Nanodropper Awarded a Phase II SBIR Contract With U.S. Air Force

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Aug 20, 2020, 15:41 ET

SEATTLE, Aug. 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Nanodropper , Inc., a medical device company offering a first-of-its-kind eyedrop bottle adaptor that reduces eyedrop size, has been named the recipient of a Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract with the United States Air Force.

The Nanodropper adaptor was inspired by a 2017 ProPublica article detailing just how much medication waste there is in America, specifically eyedrops that are too big. The adaptor, an FDA-listed, Class I medical device, reduces the size of a typical eyedrop by more than 60 percent, stretching the life of an eyedrop bottle by several months. The adaptor easily screws on over the tip of most eyedrop bottles.

"Our Phase II contract with the Air Force will help us develop an extension of our current solution to oversized eyedrops to meet the needs of the Air Force patient population, and beyond," said Mackenzie Andrews, Nanodropper's Chief Commercialization Officer.

The SBIR program is run by AFWERX, a community of Air Force innovators who act as a catalyst for Air Force engagement across industry, academia, and non-traditional contributors to create transformative opportunities and foster an Air Force culture of innovation. The Phase II contract builds upon Nanodropper's Phase I SBIR contract, which totaled more than $49,000 to help the Air Force advance technology innovations for service members. Phase II contracts can be worth up to $1.5 million in additional funding.

Nanodropper was founded by Allisa Song, Mackenzie Andrews, Dr. Jennifer Steger, and Elias Baker. Song, Nanodropper's CEO, read the ProPublica article that inspired the adaptor and recruited the rest of the team along the way. They would go on to win more than 20 awards from institutions such as the National Inventors Hall of Fame, University of Washington, and Johns Hopkins University. Nanodropper has been highlighted by the American Academy of Ophthalmology, Mayo Clinic, Seattle Times, GeekWire and many other publications, including their original inspiration: ProPublica.

About Nanodropper, Inc.

Nanodropper offers value-based solutions to close health equity gaps while promoting patient education and advocacy. Named after the company's flagship product, Nanodropper has developed a patient-centered adaptor for eyedrop bottles to reduce the volume of currently oversized eyedrops by more than 60 percent. This will help reduce cost, decrease waste, and minimize potential side effects of vision-saving treatments. Visit www.nanodropper.com to learn more.

Contact:
Robbie Spencer
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SOURCE Nanodropper