TORONTO, June 17, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- MCI Onehealth Technologies Inc. ("MCI") (TSX: DRDR), a clinician-led healthcare technology company focused on increasing access to and quality of healthcare, has completed a further investment in Acorn Biolabs Inc. (“Acorn”), a Toronto-based biotechnology company. Pursuant to a share exchange agreement entered into between MCI and Acorn, MCI acquired common shares in the capital of Acorn in exchange for 380,953 Class A subordinate voting shares of MCI issued at a deemed price of $5.25 per share.
In addition to the capital investment, MCI will be providing commercial support to Acorn by including Acorn’s patented stem cell collection services in MCI’s selection of service offerings. In July 2021, select MCI clinics will begin offering Acorn’s services, including non-invasive hair follicle-based stem cell collection and storage, as well as live cell and genetic analytics. MCI anticipates that Acorn’s services will become available throughout the entire MCI network by the end of the year.
“Including Acorn’s stem cell collections and cryostorage in MCI’s advancing suite of technologies is yet another strong move forward on MCI’s precision medicine roadmap,” said Dr. Alexander Dobranowski, MD, CEO of MCI. “MCI is committed to growth as a means of empowering physicians and putting patients’ health first.”
Acorn’s patented technology allows for non-invasive stem cell collection and cryostorage as a monthly subscription service, in addition to providing next-generation genetics and live cell analytics. Acorn’s cryopreservation service is up to 80 per cent more cost effective than the industry average. By freezing a patient’s healthy cells and leveraging them when needed, Acorn aims to give Canadians the ability to live longer, healthier lives through regenerative medicine.
“Acorn’s partnership with MCI is an exciting opportunity to prepare Canadians for personalized regenerative treatments” said Dr. Drew Taylor, Co-founder and CEO at Acorn. “This is a very exciting opportunity to advance precision health as a whole.”
This investment enables MCI to accelerate execution on its comprehensive precision health and technology roadmap, while also supporting its long-term vision of building a data-driven, technology-enabled health services platform. As a leader in primary care, MCI’s partnership with Acorn further expands MCI’s business from a brick-and-mortar clinic network towards a data-driven, technology-enabled health services platform.
About Acorn
Acorn prepares clients for the future of regenerative medicine by banking their younger cells for future stem cell treatments. Led by Dr. Drew Taylor and borne out of years of research, Acorn is a healthcare technology company based in Toronto and backed by investors including Real Ventures, Globalive, Pool Global Partners and Epic Capital Management. Acorn is focused on giving every individual the opportunity to live a longer, healthier life with its patented non-invasive live cell collection, analysis and cryopreservation service. For more information visit acorn.me.
About MCI:
MCI is a healthcare technology company focused on empowering patients and doctors with advanced technologies to increase access, improve quality, and reduce healthcare costs. As part of the healthcare community for over 30 years, MCI operates one of Canada’s leading primary care networks with 25 clinics, serves over 850,000 patients annually and had over 200,000 telehealth visits last year. MCI additionally offers an expanding suite of occupational health service offerings that support a growing list of over 400 corporate customers. Led by a proven management team of doctors and experienced executives, MCI remains focused on executing a strategy centered around acquiring technology and health services that complement the company’s current roadmap.
For more information, visit mcionehealth.com.
For IR enquiries please contact:
Fernando Massalin | ir@mcionehealth.com | +1 (416) 440-4040 ext 155
For media enquiries please contact:
Nolan Reeds | nolan@mcionehealth.com | +1 (416) 440-4040 ext 158
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking information and forward-looking statements (together, “forward-looking statements”) within the meaning of applicable securities legislation, which reflect MCI’s current expectations regarding future events, including statements relating to: the relationship between MCI and Acorn (including the expected benefits thereof), the impact of the relationship with Acorn on MCI’s service offerings, technology roadmap and long-term strategic plan, the scope and timing of integrating Acorn’s services into MCI clinics, Acorn’s goals and strategic plan, Acorn’s role in the regenerative and precision medicine industry and the possibility of future collaborations between Acorn and MCI. In some cases, but not necessarily in all cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words or phrases such as “allows”, “future”, “revolutionizing”, “up to”, “towards”, “aims to”, “just the beginning”, “expanding” or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “would”, “might” or “will” occur. Forward-looking statements are based on a number of assumptions and is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond MCI’s control, which could cause actual results and events to differ materially from those that are disclosed in or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include difficulties or delays integrating Acorn’s services with those of MCI, technologies and services not functioning as expected, third parties not using technologies and services as expected, economic conditions making technologies and services less attractive than anticipated, competitors in the industry, the possibility of a breakdown in the relationship between Acorn and the Company, and other factors discussed under “Risk Factors” in the Company’s annual information form for the year ended December 31, 2020 which is available under the Company’s profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. All forward-looking statements made in this press release are made as of the date hereof and MCI does not undertake any obligation to update such forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by applicable law.