A Medical Device Daily

OxyBand Technologies (San Francisco) reported signing a contract with the U.S. Army to evaluate the company's wound healing technology for battlefield and other military wounds.

OxyBand says it has developed a proprietary wound dressing that delivers pure oxygen gas into wounds for faster healing. The OxyBand dressing has been shown in clinical trials to accelerate healing and, in laboratory testing, to reduce bacteria for infection. The OxyBand Wound Dressing has received FDA clearance for both prescription (Rx) and over-the-counter (OTC) marketing.

The company says it has developed a proprietary technology for packaging pure oxygen into a wound dressing using directionally permeable gas-emitting reservoirs, the resulting dressing shown in randomized, controlled double-blind trials to accelerate wound healing, reduce inflammation, redness and pain through the direct and sustained application of pure oxygen over several days.

OxyBand said it anticipates beginning work under the contract with the United States Army Medical Research and Material Command (USAMRMC) immediately. The clinical study evaluating OxyBand Dressings will be conducted at the United States Army Institute for Surgical Research, (USAISR; Fort Sam Houston, Texas), a part of the USAMRMC and co-located with Brooke Army Medical Center.

In other contract news:

• Cepheid (Sunnyvale, California) reported signing a group purchasing contract with Premier (Charlotte) a Group Purchasing Organization (GPO) with more than 1,500 participating hospitals and 42,000 other healthcare sites.

Cepheid also signed a preferred vendor agreement with the Western North Carolina Health Network (WNCHN; Asheville, North Carolina), a collaboration of 53 acute care hospitals that use Premier as their GPO. Premier and WNCHN customers will use Cepheid's GeneXpert System and Xpert MRSA tests at pre-negotiated prices.

Cepheid is a molecular diagnostics company.

• Cigna HealthCare (Phoenix) and Catholic Healthcare West (CHW; San Francisco) have reported that CIGNA plan members now have in-network access to the services and care provided by CHW facilities and providers. The contract covers CHW's three Arizona hospitals, St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center, Chandler Regional Medical Center, Mercy Gilbert Medical Center (all Phoenix) and affiliated facilities and physician practices in the Phoenix area.

Cigna HealthCare members in Phoenix will have in-network access to CHW's wide-ranging medical services and programs, including neurology, cardiology, pediatrics, women's services, orthopedics, oncology, rehabilitation and maternity care.