Fyrte for øvrig av en mail til ledelsen og styret:
Serious concerns regarding AssureMDx guidance, due diligence and management credibility
Dear Board and Executive Management,
I am writing as a long-term shareholder, with Photocure representing my largest personal investment.
The latest AssureMDx update raises serious questions not only about management communication, but also about the due diligence performed before the acquisition of Vesica Health.
On 28 October, Photocure stated that it expected Medicare reimbursement to be secured during H1 2027. This was communicated as an expectation, not merely as a possible upside scenario.
Less than two weeks later, the final Novitas LCD made clear that AssureMDx does not currently meet the evidentiary requirements for Medicare coverage and that additional clinical utility evidence is required.
Photocure now explains that its original acquisition case assumed Medicare coverage in 2028 following additional clinical evidence, and that SeARCH and the not-yet-initiated PATHWAY study are intended to generate this evidence.
This raises two fundamental questions.
First: how could management communicate H1 2027 reimbursement with such confidence when the company already knew that the evidence required for coverage was incomplete, SeARCH was still ongoing, and PATHWAY had not even started?
Second, and perhaps more importantly: what due diligence was actually performed before acquiring Vesica?
Did Photocure, prior to committing shareholder capital, obtain a thorough independent assessment of the Medicare coverage pathway, the clinical evidence required by Novitas/CMS, the maturity of the existing evidence base, and the likely cost and duration of the additional studies needed to secure reimbursement?
If these evidence gaps were known at acquisition, shareholders deserve to understand why management subsequently communicated such a materially more aggressive reimbursement timeline.
If they were not fully understood, that raises an even more serious question about the quality of the due diligence behind the transaction.
The issue is therefore no longer simply that an accelerated coverage opportunity failed. It is the apparent disconnect between the maturity of the asset, the reimbursement requirements, the acquisition underwriting and the certainty with which management communicated the H1 2027 timeline.
Shareholders now need clear answers on:
- what reimbursement and clinical due diligence was performed before the Vesica acquisition;
- which external advisers or experts assessed the Medicare pathway;
- what evidence gaps were identified at the time of acquisition;
- current SeARCH recruitment status and expected readout;
- PATHWAY design, cost, timing and expected completion;
- the specific evidence Novitas requires before reconsideration;
- expected Vesica cash burn until Medicare coverage;
- whether the Board still believes the original acquisition economics remain intact after incorporating the additional studies, costs and delays now required.
AssureMDx may still prove to be a valuable asset. But the Board must now address both the reimbursement pathway and the credibility of the acquisition process itself.
For a company already suffering from weak investor confidence and a severely depressed share price, this is not a minor communication issue. It goes directly to capital allocation, governance and management credibility.
I would therefore strongly encourage the Board to provide shareholders with a clear, factual and quantified explanation as soon as possible.
Oppfordrer flere aksjonærer til å gi tydelig uttrykk for sin misnøye.
Jeg har vært blant dem som har vært mer positive til både ledelsen og fremtidsutsiktene i PHO, jeg er fortsatt positiv til mye av det som skjer i selskapet, men dette er et betydelig skår i kredibiliteten til spesielt Dan Schneider – og ledelsen for øvrig.
Når man kommuniserer så offensivt om reimbursement og tidslinjen mot H1 2027, forventer jeg at ledelsen har gjort grundig due diligence og faktisk forstått både datagrunnlaget og hva som kreves for å komme dit.
For min del var dette alvorlig nok til at jeg solgte 30 % av beholdningen på fredag. Jeg kommer neppe til å øke igjen før vi får langt bedre klarhet i hvordan dette faktisk skal løses og hvordan utviklingen blir videre.