Los Angeles, Sept. 17, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Dear Fellow Shareholder,
I am writing today to reintroduce you to BioCorRx, Inc. (OTCQB: BICX) and bring you up to date on our recent progress and our plans for the upcoming quarters.
Since our corporate rebranding in January 2014, BioCorRx has completed a number of steps to establish our platform for sustainable, fast growth as a publicly traded company. Now we are preparing to reap the benefits of these efforts.
Data from the National Institute on Drug Abuse suggests that some 23.5 million Americans have alcohol and/or opiate addiction issues. Of this group, an estimated 85% of people with alcohol abuse or dependence go untreated.
Marketdata Enterprises sizes the U.S. addiction treatment market at $35 billion annually. As the ACA has expanded access to addiction treatment, healthcare providers and investors are looking to stake claims in this highly fragmented market.
New Program and Branding Announcement
On behalf of BioCorRx®, I happy to announce the release of the company's new Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) Counseling Program specific to long-lasting Naltrexone therapy. In this new counseling modality of treating the newly sober brain, written by addiction experts and counselors entitled "Keys to Sobriety, Assisted by Long-Lasting Naltrexone," core concepts needed in early sobriety in order to maintain long-term success serve as behavioral modifiers for long-lasting change. This new counseling program will replace the company's prior coaching program. Licensed counselors will be able to become certified in the program by taking a training course conducted by the program's authors. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMSHA) in accordance with the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) as part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and their COMBINE study, Combining Medications and Behavioral Interventions for Alcoholism, best outcomes in naltrexone therapy are a result of receiving naltrexone along with sixteen weeks of outpatient treatment (NIAAA, 2006). Read more about SAMSHA naltrexone recommendations, by visiting SAMSHA.gov.
In January 2014, we rebranded the company under the BioCorRx name to distribute and license our proprietary Start Fresh Program® for alcohol and opioid addiction treatment to healthcare providers. We believe our program is unique in the market as a turnkey solution for healthcare professionals seeking to provide a structured program based on Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) guidelines for alcohol and opioid addiction at an efficient price to patients. To that end, we feel that the timing is right to rebrand the name of the Start Fresh Program to the BioCorRx® Recovery Program. The BioCorRx name means the use of medication to correct life, so we feel the name better represents Medication-Assisted Treatment for addiction. Also, with the recent increase in distribution agreements with various wellness centers of different names, we feel that it makes sense to have only one brand name under BioCorRx. Some of the centers offering our program may continue to call themselves Start Fresh Recovery or some derivative of Start Fresh, but they will be offering the program that was developed by BioCorRx. The branding change will be gradual, so please bear with us during the days and weeks ahead as we rebrand websites and create new collateral materials.
We believe the BioCorRx® Recovery Program offers distinct advantages both as a treatment and to the market needs:
· Proven Treatment: In the past five years, hundreds of patients have been treated with the program with unprecedented success rates as compared to other treatment solutions in this industry. The company plans to have 3rd party verification studies of patient outcomes started in the future.
· Does not require special prescribing waivers: Many treatment programs which use buprenorphine, a controlled substance under DEA regulations requiring additional paperwork and prescribing waivers. Naltrexone is not considered a controlled substance on its own (only when combined with buprenorphine) and therefore prescribers are not subject to many of the compliance regulations associated with using controlled substances in MAT.
· Long lasting proprietary formulation: The treatment includes a proprietary implantable form of naltrexone to help battle cravings for several months, sometimes up to six to twelve months depending on individual metabolism rates. Other common forms of Naltrexone require daily administration orally or monthly administration via injections, creating patient compliance problems and an increased risk of relapse.
· Patient Counseling Program: There is very little standardization across addiction treatment programs and as a result, it can be challenging for healthcare providers to know how best to structure an effective program. Our new counseling program is based on guidelines from SAHMSA and NIAAA and provides healthcare professionals with access to a certified group of counseling professionals and a wide range of individual or group therapy options for patients.
· Measureable, Replicable, Scalable: Healthcare reimbursement in the U.S. is moving towards payment models that emphasize effective outcomes. Reliable data is central to demonstrating effective outcomes, and we believe healthcare providers will embrace our data solutions as well as the ability to track their patients' progress against other providers using the BioCorRx® Recovery Program.
Setting the Foundation for Rapid Growth
Over recent years, we worked to build a transparent and stable platform for our partners and potential partners. Central to our efforts was the asset purchase agreement of the formula used to make the naltrexone implant used in our program. That agreement was executed in June 2015. Our most recent initiative revolves around the distribution model to wellness centers as part of our agreement with Myriad Medical Marketing. We now have a total of eight wellness centers under agreement to distribute our program with more planned in the coming weeks. This distribution agreement creates the potential for BioCorRx to be the most accessible Medication-Assisted Treatment program in the United States. Our goal is to have our program available to everyone within driving distance.
In 2014 we eliminated all convertible debt and brought the company to positive operational cash flow for the first time in the Company's history. In 2015 we have continued embarking on our new growth strategies.
Six Consecutive Quarters of Double-Digit Revenue Growth
Since our relaunch, quarterly revenues have grown from $130,829 in Q1 2014 to $733,245 as of June 30, 2015 as we continue to attract new providers to the program. With our restructuring and corporate relaunch completed, our focus is now on moving towards positive cash flow and profitability.
Our goal for the remainder of 2015 and for 2016 is to continue growing our client base. Business development efforts are focused on three main areas:
- Nationwide Rollout: As of September 17, 2015 there are eight wellness centers under distribution agreements, with another ten addiction centers using our program. The company plans to add several more wellness centers by the end of the year.
- Expand Strategic Partnerships: To date we have established strategic partnerships with healthcare providers, a compounding pharmacy and a medical marketing firm. In each case, we believe these partnerships will expand our reach into the addiction treatment market, help build awareness of the BioCorRx® brand and attract new providers and patients.
- Strengthen Balance Sheet: With our improving financial performance over the past few quarters with increased revenues, the Company believes that it will have the ability to further decrease the total debt. Going forward, depending on market conditions, the Company's cash position, and other considerations, the Company may take other steps to reduce its debt obligations or otherwise improve its balance sheet.
Finally, a few words about our investor outreach efforts. As noted, the past fifteen months have been about establishing and positioning the business for sustainable growth. We understand the importance of building and maintaining trust with the investment community and purposefully waited until the pieces were in place to bring our story to the markets. As part of this effort to reach out to more investors, including potential as well as existing shareholders, we have retained Investor Relations Partners (IRP), a firm that has a strong track record of raising the profile and price of companies through marketing efforts focused on sophisticated investors seeking value in overlooked lower-priced stocks. With the help of IRP, we will shortly be communicating a series of new developments that will make our growth prospects clear and should make the investing public stand up and take notice. The company will also continue to work with SmallCapVoice.com.
Kind Regards,
Brady Granier
Interim Chief Executive Officer
Safe Harbor Statement
The information in this press release includes forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements generally are identified by the words "believe," "project," "estimate," "become," "plan," "will," and similar expressions. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks as well as uncertainties. Although the Company believes that its expectations are based on reasonable assumptions, the actual results that the Company may achieve may differ materially from any forward-looking statements, which reflect the opinions of the management of the Company only as of the date hereof.