Alberta
Alberta based Atlas BiotechnologiesTM invests in leading Oncology Biotech research firm, Flavocure.
Alberta based Atlas BiotechnologiesTM invests in leading Oncology Biotech research firm, Flavocure.
November 06, 2018- Edmonton, Alberta- ?Atlas Biotechnologies Inc. is pleased to announce a 20% investment in Flavocure Biotech, which has an impressive pipeline of oncology research. Flavocure has a patent pending on two therapeutic molecules, which use cannabis flavonoid derivatives in the treatment of three aggressive forms of cancer: AML (Acute Myeloid Leukemia), pancreatic, and glioblastoma (brain) cancer.
“Flavocure is an excellent fit for Atlas Biotechnologies. Our business philosophy is built around curing disease and illness using cannabis derivatives. Flavocure’s FDA orphan drug designation for the treatment of Acute Myeloid Leukemia, combined with their attractive oncology pipeline, made them an obvious choice for collaboration. We intend to jointly develop specialized cannabis cultivars to further unlock the potential of targeted flavonoids in medical research”, said Sheldon Croome, Atlas Biotechnologies CEO.
Flavocure is based in Maryland, USA and collaborates with some of the world’s most prestigious cancer research institutions. The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved one of Flavocure’s two proposed therapeutics, Cresorol, with an orphan-drug designation.
Dr. Henry Lowe, an industry pioneer of cannabis phytopharmaceuticals and Flavocure’s founder and Executive Chairman, added, “Our early success in finding cannabis derived molecules for new therapeutic cancer discoveries attracted the interest of a great partner in Atlas. We are very much looking forward to collaborating with them on our genetics program and other drug research programs in the field.”
As part of the integral future collaboration, Atlas will hold a seat on Flavocure’s initial 7-member Board of Directors. Jeffrey R. Gossain, P.Eng, VP of Operations and one of Atlas’ founding Directors will aid in the development of the operational and corporate structure at Flavocure.
Atlas plans to develop a breeding program dedicated to isolating additional molecules in the flavonoid spectrum and identifying further cannabinoids for potential research and supply for future drug commercialization.
About Atlas Biotechnologies Inc. and Atlas Growers Ltd.
Atlas is based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada and its wholly owned subsidiary, Atlas Growers Ltd., is federally licensed for Cultivation and Production of medical cannabis products. Phase one of Atlas’ purpose-built, 38,000 square foot laboratory has the capacity to produce over 5,000 kg of dried cannabis annually as well as refined cannabis into isolated concentrates in mass capacity. Atlas Growers owns a 160-acre site that could allow for significant future expansion of cultivation capacity in Alberta and has a development permit in place for up to 1,000,000 square feet of additional construction. Atlas also owns 50% of Coastline Biotechnologies, which is a late stage applicant with Health Canada. Coastline anticipates to be licensed for cultivation on Vancouver Island in late 2019. Atlas is well financed, raising over $25.6 million in equity to date, including $7.6 million related to acquisition of land and strategic investments. Atlas also has available for future use a largely unutilized $6.25 million bank term loan.
From the Fraser Institute
On Monday, the Smith government announced that beginning next year it will change the way it funds surgeries in Alberta. This is a big step towards unlocking the ability of Alberta’s health-care system to provide more, better and faster services for the same or possibly fewer dollars.
To understand the significance of this change, you must understand the consequences of the current (and outdated) approach.
Currently, the Alberta government pays a lump sum of money to hospitals each year. Consequently, hospitals perceive patients as a drain on their budgets. From the hospital’s perspective, there’s little financial incentive to serve more patients, operate more efficiently and provide superior quality services.
Consider what would happen if your local grocery store received a giant bag of money each year to feed people. The number of items would quickly decline to whatever was most convenient for the store to provide. (Have a favourite cereal? Too bad.) Store hours would become less convenient for customers, alongside a general decline in overall service. This type of grocery store, like an Alberta hospital, is actually financially better off (that is, it saves money) if you go elsewhere.
The Smith government plans to flip this entire system on its head, to the benefit of patients and taxpayers. Instead of handing out bags of money each year to providers, the new system—known as “activity-based funding”—will pay health-care providers for each patient they treat, based on the patient’s particular condition and important factors that may add complexity or cost to their care.
This turns patients from a drain on budgets into a source of additional revenue. The result, as has been demonstrated in other universal health-care systems worldwide, is more services delivered using existing health-care infrastructure, lower wait times, improved quality of care, improved access to medical technologies, and less waste.
In other words, Albertans will receive far better value from their health-care system, which is currently among the most expensive in the world. And relief can’t come soon enough—for example, last year in Alberta the median wait time for orthopedic surgeries including hip and knee replacements was 66.8 weeks.
The naysayers argue this approach will undermine the province’s universal system and hurt patients. But by allowing a spectrum of providers to compete for the delivery of quality care, Alberta will follow the lead of other more successful universal health-care systems in countries such as Australia, Germany, the Netherlands and Switzerland and create greater accountability for hospitals and other health-care providers. Taxpayers will get a much better picture of what they’re paying for and how much they pay.
Again, Alberta is not exploring an untested policy. Almost every other developed country with universal health care uses some form of “activity-based funding” for hospital and surgical care. And remember, we already spend more on health care than our counterparts in nearly all of these countries yet endure longer wait times and poorer access to services generally, in part because of how we pay for surgical care.
While the devil is always in the details, and while it’s still possible for the Alberta government to get this wrong, Monday’s announcement is a big step in the right direction. A funding model that puts patients first will get Albertans more of the high-quality health care they already pay for in a timelier fashion. And provide to other provinces an example of bold health-care reform.
Nadeem Esmail
Senior Fellow, Fraser Institute
From the Montreal Economic Institute
Alberta’s move to fund acute care services through activity-based funding follows best practices internationally, points out an MEI researcher following an announcement made by Premier Danielle Smith earlier today.
“For too long, the way hospitals were funded in Alberta incentivized treating fewer patients, contributing to our long wait times,” explains Krystle Wittevrongel, director of research at the MEI. “International experience has shown that, with the proper funding models in place, health systems become more efficient to the benefit of patients.”
Currently, Alberta’s hospitals are financed under a system called “global budgeting.” This involves allocating a pre-set amount of funding to pay for a specific number of services based on previous years’ budgets.
Under the government’s newly proposed funding system, hospitals receive a fixed payment for each treatment delivered.
An Economic Note published by the MEI last year showed that Quebec’s gradual adoption of activity-based funding led to higher productivity and lower costs in the province’s health system.
Notably, the province observed that the per-procedure cost of MRIs fell by four per cent as the number of procedures performed increased by 22 per cent.
In the radiology and oncology sector, it observed productivity increases of 26 per cent while procedure costs decreased by seven per cent.
“Being able to perform more surgeries, at lower costs, and within shorter timelines is exactly what Alberta’s patients need, and Premier Smith understands that,” continued Mrs. Wittevrongel. “Today’s announcement is a good first step, and we look forward to seeing a successful roll-out once appropriate funding levels per procedure are set.”
The governments expects to roll-out this new funding model for select procedures starting in 2026.
* * *
The MEI is an independent public policy think tank with offices in Montreal, Ottawa, and Calgary. Through its publications, media appearances, and advisory services to policymakers, the MEI stimulates public policy debate and reforms based on sound economics and entrepreneurship.
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