Alliances and Partnerships, Business, Drugs and Pharmaceuticals, Free News Articles

Zeteo Biomedical to Collaborate with Iowa State University Nanovaccine Institute to Study a COVID 19 Vaccine Under Fast Track CARES Act Funded Program

AUSTIN, Texas -- Zeteo Biomedical LLC, Inc., a privately held medical device company, has partnered with the Nanovaccine Institute at Iowa State University to study a nasal SARS-CoV-2 vaccine. Zeteo will provide nasal delivery device technology and unit dose packaging utilizing its ZEOx2(TM) Delivery Platform, along with technical services to support the evaluation of a room temperature stable SARS-CoV-2 vaccine under development by ISU's Nanovaccine Institute.

Zeteo ZEO(TM) Delivery Platforms provide nasal delivery device configurations to support vaccine development during early stage pre-clinical animal studies, human clinical trials and are commercially scalable to fill/finish and deliver millions of doses per day for a global supply of nasal vaccines or medical countermeasures in the event of a pandemic crisis.

ISU's vaccine is expected to provide long-term protection against SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19, and is intended to address some of the limitations of the vaccines currently in development by targeting room temperature storage and single dose nasal self-administration as key capabilities.

"Our approach leverages the strengths of ISU's nanovaccine platform and Zeteo's ZEOx2 nasal delivery platform and brings together a world-class team of scientists and engineers providing expertise for vaccine formulation, pre-clinical and clinical evaluations, fill/fit/finish packaging, nasal delivery devices and manufacturing scale-up," said Dr. Balaji Narasimhan, Director of the Nanovaccine Institute at Iowa State University.

Zeteo's ZEOx2 Delivery Platform includes nasal delivery devices to support powder and reconstituted powder to liquid vaccine formulations that can be either caregiver- or self-administered.

Timothy Sullivan, President of Zeteo Biomedical, said "We are honored to have been selected by the ISU Nanovaccine Institute to provide our technology and expertise in nasal drug delivery and packaging to support this critically important project to address the global health devastation caused by COVID 19."

Additional collaboration partners involved in the project include the Southwest Research Institute (San Antonio, TX), Skroot Laboratory, Inc. (Ames, IA), and the University of Iowa (Iowa City, IA). This is a fast track project and is expected to be completed by the end of the year.

About Zeteo Biomedical LLC

Zeteo Biomedical(TM) is a biomedical device technology company based in Austin, Texas. Zeteo provides patient-centric delivery device technology and unit dose fill/finish packaging for pharmaceuticals, biopharmaceuticals, biologics and botanicals for intranasal, nose-to-brain, ophthalmic, sublingual, and animal care product applications. For more information please visit the Zeteo website at: https://www.zeteobiomed.com/.

Media Contact
Cathy Diehl
Zeteo Biomedical LLC
+(1) 512-614-0144
zeteo@zeteobiomed.com

*LOGO link for media: https://www.send2press.com/300dpi/20-1117s2p-zeteo-biomedical-300dpi.jpg

Related link: https://www.zeteobiomed.com/

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Advertising and Marketing, Business, Free News Articles

U.S. Mortgage Industry Launches ‘NOT OK? THAT’S OK’ Borrower Awareness Campaign

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Today, an independent coalition of U.S. mortgage industry leaders launched the 'NOT OK? THAT'S OK' campaign to raise awareness among customers who have missed one or more mortgage payments in 2020 and may be eligible for forbearance assistance under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. Faith Schwartz, president of Housing Finance Strategies, spearheaded the industry effort.

Said Schwartz, "Sometimes customers don't call their mortgage company because they don't have the funds to make a payment. They just don't engage. Payment relief programs exist for almost all loan types where mortgage servicers may provide instant relief to struggling homeowners, but a discussion is needed."

The borrower awareness campaign supplements the significant existing outreach efforts undertaken by servicers, both on their own and as required by the GSEs, FHA, VA and the CFPB.

Pete Mills, senior vice president of the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), said, "The goal is to expand our reach by creating more conversations in this space so customers know there are tools to help them."

Members of the MBA, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the American Bankers Association, and the Housing Policy Council played an integral role in the initiative's development and successful launch. In addition, housing counseling agencies such as Neighborworks America, the National Housing Resource Center and the National Housing Conference also participated.

The vast majority of loan servicers are expected to participate in the effort, uniting under the common purpose of leaving no COVID-19 impacted borrower behind.

The need for the outreach campaign was identified during meetings of the Mortgage Markets COVID-19 Collaborative, convened by the Urban Institute's Housing Finance Policy Center in March, 2020.

Urban Institute research found that more than three million mortgage borrowers are in active CARES Act forbearance programs today but that 400,000 delinquent borrowers not in forbearance, who qualified for the same forbearance programs, could be made aware of this assistance via a broad outreach campaign.

Alanna McCargo, vice president for the Housing Finance Policy Center noted that, "Providing data and evidence that allow practitioners to develop collaborative solutions to ensure sustainable homeownership and equity in response to the COVID-19 crisis just like the 'NOT OK? THAT'S OK,' campaign is exactly why we created the MMCC."

Schwartz, who led the 2008-2009 housing crisis-era HOPE NOW Alliance, summarized the effort, saying, "The message should be clear to COVID-19 impacted borrowers that your mortgage company has tools to help you if you are struggling - and consistent with the CARES Act, most of the programs provide streamlined access. Borrowers who may not be comfortable calling their mortgage company but want support should know that a HUD-certified housing counselor is just a call away."

To access 'NOT OK? THAT's OK' project materials, visit https://www.covidhelpforhome.org/. Industry partners can download images for use in emails, social media and other customer communications.

For more information about Housing Finance Strategies, visit: https://housingfinancestrategies.com/

Related link: https://housingfinancestrategies.com/

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Business, Free News Articles, Insurance

SBA Publishes Guidance on Which CARES Act Provisions Require Immediate Action by Health and Retirement Plan Sponsors

ATLANTA, Ga. -- Independent, full-service employee benefits consulting firm Strategic Benefits Advisors (SBA) issued a statement today summarizing provisions of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act that require action on the part of health and retirement plan sponsors.

"The CARES Act calls upon plan sponsors to act swiftly in adopting measures that will ease the financial burden of COVID-19 on individuals," said SBA Founding Principal Mindy Zatto. "Plan sponsors should coordinate with their healthcare providers immediately so they may begin complying with the law's mandatory provisions. While most retirement plan provisions are optional, they are nonetheless time-sensitive and call for coordination with the plan sponsor's recordkeeper and actuary. Any necessary plan amendments won't be required until the end of the 2022 plan year."

Required Health Plan Provisions

Health plan sponsors must comply with the following provisions expanding access to healthcare for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients:
* Coverage of COVID-19 Testing
Plans must cover the cost of approved COVID-19 tests and their administration. Test providers should be reimbursed at a previously negotiated rate, if applicable. In the absence of a previously negotiated rate, plan sponsors may reimburse providers an amount equal to the publicly listed cash price of the service or negotiate a lesser reimbursement.

* Coverage of COVID-19 Preventive Services
Plans must also cover, without participant cost-sharing, qualified coronavirus preventive services and vaccines recommended by the United States Preventive Services Task Force or Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Required Defined Contribution (DC) Plan Provisions

DC plan participants who are due a required minimum distribution for 2020 may elect to not take the distribution without incurring any penalties.

Optional Defined Contribution (DC) Plan Provisions

DC plan sponsors may choose to extend the following benefits to plan participants who self-certify that (a) they have been diagnosed with COVID-19; (b) their spouse or dependent has been diagnosed with COVID-19; or (c) they have experienced certain other adverse financial consequences of COVID-19 as specified by the Secretary of the Treasury:

* Coronavirus-Related Distribution
Plans may allow a maximum $100,000 "coronavirus-related distribution" that must be taken by December 31, 2020. Early withdrawal penalties do not apply, and distributions are not eligible for rollover. However, a recipient of a coronavirus-related distribution has the right to pay the distribution back within three years, in which case it will be treated as a rollover contribution. The taxable amount of a coronavirus-related distribution can be spread pro-rata over three tax years.

* Increased Loan Limits
Qualified plans may increase loan limits from $50,000 to $100,000 and from 50% of the vested balance to 100% of the vested balance for loans made between March 27 and September 23, 2020.

* Delayed Loan Repayment
Plans may delay due dates for one year for individuals with outstanding loans whose repayment would normally be due between March 27 and December 31, 2020, allowing an extension beyond the normal five-year cap.

Optional Defined Benefit (DB) Plan Provisions

* Option to Defer Single-Employer Plan Funding
Plan sponsors may delay payment of any minimum required contributions that would ordinarily have been due during calendar year 2020 to January 1, 2021. The amount of each delayed contribution must be increased to reflect the interest accrued between the original due date and the actual payment date.

* Benefit Restriction Relief
For purposes of applying benefit restrictions under Code Section 436, plan sponsors may elect to use the prior plan year's adjusted funding target attainment percentage as the adjusted funding target attainment percentage for plans years that include calendar year 2020. This may allow some plans to avoid triggering certain benefit restrictions in 2020 that would have otherwise applied.

The full text of the CARES Act can be found here. To speak with Strategic Benefits Advisors' experienced team of benefits consultants about the potential impact of this law on your plans, call 770-551-8989.

About Strategic Benefits Advisors

Strategic Benefits Advisors, Inc. (SBA) is an independent, full-service employee benefits consulting firm focused on creatively and effectively solving complex benefits issues for clients ranging from 500 to over 300,000 employees. Founded in 2002 by veteran consultants Mindy Zatto and Andy Adams, SBA provides practical consulting recommendations and expert implementation of solutions for all types of employee benefits programs, including retirement, health and welfare, financial wellness and employee recognition. With an average of over 25 years in the field, SBA's team of actuaries, consultants and systems specialists is among the most experienced in the industry. For more information, visit https://www.sba-inc.com/.

Related link: http://www.sba-inc.com/

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