FDA OKs Marketing Med-Design Needle System

The Med-Design Corp. has received Food and Drug Administration approval to market its MDC Safe Step Blood Collection Needle System.

The approval came 85 days after the company filed with the FDA for clearance to market the new blood-collection device.

“We are extremely pleased by the prompt attention given by the FDA to our . . . filing,” said James Donegan, Med-Design chairman and chief executive officer. “The timing of the FDA’s clearance to market our Safe Step Blood Collection Needle System can only enhance our current negotiations with potential partners.”

It is estimated that blood is drawn more than 3 billion times annually worldwide, with approximately half of that total in the United States.

Med-Design holds several U.S. and international patents on safety devices designed to reduce the incidence of accidental needle sticks. Headquartered in Philadelphia, the company operates a research and development and pilot manufacturing facility in Ventura.