Ascensia Diabetes Care Announces Partnership with The Dr. Oz Show to Launch the 60-Day Diabetes Challenge

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Apr 24, 2017, 09:00 ET

PARSIPPANY, New Jersey, April 24, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

Ascensia Diabetes Care today announced it is partnering with The Dr. Oz Show to launch a 60-Day "Take Charge" Diabetes Challenge. Ascensia is sponsoring the challenge, which is designed to increase awareness of diabetes among the general public and help to encourage better management of the condition. It will launch during the April 26 episode of The Dr. Oz Show and focuses on the importance of testing blood glucose levels regularly and maintaining a healthy diet.

Now in its eighth season, and with more than 1,400 landmark episodes, The Dr. Oz Show has impacted millions of lives by teaching viewers about a wide range of health and wellness topics. During the April 26 episode, host Dr. Mehmet Oz will help launch the program by inviting participants to take the challenge to improve their blood glucose levels and reduce their weight. The show will also highlight the experiences from some of the 60 participants who have already completed the challenge.

Challenge participants who have diabetes will use the CONTOUR^®NEXT ONE Blood Glucose Monitoring System to monitor their blood glucose, and all participants will use higi, the largest self-screening network in the nation, to monitor weight and body mass index.

Robert Schumm, VP and Managing Director of Ascensia Diabetes Care US Inc., stated: "Diabetes is a condition that has reached epidemic levels in the United States. We are thrilled to be sponsoring this challenge on The Dr. Oz Show to encourage better diabetes management and raise awareness of the condition among members of the public. Testing blood glucose levels regularly and eating the right foods are two critical components in proactively managing diabetes."

Rob added, "The show is a great platform to educate the public on our high quality tools that can assist in improving the lives of people with diabetes. We are very excited about being part of this challenge and making our system available for customers in the US."

The CONTOUR^®NEXT ONE system is now available in the US and can be obtained from healthcare providers or purchased at pharmacies and other retailers. The CONTOUR™ DIABETES app is available for download from the Apple App Store (iOS) and Google Play (Android). The CONTOUR^®NEXT ONE system has been shown to deliver remarkable accuracy, with 95% of results within ±8.4 mg/dL or ±8.4% of the laboratory reference values for glucose concentrations < 100 mg/dL or ≥ 100 mg/dL, respectively.^[1]

Members of the public can participate in the challenge by joining at doctoroz.com, where they can see if they are eligible to receive one of 1000 free^* CONTOUR^®NEXT ONE meters. In addition to the 1,000 free meter kits, all other eligible participants can sign up to receive a coupon to redeem for a free* CONTOUR^®NEXT ONE meter with the purchase of CONTOUR^®NEXT test strips^[†] at their local pharmacy. The show airs on April 26, 2017. Check your network for local airtimes. Further information about The Dr. Oz Show is available here.

*. Limitations and restrictions apply. Limit one meter per person. Void where prohibited by law. Offer not valid for prescriptions reimbursed under Medicaid, Medicare drug benefit plan, Tricare or other federal or state health programs (i.e. medical assistance programs). Offer is not valid if a patient is eligible for drug benefits under any such program.

Notes for Editors

About Ascensia Diabetes Care

Ascensia Diabetes Care is a global specialist diabetes care company, dedicated to helping people living with diabetes. Our mission is to empower people living with diabetes through innovative solutions that simplify and improve their lives. We use our innovation and specialist expertise in diabetes to develop high quality solutions and tools that make a positive, daily difference for people with diabetes.

Home to the world renowned CONTOUR^® portfolio of blood glucose monitoring systems, our products combine advanced technology with user-friendly functionality that help people with diabetes to manage their condition. We are committed to continued research, innovation and development of new products and solutions. As a trusted partner in the diabetes community, we collaborate closely with healthcare professionals and other partners to ensure our products meet the highest standards of accuracy, precision and reliability, and that we conduct our business compliantly and with integrity.

Ascensia Diabetes Care was established in 2016 through the sale of Bayer Diabetes Care to Panasonic Healthcare Holdings Co., Ltd. Ascensia Diabetes Care products are sold in more than 125 countries. Following the close of the transaction in all countries, Ascensia Diabetes Care will have around 1,700 employees and operations in 33 countries.

For further information please visit the Ascensia Diabetes Care website at: http://www.ascensia.com.

Apple and the Apple logo are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. App Store is a service mark of Apple Inc. Google Play is a trademark of Google Inc.

About higi

higi is a technology company that is transforming the way communities take care of themselves. Founded in 2012, the company owns and operates the largest FDA-cleared self-screening health station network in the United States with nearly 11,000 stations located in food, drug and mass market retailers. higi also operates a robust online community platform that is linked to the higi health station network and over 80 health devices, activity trackers and apps. To date, more than 36 million people have used a higi health station to conduct over 200 million biometric screenings (blood pressure, pulse, weight, body mass index). Over 5 million people have signed up for a higi account which offers an all-in-one biometric and activity data feed for personal health management and information sharing with friends, family and trusted healthcare providers. For general information, visit us at http://www.higi.com or for how to work with higi at https://higi.com/business/.

1. Christiansen M et al. Accuracy and User performance Evaluation of a New Blood-Glucose Monitoring System in development for use with CONTOUR®NEXT Test Strips. Poster presented at the 15th Annual Meeting of the Diabetes Technology Society (DTS); 22-24 October, 2015; Bethesda, Maryland.

SOURCE Ascensia Diabetes Care