Meridian Bioscience Inc, Cincinnati, Ohio, has signed an agreement to offer its Illumigene menu of molecular tests to the members of group purchasing organization Premier Inc.

The new agreement offers each Premier healthcare facility the opportunity to implement rapid, sensitive, molecular tests for C. difficile, Group B Streptococcus, Group A Streptococcus, B. pertussis, and M. pneumonia on the Illumigene molecular platform without individual negotiations.

Headquartered in Charlotte, NC, Premier serves more than 3,000 US hospitals and more than 110,000 other healthcare sites, providing integrated data and analytics, supply chain solutions, and advisory and other services. A Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award recipient, Premier collaborates with its member organizations to codevelop long-term innovations that reinvent and improve the way care is delivered to patients.

Meridian is a fully integrated life science company that develops, manufactures, markets, and distributes a broad range of innovative diagnostic test kits, purified reagents, and related products. Meridian has strong market positions in the areas of gastrointestinal and upper respiratory infections, serology, parasitology, and fungal disease diagnosis. The company markets its products and technologies to hospitals, reference laboratories, research centers, diagnostics manufacturers, and biotech companies in more than 60 countries.

The Illumigene molecular system utilizes loop-mediated isothermal DNA amplification (LAMP) technology, an efficient system that enables Meridian to provide customers the Illumipro–10 instrument without a capital investment or costly annual service contract. The Illumigene procedure is simple, highly sensitive, and yields results in less than one hour, helping to drive improvements in the early diagnosis and treatment of preventable diseases.

“This is an exciting opportunity for Meridian to coordinate with Premier to place our complete Illumigene molecular menu in member facilities,” says Mike Shaughnessy, president of global diagnostics at Meridian Bioscience. “Meridian is privileged to collaborate with Premier to assist its alliance members in their efforts to deliver improved clinical outcomes, improve operating efficiencies, and reduce costs in their facilities.”

For further information, visit Meridian Bioscience Inc.