Empower Clinics signs North American distribution agreement with API Pharma for its COVID rapid antigen and antibody tests

Empower Clinics Inc (CSE:CBDT) (OTCQB:EPWCF) (FRA:8EC) announced Monday a North American reseller and distribution agreement with API Pharma for its COVID rapid antigen and antibody tests.  In a statement, Empower said its KAI Medical Laboratory provided API significant scientific data through three months of clinical trials. As a result, Empower and API are now able to sell these test products with confidence, on an unlimited basis, to its customers and prospective customers nationwide in the US and European countries supporting the CE mark approval.  Furthermore, Empower said it and KAI are providing API with support for its Health Canada submission for its Rapid Antigen Detection Test (RADT) for authorization. Empower will have Canadian distribution rights upon Health approval.  READ: Empower Clinics sees another quarter of over 5,000 patient visits; reports strong year-to-date revenue "Our society is experiencing unprecedented changes that are affecting how we go back to work, how we travel and how we might gain permission to interact with others,” said Empower CEO Steven McAuley. “Testing protocols and testing products are becoming a part of our daily lives, and there are key differences between PCR, antigen and antibody tests." The global COVID-19 diagnostics market size is valued at US$19.8 billion in 2020 and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 3.1% from 2021 to 2027.  An RADT is a rapid diagnostic test suitable for point-of-care testing that directly detects the presence or absence of an antigen. This distinguishes it from other medical tests that detect antibodies or nucleic acid, of either laboratory or point of care types. Empower said API’s antigen test has been demonstrated to be highly effective on three continents -- different strains of the virus will respond equally to the rapid antigen test. Clinical studies were carried out specifically in China, the US and Poland. The COVID-rapid antibody test, which screens blood for antibodies, can allow hospitals and workplaces to identify people who were infected and may have already developed immunity. Studies have shown that one-third to one-half of those infected with COVID-19 are asymptomatic. As a result, serology tests help determine who can lead the way back to re-open businesses and work on the front lines of health care. Kai Medical's expanded footprint in COVID-19 testing Because of API's focus on rapid, point-of-care testing for both antibodies and antigens, in addition to Kai Medical's extraordinary capacity to handle industry-standard turnaround times for RT-PCR testing, the partnership further solidifies Kai Medical's foothold in the COVID-19 testing space, Empower said. KAI has taken an active role in COVID-19 testing, battling the pandemic through RT-PCR testing and serology testing, with the capacity to process 4,000 RT-PCR test specimens per day. Yoshi Tyler, president of KAI Medical, said: "We anticipate that, moving forward, there will be a focus on much more rapid and accurate point-of-care testing, in order to return to everyday life. Like the virus, our testing strategies must be adaptable. As we move forward, we continue to prioritize the best and most efficacious testing strategies." As a result of this capability, Empower said it is now able to expand phase four of its COVID-19 testing rollout which was first announced on April 27, 2020, beginning with testing in-clinic testing (Phase 1) and culminating with a nationwide roll-out across the US (Phase 4). Phase 4 allows Empower to service enterprise-level clients, including movie and television studios that require reliable, accurate, fast and mass batch testing capabilities in order to resume production in a safe and compliant manner. Contact the author: patrick@proactiveinvestors.com Follow him on Twitter @PatrickMGraham