Joy Kong, MD explains that the FDA doesn't regulate non-manipulated stem cells as drugs, but insurers rarely cover the treatments. The clinic now offers financial assistance for patients who can demonstrate need, making the therapy more accessible to lower-income patients.
No one says it is illegal to do stem cells. So, you know, the FDA says, okay, if you do stem cells without manipulation of the cells, you don't change the cells. Then you're doing tissue transplantation. But still, you know, a lot of insurance company malpractice, they're not covering. So the doctors are taking out certain risks. So that all add to the consideration of cost. But in our clinic, we have decided, in order to give more access to people. So if a patient can prove that they don't have as high of an income to afford the product, you know, to afford the treatment, and then we have a financial assistance program that we, you know, we want to bring this to anybody that needs healing. So that's something I'm excited to kind of introduce. So we will bring more access to people.
