GE Healthcare invests in C8 MediSensors to focus on disease management solutions

GE Capital and GE Healthcare, the financial services and healthcare divisions of General Electric Company (NYSE: GE), announced today an investment in C8 MediSensors, Inc., a privately held developer of non-invasive continuous glucose monitors for diabetic patients. The investment is being made through the GE healthymagination Fund, an equity fund that makes investments in highly promising healthcare technology companies.

The investment is aligned with GE Healthcare's expanding focus on disease management solutions that can improve healthcare globally, as well as GE's broader healthymagination initiative, which focuses on reducing cost, increasing patient access and improving quality in healthcare. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

As many as 552 million people, or about 1 in 10 adults worldwide, could have diabetes by 2030, according to a recent report by the International Diabetes Federation. Additionally, as many as 183 million people may be unaware that they have diabetes, according to the report, and the highest proportion of cases is among those ages 40 to 59.

C8 MediSensors has combined their proprietary technology with Raman spectroscopy to commercialize a non-invasive glucose monitor that can improve the lives of diabetics by giving them a continuous view of their glucose levels without the pain, inconvenience and high cost of invasive glucose monitoring.

"C8's technology platform presents great promise for patients to avoid the discomfort of traditional invasive glucose monitoring," said GE Vice President and GE Healthcare Chief Technology Officer Mike Harsh. "This investment aligns with our strategy to fund innovations focused on reducing cost, increasing patient access and improving quality in healthcare."

The investment in C8 reflects GE Healthcare's continuing interest in early-stage healthcare technologies. As an investor, GE Healthcare will look for various ways to work with C8 that complement the strategic objectives of its healthymagination initiative.

"C8 is a good strategic fit with GE Healthcare, given our common focus on patient care concerns," said Thierry Leclercq, General Manager of GE Healthcare's Life Care Solutions business. "GE Healthcare's growing patient care product portfolio encompasses a wide range of clinical tools and solutions. We believe C8's non-invasive continuous glucose monitor gives both clinicians and patients a far simpler way to monitor glucose levels. We look forward to exploring ways to collaborate with the C8 team."

The GE healthymagination Fund is part of GE's $6 billion healthymagination initiative, a global commitment to deliver better healthcare to more people at lower cost. The Fund targets three broad areas for investment:

• Broad-based Diagnostics, including imaging, home health, patient monitoring, molecular diagnostics, pathology, novel imaging agents and other technologies for disease diagnosis
• Healthcare Information Technology, including electronic medical records, clinical information systems, healthcare information exchanges and value-added data services
• Life Sciences, including tools for drug discovery and biomedical research, and technologies for manufacturing of biopharmaceuticals and vaccines

The Fund draws on capabilities from across GE Healthcare, GE Capital and GE Global Research, and has a global footprint. For further information about the fund, visit www.healthymaginationfund.com.

"We are pleased to have GE, through its healthymagination Fund, as new investors in C8 MediSensors." said Fred Toney, Chief Financial Officer of C8 MediSensors. "GE's knowledge and breadth of reach throughout the healthcare vertical is a significant advantage to C8 MediSensors as we execute our business plan."

C8 MediSensors plans to introduce its new noninvasive continuous glucose monitor in the European Community in 2012, pending CE Mark regulatory approval.