RedHawk Increases Business Focus on Needle Incineration

LAFAYETTE, La., April 30, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- In late 2015, RedHawk Medical Products & Services, LLC, the Company's wholly-owned medical device subsidiary, acquired all of the tangible and intangible property rights for its SANDD mini™ (formerly known as The Disintegrator™ Insulin Needle Destruction Unit), a needle destruction device approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration ("FDA") for home use. The acquired assets included, but was not be limited to, all matters subject to the SANDD™ original patent applications, including technical designs, drawings, trademarks, tradenames, FDA documents, clinical test data, and all manufacturing tooling and fixtures.

The SANDD™ mini (http://www.needledestructiondevice.com) is a portable, battery operated, insulin-needle incineration device originally designed for use in a home setting primarily by diabetics. RedHawk re-engineered the SANDD mini™ technology in 2017 to permit use of the SANDD mini™ in clinical settings by allergists, dermatologists, cosmetologists, plastic surgeons and other medical specialties without the need for sharps containers for needle disposal. Following its use, the SANDD™ mini is approved for disposal of the remaining syringes in the household trash or without the need for sharps containers. The SANDD mini™ is recognized as a safe and environmentally friendly method of disposing needles following their use. The SANDD mini™ is approved by the FDA as an effective alternative to hazardous waste needle disposal utilizing high-priced sharps containers. The SANDD™ mini is recognized by the California's Department of Resources and Recycling as the only FDA approved needle incineration device approved for self-injectors at home in the State of California.

The SANDD™ mini meets all OSHA workplace safety guidelines for needle disposal and is intended for the incineration and environmentally friendly disposal of 27-32 gauge hypodermic needles that are 5/16 to ½ inch in length. It can incinerate most insulin pen needles and can accept disposable insulin syringes ranging in volumes from 1/3 to 3 cubic centimeters.

After successfully completing market testing of the SANDD mini™ in 2018 and working in conjunction with the Louisiana State University Innovation Park, RedHawk acquired the exclusive rights to the SANDD Pro™ (the "SANDD Pro™") needle incineration technology in September 2018. With the SANDD Pro™, the Company's hypodermic needle incineration capabilities now include 14-gauge hypodermic needles and higher, up to 8" in length. Additionally, the acquired SANDD Pro™ technology features a portable, rechargeable, battery operated unit. This portable unit (the "SANDD Pro™ - Portable") will incinerate as many as 300 needles, ranging in gauges as thick as 21 gauge and lengths up to 8" on a single charge. The SANDD Pro™ - Portable is ideal for field use by first responders, home health care nurses, veterinarians and home use injectors. The SANDD Pro™ is FDA approved and OSHA compliant.

The newly acquired SANDD Pro™ technology included, but was not limited to, technical designs, drawings, trademarks, tradenames, clinical test data, and all manufacturing tooling and fixtures.

The complete line of SANDD™ products can be used in virtually all home and commercial applications including hospitals, first responders, a full range of clinics and primary care physicians, dentists, veterinarians, retirement and non-acute healthcare facilities. The SANDD mini™ is currently offered for sale. After completion of engineering testing and intellectual property re-design, the Company said it expects to offer the SANDD Pro™ and the SANDD Pro™ - Portable for sale during 2019.

Commenting on the SANDD™ technology, G. Darcy Klug, the Company's Chairman and Interim Chief Executive Officer said, "The U. S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that more than a half-million accidental sticks occur annually, with many of those injuries going unreported. In addition to potential threats to medical professionals, sharps often end up in recycling centers where workers who come into contact with the used needles can be hurt, or worse, contract life-threatening diseases. Improper disposal of used needles has also become a threat to public health in many communities."

"OSHA," Klug continued, "estimates 5.6 million healthcare industry workers in the United States alone are at risk of occupational exposure to bloodborne pathogens via needlestick injuries. Each year 385,000 needlestick injuries and other sharps-related injuries are reported by U.S. hospital-based healthcare personnel. OSHA believes the actual number of needlestick injuries, including both reported and unreported injuries, could reach 1 million annually."

"The reported cases alone equate to an average of around 1,000 sharps injuries per day in U.S. hospitals alone," Klug added. "Including other non-acute healthcare facilities, it is estimated that 600,000 to 1,000,000 healthcare personnel alone incur a needlestick injury each year in the U.S. 40% of injuries occur after use and before disposal of sharp devices, 41% of injuries occur during the use of sharp devices on patients, and 15% of injuries occur during or after disposal. Virtually all healthcare personnel worldwide are at risk of harm from occupational exposures such as needlestick injuries. While nurses sustain approximately half of all needlestick injuries, physicians, housekeepers and maintenance staff, technicians, administrators and waste management personnel are also harmed. According to the American Hospital Association, one case of serious infection by bloodborne pathogens can soon add up to $1 million or more in expenditures for testing, follow-up, and disability payments. Costs that are harder to quantify include the emotional cost associated with fear and anxiety from worrying about the possible consequences of an exposure, direct and indirect costs associated with drug toxicities and lost time from work."

"Legislators have passed laws to make it illegal to throw needles and sharps into the trash, but only a few states mandate a system to safely dispose of used needles. Because needles are considered hazardous medical waste, used needles must be placed in puncture-proof containers and taken to special drop-off sites. Many times, in a home setting, patients must travel a long-distance to safely dispose the needles but some of these patients are elderly or too ill to travel these long distances. Although, they can pay to participate in a disposal program through the mail, wherein used needles are shipped in safe containers to disposal sites, these programs can be expensive, as much as $50 per month. Also, these programs do not prevent the re-use of needles by drug addicts."

Klug said the Company believes SANDD™ technology addresses the growing problem of needle sticks and hazardous waste disposal that continues to plague the medical and waste management industries. Using proprietary technology, the SANDD™ units safely convert a used needle into a safe, powder residue in a matter of a few seconds. The powder residue is then no longer considered a hazardous material and can be safely disposed with the normal household waste in a home setting and without the need of high-priced sharps containers in a home or clinical setting. The SANDD™ units also eliminate the need of expensive needle mail-back programs offered by insurance companies.

About RedHawk Holdings Corp.

RedHawk Holdings Corp., formerly Independence Energy Corp., is a diversified holding company which, through its subsidiaries, is engaged in sales and distribution of medical devices, sales of branded generic pharmaceutical drugs, commercial real estate investment and leasing, sales of point of entry full-body security systems, and specialized financial services. Through its medical products business unit, the Company sells WoundClot Surgical - Advanced Bleeding Control, the Sharps and Needle Destruction Device (SANDD™), and the Carotid Artery Digital Non-Contact Thermometer. Through our United Kingdom based subsidiary, we manufacture, and market, branded generic pharmaceuticals. Our real estate leasing revenues are generated from various commercial properties under long-term lease. Additionally, RedHawk's real estate investment unit holds limited liability company interest in a commercial restoration project in Hawaii. The Company's financial service revenue is from brokerage services earned in connection with debt placement services. RedHawk Energy holds the exclusive U.S. manufacturing and distribution rights for the Centri Controlled Entry System, a unique, closed cabinet, nominal dose transmission full-body x-ray scanner.

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SOURCE RedHawk Holdings Corp.