| DURHAM, NC (May 18, 2006) — bioMérieux,
a leading international diagnostics company, announced an agreement
with the Alliance for the Prudent Use of Antibiotics (APUA®),
a non-profit, international organization dedicated to promoting
appropriate antibiotic access and use and curbing antibiotic
resistance worldwide. bioMérieux has committed a sizeable
unrestricted education grant to support APUA in an independent
research and educational project entitled, “Measuring
the Economic Burden of Drug Resistance in the U.S.”
This research project is expected to produce the first in-depth
analysis of the burden of resistant infections in U.S. hospitals
and encourage cost-effective interventions to control the problem.
The bioMérieux grant will support APUA in establishing
a think tank of national and international experts from the
fields of microbiology, clinical medicine and economics. Their
findings will be offered for publication in peer-reviewed journals
and serve as policy guidance for legislators, provider groups,
and HMOs.
Resistance to antibiotics has become a serious concern for
hospitals. The selective pressures caused by inappropriate antibiotic
use jeopardize both the effective treatment of bacterial infections
and the hospital’s bottom line. Quantifying the economic
cost of antibiotic resistance is therefore of vital interest
to healthcare payers, administrators and clinicians.
“While bird flu threatens America; deadly drug resistant
hospital infections are already in our midst and rapidly proliferating.
Determining the cost of resistant infections is extremely complex
involving diverse disciplines and a variety of hospital departments,”
explained Kathleen Young, Executive Director of APUA.
“We are pleased to partner with bioMérieux on
this research project as we strive to document the cost of drug
resistant infections in the U.S. and to explore measures needed
to improve antibiotic use,” said Stuart B. Levy, M.D.,
president, APUA and professor of molecular biology and microbiology
at Tufts University School of Medicine.
“bioMérieux is delighted to join forces with the
APUA through support of this critical research on the clinical
and economic implications of antibiotic resistance,” said
Eric Bouvier, bioMérieux North American president and
CEO. “One of the project goals is to evaluate the cost-effectiveness
of various interventions to detect and manage the emergence
of antibiotic resistance, including appropriate diagnostics.”
“As a leader in the diagnostic industry, bioMérieux
has a duty to promote responsible antibiotic utilization, as
it directly impacts good patient care. This issue is even more
critical today given the numerous pilot programs that link reimbursement
and quality measures, such as programs like Pay for Performance.
We feel that microbiology data are a critical component in better
patient management and we are pleased to offer our support to
such an outstanding organization as the APUA,” continued
Bouvier.
About APUA
Founded in 1981, the Alliance for the Prudent Use of
Antibiotics is committed to promoting global public health by
raising public awareness through education and research projects
to better understand antibiotic resistance, and to guide the
proper use of antibiotics. Headquartered in Boston, APUA provides
a unique global network to support country-based activities
tailored to local needs, and to facilitate the exchange of objective
information among scientists, health care providers, consumers
and policy makers worldwide. For more information on drug resistance
see www.apua.org.
About bioMérieux, Inc.
bioMérieux is a leading international diagnostics
group that specializes in the field of in vitro diagnostics
for clinical and industrial applications. bioMérieux
designs, develops, manufactures and markets systems (i.e. reagents,
instruments and software) used in:
Clinical applications: the diagnosis of infectious diseases
such as hepatitis, HIV, tuberculosis and respiratory illnesses,
as well as pathologies such as cardiovascular diseases and cancer,
based on the analysis of biological samples (such as blood,
saliva or urine); and
Industrial applications: the microbiological analysis of food,
environments (such as water and air), surfaces and pharmaceutical
and cosmetic products, based on the analysis of product or environmental
samples.
In 2005, bioMérieux sales reached 994 million euros.
The company is present in more than 130 countries through 35
subsidiaries and a large network of distributors, which positions
the company well to benefit from the growth potential of the
in vitro diagnostics market. Some important drivers that underpin
this growth are aging populations and age-related illness, illnesses
related to life-style and eating habits, emerging new pathogens,
the development of antibiotic -resistant bacteria, the fight
against bio-terrorism, and the recognition of the importance
of the quality of food products. bioMérieux is listed
on the Eurolist of Euronext, Paris (FR0010096479 – BIM).
Other information can be found at www.biomerieux-usa.com
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