Dick,
You've probably seen this latest release. The reader and 2 cardiac marker tests have been approved by China for the Chinese market effective immediately:
"Response Biomedical's RAMP System Receives
Market Clearance in China
"Vancouver, British Columbia, January 5, 2005 - Response Biomedical Corp. (TSX-V: RBM), today announced that the RAMP® Reader and three RAMP Cardiac Marker Tests have received regulatory clearance in China from the State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA). Effective immediately, O&D Biotechnology Co., the Company's exclusive distributor in China, is now marketing rapid quantitative RAMP tests for detecting troponin I, CK-MB and myoglobin to assist in the rapid diagnosis of heart attack or acute myocardial infarction (AMI), a leading cause of death worldwide.
"China is the largest and fastest growing medical device market in Asia, and securing regulatory clearance marks a major milestone in the worldwide commercialization of clinical RAMP products," states Bill Radvak, President and CEO. "With an aging population, a rising standard of living, and the Government's commitment to improve access to basic health care, China is emerging as one of the single most important markets internationally."
"With over 1.2 billion people, China has more than 300,000 health institutions including more than 65,000 largely government-run hospitals. Chinese hospitals provided more than 900,000 beds and treated more than 2 billion patients in 2000. According to U.S. census data, electro-medical diagnostic and imaging equipment lead exports in the category of medical equipment to China. The market size for this segment is estimated at $2.5 - $3 billion, of which $1.3 - $1.4 billion are imports.
"Based in Beijing, O&D Biotech became the exclusive distributor of RAMP Cardiac Marker Tests in 2003. The Company is growing rapidly with a core focus on Point-of-Care Diagnostics."
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