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Indianapolis, Ind. August 10, 2004
Roche Diagnostics Files Legal Action Against Former Supplier
Claims Access Diabetic Supply Misled Consumers
Roche Diagnostics Corporation of Indianapolis, Ind. filed a complaint
in U.S. District Court, Southern District of Indiana on Friday,
July 30, 2004 against former supplier Access Diabetic Supply, Inc
of Pompano Beach, Florida.
The lawsuit claims that a former supplier, Access Diabetic Supply,
misled consumers to believe that the Accu-Chek® Compact blood
glucose meter had been the subject of a high rate of complaints
and product returns and had been recalled. Roche Diagnostics is
seeking damages and a court order requiring Access Diabetic Supply
to contact all consumers that received the false and misleading
communication and correct the statements.
Access Diabetic Supply failed an audit by Roche Diagnostics, and
as a result, they were notified in January 2004 that Roche Diagnostics
intended to terminate its supply contract. Subsequent negotiations
for reinstating the contract neglected to rectify the situation,
and Access Diabetic Supply's contract was cancelled.
In early March, Roche Diagnostics began receiving calls from consumers
who had received phone calls and letters from Access Diabetic Supply
claiming a "voluntary recall" on the Accu-Chek® Compact
system. There has been no recall of the Compact system. Efforts
to reach agreement with the supplier on corrective action have been
unsuccessful.
About Roche and the Roche Diagnostics Division
Headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, Roche is one of the world's
leading innovation-driven healthcare groups. Its core businesses
are pharmaceuticals and diagnostics. Roche is number one in the
global diagnostics market, the leading supplier of pharmaceuticals
for cancer, and a leader in virology and transplantation. As a supplier
of products and services for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment
of disease, the Group contributes on a broad range of fronts to
improving people's health and quality of life. Roche employs approximately
62,000 people in 150 countries. The Group has alliances and research
and development agreements with numerous partners, including majority
ownership interests in Genentech and Chugai. Roche's Diagnostics
Division, the world leader in in-vitro diagnostics with a uniquely
broad product portfolio, supplies a wide array of innovative testing
products and services to researchers, physicians, patients, hospitals,
and laboratories worldwide. Roche Diagnostics' North American headquarters
is located in Indianapolis, Ind. (www.roche-diagnostics.us).
For further information, please visit our websites www.roche.com
and www.roche-diagnostics.com.
For more information please contact:
Lori LeRoy
Roche Diagnostics Corporation
317-521-9157
lori.leroy@roche.com
ACCU-CHEK is a trademark of a member of The Roche Group.
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