CHIP Verichip (MM)

VeriChip Corporation (the ๏ฟฝCompany๏ฟฝ) (NASDAQ:CHIP), a provider of radio frequency identification (RFID) systems for healthcare and patient-related needs, will launch its first-ever direct-to-consumer (DTC) marketing campaign in South Florida on April 28. As part of this campaign, the Company has renamed its patient identification system Health Link and created a new website at www.healthlinkinfo.com that will go live at the campaign launch. The site will provide complete information about the product and how to enroll as a Health Link member. VeriChip has also entered into a relationship with HearUSA, Inc. (AMEX:EAR), a leading provider of hearing care, which has eight HEARx locations throughout the Palm Beach market where patients can enroll in Health Link. Health Link is the connection between you and your personal health record. It provides emergency room doctors and nurses with immediate access to your vital medical and emergency contact information, which will help them to treat you rapidly, accurately and safely during an emergency. Health Link utilizes a tiny microchip (similar in size to a grain of rice) and a secure, private, online database that links you to your personal health record. Your Health Link is always with you and cannot be lost or stolen. The Health Link microchip stores only a unique 16-digit identification number and is injected just under the skin in the rear upper portion of the right arm. When a Health Link member presents in an emergency department unconscious, unresponsive or confused, emergency medical personnel use the Health Link scanner to retrieve the member๏ฟฝs identification number to access his or her personal health record. Scott R. Silverman, Chairman and CEO of VeriChip, said, ๏ฟฝGiven our successful infrastructure build-out in South Florida, we are now ready to escalate our marketing efforts to increase consumer awareness and adoption through the first DTC launch of our product. We chose to partner with HearUSA because of their impeccable reputation as a quality provider of hearing health care. This partnership also allows us to offer consumers a convenient location in a professional setting where they can be educated on Health Link and enroll as a member.๏ฟฝ To lead its DTC launch, VeriChip has hired Samuel Ambrose as vice president of business development. Ambrose brings more than 16 years of sales and marketing experience to VeriChip, including senior sales and marketing positions with Office Depot, Boston Market and the Florida Panthers. He has a proven track record of bringing products to market successfully and his experience includes development of local, regional and national level marketing and advertising plans designed to build incremental sales. Silverman said, ๏ฟฝWe are fortunate to have a well-respected and highly capable marketing executive like Samuel Ambrose to lead this important effort of growing our Health Link business and producing consistent revenue from subscribers.๏ฟฝ About HearUSA HearUSA, Inc. provides hearing care to patients primarily through more than 190 company-owned hearing care centers, which offer a complete range of quality hearing aids with an emphasis on the latest digital technology. HearUSA Centers are located in California, Florida, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Ohio, Michigan, Missouri, North Carolina, and the province of Ontario, Canada. The company also derives revenues from its HearUSA Hearing Care Network, comprised of 1,900 affiliated audiologists in 49 states, as well as its website that enables online purchases of hearing related products, such as batteries, hearing aid accessories and assistive listening devices. For further information, click on "investor information" at the HearUSA website: www.hearusa.com. About VeriChip VeriChip Corporation, headquartered in Delray Beach, Florida, develops, markets and sells RFID systems used to identify, locate and protect people and assets. VeriChip's goal is to become the leading provider of RFID systems for people in the healthcare industry. The Company recently began marketing Health Link, a passive RFID system for rapidly and accurately identifying people who arrive in an emergency room and are unable to communicate. This system uses the first human-implantable passive RFID microchip cleared for medical use in October 2004 by the United States Food and Drug Administration. For more information on VeriChip, please call 1-800-970-2447, or email info@verichipcorp.com. Additional information can be found online at http://www.verichipcorp.com. Statements about the Company's future expectations, including growth of the business, future revenues and earnings, and all other statements in this press release other than historical facts are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and as that term is defined in the Private Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties and are subject to change at any time, and the Company's actual results could differ materially from expected results. Information about factors that could affect the Company๏ฟฝs business is set forth in the Company๏ฟฝs various filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including those set forth in the Company๏ฟฝs 10-K filed on March 28, 2008, under the caption ๏ฟฝRisk Factors.๏ฟฝ The Company undertakes no obligation to update or release any revisions to these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this statement or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as required by law.