As we gear up to start the stem cell therapy industry’s first nonprofit association for doctors and clinics that are actually providing safe and effective regenerative medicine therapy for their patients today —the National Stem Cell Association—I can’t tell you how excited I am. I have both a personal and professional passion for regenerative medicine. Years ago, I had a lower back injury that was causing me tremendous pain. I couldn’t sleep or work out, which led to a decreased quality of life. Stem cell therapy restored my health and vitality, and the procedure took minutes.
As a former CEO of venture capital startups in the health care industry, I see a great need for the National Stem Cell Association. The regenerative medicine industry needs a nonprofit organization to bring stem cell providers together under one umbrella to help address the threats we have in common—the regulations, litigation, and legislation that threaten your very existence.
One of NSCA’s most important functions is to build a grassroots advocacy effort to change the opinions and perceptions that regulators and legislators have about stem cell therapy. Part of that is to make sure our members are part of our registry database so we can track your clinical results to prove the safety and efficacy of stem cell therapies.
Among the many benefits that we plan to bring to our members, once we have substantial member participation in this registry database, will be to package the data and help our members market stem cell therapy to self-insured large employers with 500+ employees in their local market. These larger employers are much more open to innovative procedures—regardless if they are approved by the FDA—as long as they are effective and can save money in the long run. One of the most significant barriers to providing regenerative medicine to patients is the lack of any insurance reimbursement. Penetration of the self-insured employer market can significantly increase utilization of stem cell therapy in certain locals.
One of the larger stem cell networks, Regenexx, based in Des Moines, Iowa, has already had success with appealing to employers large enough to fund their own health plans. Before employees of a Midwestern grocery chain called Hy-Vee can undergo knee replacement, they first must visit a Regenexx provider who offers bone marrow stem cell therapy and PRP to help patients potentially avoid expensive orthopedic surgery.
Thus, not only can NSCA help prevent your practice from being over regulated to the point of extinction —it can also add substantially to your top line growth!