to communicate medical histories due to impaired conditions.
About VeriChip Corporation
VeriChip Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Applied Digital, provides leading-edge security solutions for people, their assets, and their environments. From the world's first and only FDA-cleared, human-implantable microchip to the only active RFID tag with patented skin-sensing capabilities, VeriChip leads the way in next-generation RFID technologies. Today, over 3,000 installations in healthcare, security, industry, and governments worldwide benefit from both the protection and cost savings that VeriChip Corporation's innovation delivers. For more information on VeriChip Corporation, please visit www.verichipcorp.com.
About Applied Digital
Applied Digital develops innovative security products for consumer, commercial, and government sectors worldwide. The Company's unique and often proprietary products provide security for people, animals, the food supply, government/military arena, and commercial assets. Included in this diversified product line are RFID applications, end-to-end food safety systems, GPS/Satellite communications, and telecomm and security infrastructure, positioning Applied Digital as the leader of Security Through Innovation. Applied Digital is the owner of a majority position in Digital Angel Corporation.
For more information, visit the company's website at http://www.adsx.com .
Statements about the Company's future expectations, including future revenues and earnings, and all other statements in this press release 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 Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties and are subject to change at any time, and the Company's actual results could differ materially from expected results. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect subsequently occurring events or circumstances.
Source: Applied Digital
