Imprimis Pharmaceuticals Launches Imprimis Cares Access Network (ICAN) to Assist in Patient Access to Imprimis Cares® Compounded Formulations

SAN DIEGO, Sept. 6, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Imprimis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: IMMY), a pharmaceutical company dedicated to making drugs affordable through its Branded Compounding™ business model, today announced the launch of the Imprimis Cares Access Network (ICAN), a new patient assistance program designed to simplify the process of accessing Imprimis' patent-pending Tiopronin Delayed Release (Tiopronin-DR) compounded formulations, a lower cost alternative to Thiola®, as well as other Imprimis Cares® compounded formulations. 

Sam S., a 45-year old male Imprimis Cares patient from Alabama, stated, "I have been taking Thiola® for nearly 20 years and was relieved when I learned Imprimis Pharmaceuticals had introduced a lower-cost tiopronin alternative.  The new Tiopronin-DR formulation is significantly more affordable for my employer, which is self-insured, and allows me to reduce the number of pills I take from 15 pills per day to 6.  I fully support the Imprimis Cares program and its mission of providing all Americans access to affordable prescription drugs.  I am now enrolled in automatic refills to ensure my medication is delivered to my home each month.  It has been a pleasure working with the Imprimis team and patient advocates during my changeover from Thiola® to Tiopronin-DR and I cannot thank them enough for the time they devoted on my behalf to ensure access to this formulation now covered by my insurance."

Tiopronin is commonly prescribed for the treatment of cystine stone formation in the kidneys, ureter, and bladder in cystinuria patients who do not respond to dietary changes and increased fluids.  Imprimis' tiopronin compounded formulations may not only significantly lower the cost of cystinuria treatments but also allow patients, for the first time, to reduce the number of pills they consume on a daily basis for this chronic genetic disease.  Imprimis' exclusive National Drug Code (NDC) for tiopronin should allow patients and their insurance companies to experience a reduction in costs of more than 70% compared to the FDA-approved Thiola per 100mg dose. 

The ICAN team of dedicated patient advocates will work with physicians, their office staff, insurance carriers and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to facilitate and expedite the insurance payment process on behalf of patients enrolled in the program.  The network also provides assistance and support for eligible patients to substantially decrease or eliminate out-of-pocket expenses.  Enrollees have the option to receive emails and brochures with updates and other helpful information about their condition and treatment options.  To learn more or to enroll, please visit http://www.imprimisrx.com/why-imprimisrx/imprimis-cares/ican/.  

Mark L. Baum, Chief Executive Officer of Imprimis, stated, "The new ICAN program is powered by the good relationships we have been able to build with leading PBMs and their plan sponsors who, like Imprimis, are 100% committed to making sure patients have access to affordable critical medicines prescribed by a physician.  The ICAN team, working in concert with our payor partners, help support cystinuria patients and their families as they transition from higher cost medicines to the Imprimis Cares formulary.  We would like to thank our payor partners for working with us to develop the ICAN program which ensures affordable access to critical medicines.  In the future, we intend to continue to expand the Imprimis Cares formulary to drive value for patients, payors and our shareholders."

Tiopronin Delayed Release Formulations

Physicians and their cystinuria patients may now choose from one of two lower-cost compounded alternatives to Thiola®.

• Tiopronin Delayed Release is comprised of the active ingredient tiopronin along with a cellulose-based FDA-approved delayed release agent.  This formulation is available in various customizable doses including 200mg and 250mg capsules.
• Tiopronin-K Delayed Release is comprised of the active ingredient tiopronin along with potassium citrate in a delayed release capsule, for those patients who have had their potassium citrate dosing titrated.  Potassium citrate is the first-line alkalinizing drug for the treatment of cystinuria.  According to the National Organization for Rare Disorders, in addition to chelating medications such as tiopronin, potassium citrate is often co-prescribed and taken separately to make the urine more alkaline, potentially reducing cystine crystallization and stone formation.

Commitment to Patient Access

Imprimis is committed to the company's mission, vision and values of providing patients with affordable access to the medications they need.  As with Imprimis' other formulations, the alternative to Thiola resulted from the needs of patients, physicians and payors for a lower-cost therapeutic solution.  Significant increases in drug prices, coupled with an increasing number of higher deductible drug benefit plans and some insurance companies simply refusing to cover costs altogether, make it difficult for many patients to gain affordable access to the medications they need.  Imprimis plans to continue to expand its Imprimis Cares formulary and introduce additional drug formulations for patient populations that may not have available alternatives to increasingly expensive FDA-approved medications.  To learn more about Imprimis Cares, please visit http://www.imprimisrx.com/why-imprimisrx/imprimis-cares/.  

Commitment to Quality  

Imprimis is committed to providing high quality medications compounded at FDA-inspected and PCAB-accredited facilities.  All active drug ingredients used as components of the formulations are FDA-approved and manufactured to a USP Monograph or a similarly accepted national or international standard.  Federal and state oversight is a part of every aspect of the Imprimis drug supply chain from raw material acquisition to production, testing and dispensing.  We strive to meet and/or exceed all quality standards for the formulations we dispense and are committed to transparency to our customers when it comes to batch and lot testing performed, including providing sterility test results for each order we dispense for sterile compounded drugs.  For additional information, please visit http://www.imprimisrx.com/why-imprimisrx/quality/.  

About Imprimis Pharmaceuticals

Imprimis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: IMMY) is a pharmaceutical company dedicated to making drugs affordable through its Branded Compounding™ business model.  The company is focused on patient outcomes and affordability and offers high quality lower-cost custom compounded drugs in all 50 states.  Headquartered in San Diego, California, Imprimis owns and operates four dispensing facilities located in California, Texas, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. For more information about Imprimis, please visit the corporate website at www.ImprimisRx.com. 

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Any statements in this release that are not historical facts may be considered such "forward looking statements." Forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations and are subject to risks and uncertainties which may cause results to differ materially and adversely from the statements contained herein. Some of the potential risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ from those predicted include our ability to make commercially available our compounded formulations and technologies in a timely manner or at all; physician interest in prescribing our formulations; risks related to our compounding pharmacy operations; our ability to enter into other strategic alliances, including arrangements with pharmacies, physicians and healthcare organizations for the development and distribution of our formulations; our ability to obtain intellectual property protection for our assets; our ability to accurately estimate our expenses and cash burn, and raise additional funds when necessary; risks related to research and development activities; the projected size of the potential market for our technologies and formulations; unexpected new data, safety and technical issues; regulatory and market developments impacting compounding pharmacies, outsourcing facilities and the pharmaceutical industry; competition; and market conditions. These and additional risks and uncertainties are more fully described in Imprimis' filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K and its Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. Such documents may be read free of charge on the SEC's web site at www.sec.gov. Undue reliance should not be placed on forward looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made. Except as required by law, Imprimis undertakes no obligation to update any forward looking statements to reflect new information, events or circumstances after the date they are made, or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

All Imprimis compounded formulations may only be prescribed pursuant to a physician prescription for an individually identified patient consistent with federal and state laws governing compounded drug formulations.

Media Contact
Paul Rabin
[email protected] 
516.503.0271

Investor Contact:
Bonnie Ortega
[email protected] 
858.704.4587

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SOURCE Imprimis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

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