Original from: businesswire
Curative Inc., a leading health services company that recently launched a new health plan out of Texas, announces the spin-off of Sensible Diagnostics, whose aim is to commercialize their groundbreaking point-of-care PCR testing platform. The new Sensible PCR Platform (which was designed to support Curative¡¯s legacy next-generation testing operations) combines speed, affordability, and accuracy, making it an easy drop-in upgrade for current point-of-care testing workflows. With a 10-minute time-to-result, market-leading test pricing, and lab-quality PCR results, the Sensible Platform is poised to change the current standard of care.
¡°We are excited to be rolling out Sensible Diagnostics to bring a revolutionary, efficient PCR 10-minute desktop testing platform to the masses,¡± said Fred Turner, CEO and co-founder of Curative. ¡°This device is truly a game changer for diagnostics testing in retail clinics, urgent care, and beyond, and will provide fast, accurate, and affordable results.¡±
Since the ¡®80s, lateral flow immunoassay technology has dominated the infectious disease testing market. While it offers a relatively inexpensive result in a compact package, it is common knowledge that this technology is inaccurate and is prone to user errors due to its manual workflow. Despite this, PCR has yet to supplant the lateral flow immunoassay as the go-to, point-of-care testing technology because of its high costs and relative operational complexity.
The Sensible Diagnostics Platform was built based on over two years of experience performing over 2 million molecular point-of-care tests in the field while part of Curative¡¯s initial diagnostic focus. Sensible's design is simple: fewer parts and fewer process steps, which means fewer mistakes and safer, more affordable results. With prices that are competitive with lateral flow antigen testing, Sensible Diagnostics¡¯ platform is setting out to make lateral flow immunoassay testing a thing of the past.
¡°We learned a lot about diagnostics testing from the pandemic, and in conjunction with our extensive knowledge in the field, we wanted to build a PCR testing platform that would deliver on speed and accuracy while keeping costs low,¡± said Ernest Templin, CEO and co-founder of Sensible Diagnostics. ¡±This platform has a pricing structure that is competitive with lateral flow testing and delivers a PCR test result that is exactly the same as one you would get from a lab. We are providers who built this platform for providers, so patients can be offered a faster and more accurate test that has better technology without increasing their healthcare costs.¡±
Sensible Diagnostics¡¯ co-founders Ernest Templin, CEO, and Mark Kelleher, PhD, MBA, COO / CSO, lead a team that brings years of combined industry experience and hands-on pandemic experience. The company¡¯s platform will be launched with a respiratory test but was built to be extended to all types of infectious disease testing, like STIs. In addition to government grant money provided, the company is currently about to launch a Series A funding round.
Sensible Diagnostics¡¯ and its point-of-care testing platform came to fruition out of Curative¡¯s COVID-19 testing business. Curative is no longer in the diagnostic testing business and is currently offering a health insurance plan available to employers across Texas with zero out-of-pocket cost for members.
About Sensible Diagnostics
Sensible Diagnostics was created in early 2023 by Curative with the goal of bringing its 10-minute PCR platform (the Sensible Platform) to market. While at Curative, Sensible's team witnessed and participated in running over 2 million molecular point-of-care COVID-19 tests in the field. Building on this experience Sensible's team spent over two years developing and fine-tuning the Sensible platform, which is designed for speed and affordability without sacrificing accuracy or usability. Sensible¡¯s goal is to make PCR point-of-care testing for infectious diseases the standard of care. By reducing testing times and costs and improving usability, Sensible's platform makes this standard of care viable in a market full of products that don't.
About Curative
Curative is a leading health care services company that has created and launched a first-of-its-kind employer-based health insurance plan. Co-founded by CEO Fred Turner and CTO Isaac Turner (no relation) in 2020, Curative is reengineering health insurance by providing unmatched simplicity and cost transparency with a competitive monthly premium and zero additional costs*. Curative is remaking our healthcare system into one that works for and supports members¡¯ whole health and well-being through every step of their personal health journey. Previously, Curative and its managed medical entities were national leaders bringing COVID-19 testing and vaccine-administration resources to bear in response to the pandemic.
