- CMS Announces 2020 Fee Schedule -
CAESAREA, Israel, Nov. 04, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Itamar Medical Ltd. (Nasdaq: ITMR) (TASE: ITMR), a company that develops, manufactures, and markets non-invasive diagnostic medical devices for sleep-apnea and uses a digital healthcare platform to facilitate the continuum of care for effective sleep apnea management with a focus on the cardiology market, today announced that Blue Shield of California (BSC) and the Blue Cross Blue Shield Federal Employee Plan (BCBS FEP) have included WatchPAT™ as a covered home sleep apnea diagnostic test. The Company also announced the release of the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) 2020 Fee Schedule which is the second year of a 3-year proposed plan by CMS to reevaluate reimbursement in home sleep apnea diagnostic codes. The changes made in the 2020 Fee Schedule are expected to continue to support and expand the broad use of its WatchPAT technology.
In October 2019 both BSC, a health plan that covers approximately 3.7 million lives, and BCBS FEP, a health plan that covers approximately 5.3 million lives, updated their policies to include WatchPAT based on the PAT™ technology with oximetry and actigraphy, as a covered home sleep apnea diagnostic test. This inclusion of WatchPAT and PAT technology follows an assessment of Diagnosis and Medical Management of Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome recently released by Blue Cross Blue Shield Association Evidence Street.
“The inclusion of WatchPAT as a recommended test for sleep apnea in the BCBS Evidence Street assessment is an important validation of the clinical value that Itamar’s PAT technology provides,” said Gilad Glick, President and Chief Executive Officer of Itamar Medical. “We believe that the Evidence Street assessment recommendation will result in expanded BCBS plan coverage and that this expanded coverage, combined with the recently announced CMS Fee Schedule changes, will drive further adoption and market share of WatchPAT.”
About Itamar Medical Ltd.
Itamar Medical is engaged in research, development, sales and marketing of non-invasive medical devices for the diagnosis of respiratory sleep disorders and uses a digital healthcare platform to facilitate the continuum of care for effective sleep apnea management with a focus on the cardiology market. The Company offers a Total Sleep Solution™ to help physicians provide comprehensive sleep apnea management in a variety of clinical environments to optimize patient care and reduce healthcare costs. Its flagship PAT®-based product, the WatchPAT™ device, is a home-use diagnostic device for sleep breathing disorders. Its digital health platform, including CloudPAT™ and SleePATh™, facilitates seamless and complete care pathway management in a complex environment. It also offers the EndoPAT™ system, an FDA-cleared device to test endothelial dysfunction and to evaluate the risk of heart disease and other cardiovascular diseases. Itamar Medical is a public company traded on the Nasdaq and on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchanges, and is based in Caesarea, Israel with U.S. headquarters based in Atlanta, GA. For additional information visit www.itamar-medical.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This Press Release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and other applicable securities laws. Statements preceded by, followed by, or that otherwise include the words "believes", "expects", "anticipates", "intends", "estimates", "plans", and similar expressions or future or conditional verbs such as "will", "should", "would", "may" and "could" are generally forward-looking in nature and not historical facts. For example, when we discuss the expansion of the use of PAT™ technology, the expansion of BCBS plan coverage or the further adoption of WatchPAT™, we are using forward-looking statements. Because such statements deal with future events, they are subject to various risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including events and circumstances out of the Company's control and actual results, expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, could differ materially from the Company's current expectations. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, risks, uncertainties and assumptions discussed from time to time by the Company in reports filed with, or furnished to, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and the Israel Securities Authority (“ISA”), including the Company’s latest Form 20-F which is on file with the SEC and the ISA. Except as otherwise required by law, the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly release any revisions to these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.
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Lazar FINN Partners
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