I-Flow Announces New Managed Care Contracts for ON-Q

LAKE FOREST, Calif.-- I-Flow Corporation recently signed several new contracts with managed care companies to provide reimbursement for the use of ON-Q where appropriate in ambulatory surgery centers (ASC) nationwide. Based on the number of total lives covered by these new contracts, which include one signed with preferred provider organization (PPO) powerhouse MultiPlan, ON-Q will be available to 12.5 million more patients who may undergo outpatient surgery. Total ON-Q covered lives in the United States now number more than 30 million. Surgeries in ambulatory surgery centers represent about 50 percent of ON-Q's market opportunity.

"These new contracts indicate that insurance carriers and PPO networks are more rapidly recognizing the positive value ON-Q delivers for their members having outpatient surgery," said Don Earhart, president and CEO of I-Flow Corporation. "This is underscored by the momentum we've seen with respect to new contracts and the increasing number of covered lives in just the last few months, which helps to make the ON-Q ASC business the fastest growing segment of our ON-Q franchise."

Earhart expanded on the significance of these most recent contracts, citing MultiPlan as one of the nation's oldest and largest independently contracted healthcare networks that has been recognized as the market-leading non-risk-bearing PPO network. He noted that when MultiPlan's network is fully accounted for, including primary coverage and networked lives, the number of patients potentially affected swells from 10 million to more than 25 million.

"ON-Q has enabled my patients to recover more quickly and in less pain following their surgeries," said Dr. John S. Early, an orthopedic surgeon at Presbyterian Hospital of Dallas, and participating provider in a major insurance carrier in Texas. "I want to offer my patients the best therapies available, and so it is terrific to learn that this pain relief treatment is being covered by even more plans."

ON-Q has proven through nearly 50 clinical studies that it provides effective pain relief, and is now labeled as significantly better than narcotics for post-surgical pain relief. ON-Q patients are typically more satisfied with their surgical experience because they are able to return to normal more quickly following their outpatient surgical procedures.

ON-Q is now labeled to significantly reduce pain better than narcotics and to significantly reduce narcotics intake after surgery. ON-Q is a device that consists of a small balloon pump that holds a local anesthetic (a pain-numbing medicine) and delivers it automatically through a tiny, specially designed tube (catheter) to provide more even distribution of local anesthetic over a wider area, as compared to other catheters, because of its patented wicking capabilities. ON-Q delivers narcotic-free pain relief for many surgeries, including cesarean section, hysterectomy, knee replacement, mastectomy, cardio/vascular/thoracic, foot and ankle, and many cosmetic procedures.

ON-Q helps patients avoid the side effects of narcotics so they can get back to normal life faster. Currently, nearly 50 studies on the use of ON-Q have been completed and published and more are underway to demonstrate the benefits of ON-Q in additional areas such as pediatrics, chronic pain, wound healing and reduced infection risk.

Source: I-Flow