MINIMED GETS GOOD NEWS FOR ITS PUMP; MEDICARE MAY COVER DEVICE.Byline: Jason Z. Cohen cohen or kohen (Hebrew: “priest”) Jewish priest descended from Zadok (a descendant of Aaron), priest at the First Temple of Jerusalem. The biblical priesthood was hereditary and male. Staff Writer The federal government ruled Friday that Medicare recipients may receive coverage for external insulin pumps insulin pump n. A portable device for people with diabetes that injects insulin at programmed intervals in order to regulate blood sugar levels. , a product whose market is dominated by MiniMed Inc. MiniMed, based in Sylmar, controls 80 percent of the U.S. market for external insulin pumps, a device that delivers a programmed dose of insulin to patients with Type I diabetes Type I diabetes Also called juvenile diabetes. Type I diabetes typically begins early in life. Affected individuals have a primary insulin deficiency and must take insulin injections. Mentioned in: Diabetic Ketoacidosis . Company officials said the approval means private insurers likely will follow the government's lead and pay for the pumps for their clients. ``At its basic core, it reflects the growing acceptance of insulin pump therapy,'' said Eric S. Kentor, MiniMed's senior vice president and general counsel. Following the announcement, the company's stock jumped $2.8125 on heavy trading volume Trading volume The number of shares transacted every day. As there is a seller for every buyer, one can think of the trading volume as half of the number of shares transacted. That is, if A sells 100 shares to B, the volume is 100 shares. Friday, closing at $98.25. Investors believe the approval will result in additional sales for MiniMed, analyst Kurt Kruger of Banc of America Securities said earlier in the week. Kentor said the increase in business is likely but predicting how much it will be is difficult. ``In terms of sales Terms of sale Conditions under which a firm proposes to sell its goods or services for cash or credit. , we would understandably expect to get some incremental Additional or increased growth, bulk, quantity, number, or value; enlarged. Incremental cost is additional or increased cost of an item or service apart from its actual cost. sales. We don't have a real good handle on specifically how many Medicare beneficiaries have Type I diabetes,'' Kentor said. He said the company hopes to marry its insulin pump technology with another of its products, a sensor that monitors insulin levels. The idea would be to create a machine that monitors insulin and blood sugar levels and distributes insulin accordingly, mimicking the activity of the pancreas. |
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