Item 1A. Risk Factors
ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS
Summary of Risk Factors
The risk factors summarized
and detailed below could materially harm our business, operating results and financial condition, impair our future prospects and cause
the price of our common stock to decline. These are not all of the risks we face and other factors not presently known to us or that we
currently believe are immaterial may also affect our business if they occur. Material risks that may affect our business, operating results
and financial condition include, but are not necessarily limited to, those relating to:
● we have incurred significant operating losses since inception and cannot assure you that we will ever
achieve or sustain profitability;
● our ability to continue our operations requires that we raise additional capital and our operations could
be curtailed if we are unable to obtain the additional funding as or when needed;
● the COVID-19 pandemic has adversely impacted and will likely continue to adversely impact our business,
including through component shortages, including of our primary component, polyimide film, due to supply chain shortages attributed to
COVID related issues, supply chain disruptions, including related to staffing availability, and delays in product availability and delivery,
impacts on pre-clinical and clinical trials and regulatory clearances/approvals;
● we will need to raise substantial additional funds in the future, and these funds may not be available
on acceptable terms or at all. A failure to obtain this necessary capital when needed could force us to delay, limit, scale back or cease
some or all operations;
● medical device development involves a lengthy and expensive process, with an uncertain outcome. We may
incur additional costs or experience delays in completing, or ultimately be unable to complete, the development and commercialization
of any product;
● changes in the configuration of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology under
development may result in additional costs or delay;
● if we are unable to successfully develop, receive regulatory clearance/approval for and commercialize
our technology and other products under development, or if we experience significant delays in doing so, our business will be harmed;
● failure to secure or retain coverage or adequate reimbursement for our cortical strip, grid electrode
and depth electrode technology or future versions thereof, including the implantation procedures, by third-party payors could adversely
affect our business, financial condition and operating results;
● if our competitors are better able to develop and market products for the diagnosis and treatment of epilepsy,
Parkinson’s disease, dystonia, essential tremors, chronic pain due to failed back surgeries and other related neurological disorders
that are safer, more effective, less costly, easier to use or otherwise more attractive than our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth
electrode technology, our business will be adversely impacted;
● the size and future growth in the market for our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology
under development has not been established with precision and may be smaller than we estimate, possibly materially;
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● we depend on intellectual property licensed from WARF for our technology under development, and the termination
of this license would harm our business;
● we depend on our partnership with Mayo to license certain know how for the development and commercialization
of our technology. Termination of this partnership would harm our business, and even if this partnership continues, it may not be successful;
● even if we have our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology approved for commercial
sale, if we are unable to expand our sales and marketing infrastructure, we may not be successful in commercializing our cortical strip,
grid electrode and depth electrode technology in the United States;
● we contract with third parties for the manufacture of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode
technology under development and expect to continue to do so for clinical trials and commercialization. Risks associated with the manufacturing
of our products could reduce our gross margins and negatively affect our operating results;
● if we or our third-party suppliers or manufacturers fail to comply with the FDA’s good manufacturing
practice regulations, this could impair our ability to market our products in a cost-effective and timely manner;
● potential complications from our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology that are
currently unknown may come to light;
● if there are significant disruptions in our information technology systems, our business, financial condition
and operating results could be adversely affected;
● we have entered into, and may enter into collaborations, in-licensing arrangements, joint ventures, strategic
alliances or partnerships with third-parties that may not result in the development of commercially viable products or the generation
of significant future revenues;
● our future success depends on our ability to retain key executives and to attract, retain and motivate
qualified personnel;
● our ability to protect our intellectual property and proprietary technology is uncertain;
● we may be subject to damages resulting from claims that we, or our employees, have wrongfully used or
disclosed alleged trade secrets of our competitors or are in breach of non-competition or non-solicitation agreements with our competitors;
● our products and operations are subject to extensive governmental regulation, and failure to comply with
applicable requirements could cause our business to suffer;
● the price of our Common Stock might fluctuate significantly, and you could lose all or part of your investment;
and
● we intend to issue more shares to raise capital, which will result in substantial dilution.
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Risks Related to Our Business
We have incurred significant operating
losses since inception and cannot assure you that we will ever achieve or sustain profitability.
We have incurred losses since inception, and as
of September 30, 2022, we had an accumulated deficit of $ 50.8 million primarily as a result
of expenses incurred in connection with our operations and from our research and development programs. We expect to continue to incur
significant expenses and increasing operating costs resulting in net losses for the foreseeable future, and management has raised substantial
doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. There was also substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue
as a going concern as of and for the year ended September 30, 2021 To date, we have financed our operations primarily through debt and
equity financings, and our primary activities have been limited to, and our limited resources have been dedicated to, performing business
and financial planning, raising capital, recruiting personnel, negotiating with business partners and the licensors of our intellectual
property and conducting development activities.
To implement our business strategy we need to,
among other things, develop an all-in-one diagnostic and therapeutic solution, successfully complete the necessary testing and clinical
trials required for regulatory approval of our technology for ablation and stimulation therapies, gain approval for other brain or motor
related disorders such as Parkinson’s with the therapeutic technologies developed for epilepsy, convince physicians and patients
that our technology, if approved, represents an improvement over existing diagnostic or treatment options, hire direct experienced sales
representatives to market our technology, and engage in beneficial partnerships that can leverage our core technology. We have never been
profitable and do not expect to be profitable in the foreseeable future. We expect our expenses to increase significantly as we pursue
our objectives. The extent of our future operating losses and the timing of profitability are highly uncertain, and we expect to continue
incurring significant expenses and operating losses over the next several years. Our prior losses have had, and will continue to have,
an adverse effect on our stockholders’ equity and working capital. Any additional operating losses may have an adverse effect on
our stockholders’ equity, and we cannot assure you that we will ever be able to achieve profitability. Even if we achieve profitability,
we may not be able to sustain or increase profitability on a quarterly or annual basis. Our failure to become and remain profitable would
depress the value of our Company and could impair our ability to raise capital, expand our business, maintain our development efforts,
obtain regulatory approvals or continue our operations.
We have a limited operating history,
making it difficult for you to evaluate our business and your investment.
We are an early-stage medical technology company
developing comprehensive neuromodulation cEEG and sEEG monitoring, ablation, and brain stimulation solutions to diagnose and treat patients
with epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, dystonia, essential tremors, chronic pain due to failed back surgeries and other related neurological
disorders. Our operations are subject to all of the risks inherent in the establishment of a new business enterprise, including but not
limited to the absence of an operating history, lack of fully-developed or commercialized products, insufficient capital, expected substantial
and continual losses for the foreseeable future, limited experience in dealing with regulatory issues, lack of manufacturing and marketing
experience, need to rely on third parties for the development and commercialization of our proposed products, a competitive environment
characterized by well-established and well-capitalized competitors and reliance on key personnel.
From our inception through September 30, 2022,
we have generated limited revenue from the commercial sales of our products. Because we have generated very limited revenues from commercialization,
our operations to date have been principally financed through public and private offerings of our Common Stock and convertible debt and
exercises of options and warrants.
Investors are subject to all the risks incident
to the creation and development of a new business and each investor should be prepared to withstand a complete loss of his, her or its
investment. Furthermore, the accompanying financial statements have been prepared assuming that we will continue as a going concern. However,
the factors included above raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. Our financial statements do not include
any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty.
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Our Company has limited experience in medical
device development and may not be able to successfully develop any device or therapy. Our ability to become profitable depends primarily
on: our ability to further develop our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology, our successful completion of all
necessary pre-clinical testing and clinical trials on such technology, our ability to obtain clearance or approval for such technology
and successfully commercialize such technology, our ongoing research and development efforts, the timing and cost of clinical trials,
our ability to identify personnel with the necessary skill sets or enter into favorable alliances with third-parties who can provide substantial
capabilities in clinical development, regulatory affairs, sales, marketing and distribution and our ability to obtain and maintain necessary
intellectual property rights to such technology. Our limited experience in medical device development may make it more difficult for us
to complete these tasks.
Even if we successfully develop and market such
technology, we may not generate sufficient or sustainable revenue to achieve or sustain profitability, which could cause us to cease operations
and cause you to lose all of your investment.
Our ability to continue our operations
requires that we raise additional capital and our operations could be curtailed if we are unable to obtain the additional funding as or
when needed.
Our independent registered public accounting
firm included an explanatory paragraph in the report on our financial statements as of and for the years ended September 30, 2022
and 2021, respectively, noting the existence of substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. At September 30,
2022, we had cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments in the aggregate of approximately $11.1 million. Our existing cash,
cash equivalents and short-term investments will not be sufficient to fund our operating expenses. To continue to fund operations,
we will need to secure additional funding. We may obtain additional financing in the future through the issuance of our Common
Stock, through other equity or debt financings or through collaborations or partnerships with other companies. We may not be able to
raise additional capital on terms acceptable to us, or at all.
The COVID-19 pandemic has adversely
impacted, and may continue to impact, our business.
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic,
governments, public institutions, and other organizations have taken and are continuing to take certain preventative or protective measures
to combat the transmission of the virus, including implementation of travel restrictions or bans, vaccination mandates, closures of non-essential
businesses, limitations of public gatherings, other social distancing and shelter-in-place measures, and delays or cancellations of elective
surgeries. The Company, our employees, contractors, suppliers, and other partners may be prevented from conducting business activities
for an indefinite period of time due to shutdowns or other regulatory requirements that may be requested or mandated by state and federal
governmental authorities.
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We have experienced, and will likely continue
to experience, disruptions that could negatively or severely impact our business and planned clinical trials, including:
● delays or difficulties in conducting pre-clinical and clinical trials;
● interruption in global manufacturing and shipping, including testing equipment and personal protective
equipment used at our facilities;
● material shortages for manufacturing, including those the Company is currently experiencing related to
its primary component, polyimide film, due to supply chain shortages attributed to COVID related issues;
● delays in timelines for product availability and delivery from vendors, including related to staffing
shortages, both generally and due to employee illness, and due to increases in demand from other larger or more longstanding customers
of our suppliers placing large orders due to concerns with supply chain disruption and the impact of COVID-19;
● changes in local regulations as part of a response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which may require us to change
the way in which clinical trials are conducted and may result in unexpected costs; and
● delay in the timing of interactions with the FDA due to absenteeism by federal employees or by the diversion
of their efforts and attention to approval of other therapeutics or other activities related to COVID-19.
In addition, COVID-19 could disrupt our operations
due to absenteeism by infected or ill members of management or other employees, or absenteeism by members of management and other employees
who elect not to come to work due to the illness affecting others in our office or laboratory facilities, or due to quarantines. COVID-19
illness could also impact members of our Board and its ability to hold meetings.
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to adversely
affect our operating and financial results, it may also have the effect of heightening many of the other risks described in the risk factors
in this Report. Further, the COVID-19 pandemic may also affect our operating and financial results in a manner that is not presently known
to us or that we currently do not expect to present significant risks to our operations or financial results, particularly if the COVID-19
pandemic and its associated impacts reoccur in successive waves in the coming months.
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We will need to raise substantial
additional funds in the future, and these funds may not be available on acceptable terms or at all. A failure to obtain this necessary
capital when needed could force us to delay, limit, scale back or cease some or all operations.
The continued growth of our business, including
the development, regulatory approval and commercialization of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology, will
significantly increase our expenses going forward. As a result, we will be required to seek substantial additional funds in the future.
Our future capital requirements will depend on many factors, including:
● the cost of further developing our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology;
● obtaining and maintaining regulatory clearance or approval for our cortical strip, grid electrode and
depth electrode technology;
● the costs associated with commercializing our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology;
● any change in our development priorities;
● the revenue generated by sales of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology;
● the costs associated with expanding our sales and marketing infrastructure for commercialization of our
cortical strip grid electrode and depth electrode technology;
● any change in our plans regarding the manner in which we choose to commercialize any approved product
in the United States;
● the cost of ongoing compliance with regulatory requirements;
● expenses we incur in connection with potential litigation or governmental investigations;
● expenses and costs we incur in connection with changes in the economy and regulatory process in connection
with the COVID-19 pandemic;
● the costs to develop additional intellectual property;
● anticipated or unanticipated capital expenditures; and
● unanticipated general and administrative expenses.
As a result of these and other factors, we do
not know whether and the extent to which we may be required to raise additional capital. We may in the future seek additional capital
from public or private offerings of our capital stock, borrowings under credit lines or other sources.
We may not be able to raise additional capital
on terms acceptable to us, or at all. Any failure to raise additional capital could compromise our ability to execute on our business
plan, and we may be forced to liquidate our assets. In such a scenario, the values we receive for our assets in liquidation or dissolution
could be significantly lower than the values reflected in our financial statements.
If we issue additional equity or debt securities
to raise additional funds, our existing stockholders may experience dilution, and the new equity or debt securities may have rights, preferences
and privileges senior to those of our existing stockholders. In addition, if we raise additional funds through collaborations, licensing,
joint ventures, strategic alliances, partnership arrangements or other similar arrangements, it may be necessary to relinquish valuable
rights to our potential future products or proprietary technologies or grant licenses on terms that are not favorable to us.
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Changes in the configuration of our
cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology under development may result in additional costs or delay.
As products are developed through pre-clinical
testing and clinical trials towards approval and commercialization, it is common that various aspects of the development program, such
as manufacturing methods and configuration, are altered along the way in an effort to optimize processes and results. Any changes we make
carry the risk that they will not achieve the intended objectives. Any of these changes could cause our products to perform differently
and affect the results of planned clinical trials or other future clinical trials conducted with the altered device. Such changes may
also require additional testing, regulatory notification or regulatory approval. This could delay completion of pre-clinical testing or
clinical trials, increase costs, delay approval of our future products and jeopardize our ability to commence sales and generate revenue.
We have two products, our cortical
strip and grid electrodes and our sEEG electrode technology, which have each received 510(k) clearance from the FDA. If we are unable
to successfully develop, and receive regulatory clearance/approval for our other products under development, or if we experience significant
delays in doing so, our business will be harmed.
Two of our products have received 510(k) clearance
from the FDA. Our Evo cortical electrode technology has received 510(k) clearance from the FDA for recording, monitoring, and stimulating
brain tissue on the surface of the brain for less than 30 days, and our Evo sEEG electrode technology has received 510(k) clearance from
the FDA for use (less than 30 days) with recording, monitoring, and stimulation equipment for recording, monitoring, and stimulation of
electrical signals at the subsurface level of the brain. None of our other products have received clearance or approval for commercial
sale. Our ability to generate revenue from our developed products, if any, will depend heavily on their successful development and regulatory
approval.
Before obtaining marketing clearance or approval
from regulatory authorities for the sale of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology under development in the
United States for certain indications, we must complete all pre-clinical testing, clinical trials and other regulatory requirements necessitated
by the FDA and demonstrate the performance and safety of our technology. Clinical testing is expensive, difficult to design and implement,
can take many years to complete and is inherently uncertain as to outcome. A failure of one or more clinical trials can occur at any stage
of testing. Further, the outcomes of completed clinical trials may not be predictive of the success of later clinical trials, and interim
results of a clinical trial do not necessarily predict final results. Clinical data is often susceptible to varying interpretations and
analyses, and many companies that have believed their products performed satisfactorily in clinical trials have nonetheless failed to
obtain marketing clearance or approval. We have limited resources to complete the expensive process of medical device development, pre-clinical
testing and clinical trials, putting us at a disadvantage, particularly compared to some of our larger and established competitors, and
we may not have sufficient resources to commercialize our products under development in a timely fashion, if ever.
We may experience numerous unforeseen events during
or as a result of clinical trials that could delay or prevent our ability to receive marketing approval or commercialize our products,
including:
● regulators may not authorize us or our investigators to commence a clinical trial or conduct a clinical
trial at a prospective trial site;
● the failure to successfully complete pre-clinical testing requirements required by the FDA;
● we may experience delays in reaching, or fail to reach, agreement on acceptable clinical trial contracts
with third parties or clinical trial protocols with prospective trial sites, the terms of which can be subject to extensive negotiation
and may vary significantly among different trial sites;
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● clinical trials of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology may produce negative
or inconclusive results, including failure to demonstrate statistical significance, and we may decide, or regulators may require us, to
conduct additional clinical trials or abandon our development programs;
● the number of people with brain related disorders required for clinical trials may be larger than we anticipate,
enrollment in these clinical trials may be slower than we anticipate or people may drop out of these clinical trials or fail to return
for post-treatment follow-up at a higher rate than we anticipate;
● our products may have unanticipated adverse events, undesirable side effects or other unexpected characteristics,
causing us or our investigators, regulators or institutional review boards to suspend or terminate the trials;
● our third-party contractors conducting the clinical trials may fail to comply with regulatory requirements
or meet their contractual obligations to us in a timely manner, or at all;
● regulators may require that we or our investigators suspend or terminate clinical development for various
reasons, including noncompliance with regulatory requirements or a finding that the participants are being exposed to unacceptable health
risks;
● the cost of clinical trials of our products may be greater than we anticipate;
● the supply or quality of our products or other materials necessary to conduct clinical trials of our products
may be insufficient or inadequate;
● the COVID-19 pandemic may cause delays and disruptions in the supply chain, clinical trials, clinical
development, and regulatory approval process; and
● delays from our suppliers and manufacturers could impact clinical trial completion and impact revenue.
If we are required to conduct additional clinical
trials or other testing of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology under development beyond those that we contemplate,
if we are unable to successfully complete clinical trials, if the results of these trials or tests are not favorable or if there are safety
concerns, we may:
● not obtain marketing approval at all;
● be delayed in obtaining marketing approval for our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode
technology under development in a jurisdiction;
● be subject to additional post-marketing testing requirements; or
● have our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology removed from the market after obtaining
marketing approval.
Our development costs will also increase if we
experience delays in testing or marketing approvals, including, but not limited to, the COVID-19 pandemic. We do not know whether any
of our clinical trials will begin as planned, will need to be restructured or will be completed on schedule, or at all. Significant clinical
trial delays also could allow our competitors to bring innovative products to market before we do and impair our ability to successfully
commercialize our products.
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Even if we obtain regulatory clearance
and/or approval for all of our products, we will remain subject to extensive regulatory scrutiny and compliance obligations.
Both before and after a product is commercially
released, we will have ongoing responsibilities under FDA regulations. We will also be subject to periodic inspections by the FDA and
comparable foreign authorities to determine compliance with regulatory requirements, such as the Quality System Regulation, or QSR, of
the FDA, medical device reporting regulations and regulations regarding notification, corrections, and recalls. These inspections can
result in observations or reports, warning letters or other similar notices or forms of enforcement action. If the FDA concludes that
we are not in compliance with applicable laws or regulations, or that any of our products are ineffective or pose an unreasonable health
risk, it could ban these products, suspend or cancel our marketing authorizations, impose “stop-sale” and “stop-import”
orders, detain or seize adulterated or misbranded products, order a recall, repair, replacement, correction or refund of such products,
or require us to notify health providers and others that the products present unreasonable risks of substantial harm to the public health.
Discovery of previously unknown problems with our product’s design or manufacture may result in restrictions on use, restrictions
placed on us or our suppliers, or withdrawal of an existing regulatory clearance. The FDA may also impose operating restrictions, enjoin
and restrain certain violations of applicable law pertaining to medical devices, assess civil or criminal penalties against our officers,
employees or us, or recommend criminal prosecution of our Company. Adverse regulatory action may restrict us from effectively marketing
and selling our products. In addition, negative publicity and product liability claims resulting from any adverse regulatory action could
have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and operating results.
In addition, even though we have obtained FDA
clearance to market two of our products, and even if we obtain the proper regulatory approval or clearance to market any additional products
under development, the FDA has the power to require us to conduct post-market surveillance studies, which are designed to identify adverse
events, device malfunctions or complaints from patients implanted with the device during a specified period after the commencement of
commercial use in the U.S. The FDA may also require us to conduct post-approval studies to further monitor the safety and/or effectiveness
of our products. Failure to conduct required surveillance or studies in a timely manner could result in the revocation of the approved
PMA product that is subject to such a requirement and could also result in the recall or withdrawal of the product, which would prevent
us from generating sales from that product in the United States.
We may not be successful in commercializing
our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode.
We anticipate that we will derive nearly all of
our U.S. revenue from the sales of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology or future versions thereof.
Moreover, we expect the revenue opportunity for
additional uses of our technology to be greater than the technology and uses that have currently been cleared by the FDA, and so we believe
our ability to generate significant revenue in the future will be dependent upon the receipt of additional FDA clearances.
Our revenue will be dependent, in part, upon the
size of the markets in which we gain regulatory approval, the accepted price for the product, the ability to obtain coverage and reimbursement,
and whether we own the commercial rights for that territory. If the number of people we target is not as significant as we estimate or
the treatment population is narrowed by competition, physician choice or treatment guidelines, we may not generate significant revenue
from sales of such products, even if approved.
The success of any products that we develop will
depend on several factors, including:
● receipt of timely commercialization approvals from applicable regulatory authorities;
● our ability to procure and maintain suppliers and manufacturers of the components of our current cortical
strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology and future versions;
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● launching commercial sales of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology, if approved
for marketing;
● market acceptance of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology, if approved, by
people with epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, dystonia, essential tremors, chronic pain due to failed back surgeries and other related
neurological disorders, the medical community and third-party payors;
● our success in educating healthcare providers and people with epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, dystonia,
essential tremors, chronic pain due to failed back surgeries and other related neurological disorders about the benefits, administration
and use of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology and future versions;
● the prevalence and severity of adverse events, including, but not limited to, events related to the COVID-19
pandemic;
● the perceived advantages, cost, safety, convenience and accuracy of alternative therapies;
● obtaining and maintaining patent, trademark and trade secret protection and regulatory exclusivity for
our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology and otherwise protecting our rights in our intellectual property portfolio;
● maintaining compliance with regulatory requirements, including current good manufacturing practices; and
● obtaining and maintaining a continued acceptable performance and safety profile of our cortical strip,
grid electrode and depth electrode technology following approval.
The continuing development and commercialization
of our products depends upon us maintaining strong relationships with academic and healthcare institutions and professionals.
If we fail to maintain our strong working relationships
with healthcare and academic institutions and their professionals such as the Mayo Clinic, the Cleveland Clinic and Emory University,
many of our products may not be developed and marketed in line with the needs and expectations of the professionals who use and support
our products, which could cause a decline in our earnings and profitability. The development, marketing and sales of many of our products
depends on our maintaining working relationships with healthcare institutions and professionals. We rely on these professionals to provide
us with considerable knowledge and experience regarding the development, marketing and sale of our products. If we are unable to maintain
strong relationships with these institutions and professionals, the development and marketing of our products could suffer, which could
have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition, and cash flows.
Our success depends on our ability
to continue to develop, commercialize and gain market acceptance for our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology.
Our current business strategy is highly dependent
on developing and commercially launching our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology, and achieving and maintaining
market acceptance. In order for us to sell cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology to people with epilepsy, Parkinson’s
disease, dystonia, essential tremors, chronic pain due to failed back surgeries and other related neurological disorders, we must convince
them, their caregivers and healthcare providers that cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology is an attractive alternative
to competitive products for neuromodulation cEEG and sEEG recording, ablation, and brain stimulation. Market acceptance and adoption of
our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology depend on educating people with epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease,
dystonia, essential tremors, chronic pain due to failed back surgeries and other related neurological disorders, as well as their caregivers
and healthcare providers, and other perceived benefits of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology as compared
to competitive products. We may face challenges convincing physicians, many of whom have extensive experience with competitors’
products and established relationships with other companies, to appreciate the benefits of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth
electrode technology and, in particular, our ability to successfully diagnose and treat epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, dystonia,
essential tremors, chronic pain due to failed back surgeries and other related neurological disorders in a way that is superior to and
differentiated from currently available technology, and adopt it for treatment of their patients.
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Achieving and maintaining market acceptance of
cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology could be negatively impacted by many factors, including:
● the failure of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology to achieve wide acceptance
among people with epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, dystonia, essential tremors, chronic pain due to failed back surgeries and other
related neurological disorders, their caregivers, healthcare providers, third-party payors and key opinion leaders in the community;
● lack of evidence supporting the performance criteria or other perceived benefits of our cortical strip,
grid electrode and depth electrode technology over competitive products or other currently available technology;
● perceived risks associated with the use of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology
or similar products or technologies generally;
● the introduction of competitive products and the rate of acceptance of those products as compared to our
cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology;
● adverse results of clinical trials relating to our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode
technology or similar competitive products; and
● loss of regulatory clearance or approval for our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology,
adverse publicity or other adverse events including any product liability lawsuits.
In addition, our cortical strip, grid electrode
and depth electrode technology may be perceived by people with epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, dystonia, essential tremors, chronic
pain due to failed back surgeries and other related neurological disorders, their caregivers or healthcare providers to be more complicated
or less effective than current technology, and people may be unwilling to change their current regimens.
Moreover, we believe that healthcare providers
tend to be slow to change their medical treatment practices because of perceived liability risks arising from the use of new products
and the uncertainty of third-party reimbursement. Accordingly, healthcare providers may not recommend our cortical strip, grid electrode
and depth electrode technology until, if ever, there is sufficient evidence to convince them to alter the treatment methods they typically
recommend, such as receiving recommendations from prominent healthcare providers or other key opinion leaders in the community.
If we are not successful in convincing people
with epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, dystonia, essential tremors, chronic pain due to failed back surgeries and other related neurological
disorders of the benefits of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology, or if we are unable to achieve the support
of caregivers and healthcare providers or widespread market acceptance for our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology,
then our sales potential, strategic objectives and profitability could be negatively impacted, which would adversely affect our business,
financial condition and operating results.
Failure to secure or retain coverage
or adequate reimbursement for our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology or future versions thereof, including
the implantation procedures, by third-party payors could adversely affect our business, financial condition and operating results.
We plan to derive nearly all of our revenue from
sales of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology, in the United States and expect to do so for the next several
years. We anticipate a substantial portion of the purchase price of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology
will be paid for by third-party payors, including private insurance companies, preferred provider organizations and other managed care
providers. Patients who receive treatment for their medical conditions and their healthcare providers generally rely on third-party payors
to reimburse all or part of the costs associated with their medical treatment, including healthcare providers’ services. Coverage
and adequate reimbursement from third-party payors, including governmental healthcare programs, such as Medicare and Medicaid, and commercial
payors, is critical to new product acceptance. Future sales of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology will
be limited unless people with epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, dystonia, essential tremors, chronic pain due to failed back surgeries
and other related neurological disorders can rely on third-party payors to pay for all or part of the cost to purchase our cortical strip,
grid electrode and depth electrode technology. Access to adequate coverage and reimbursement for our cortical strip, grid electrode and
depth electrode technology by third-party payors is essential to the acceptance of our products by people with epilepsy, Parkinson’s
disease, dystonia, essential tremors, chronic pain due to failed back surgeries and other related neurological disorders.
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In the United States, a third-party payor’s
decision to provide coverage for our products does not imply that an adequate reimbursement rate will be obtained. Further, one third-party
payor’s decision to cover our products does not assure that other payors will also provide coverage for the products or will provide
coverage at an adequate reimbursement rate. Healthcare providers may choose not to order a product unless third-party payors pay a substantial
portion of the product. Within and outside the United States, reimbursement is obtained from a variety of sources, including government-sponsored
and private health insurance plans. These third-party payors determine whether to provide coverage and reimbursement for specific products
and procedures. Coverage determinations and reimbursement levels of both our products and the healthcare provider’s performance
of the insertion and removal procedures are critical to the commercial success of our product, and if we are not able to secure positive
coverage determinations and reimbursement levels for our products or the insertion and removal procedures, our business would be materially
adversely affected.
In addition, there may be significant delays in
obtaining reimbursement, and coverage may be more limited than the purposes for which the product is cleared by the FDA or other foreign
regulatory authorities. Moreover, eligibility for reimbursement does not imply that any product will be paid for in all cases or at a
rate that covers our costs, including research, development, manufacture, sale and distribution. Payment rates may vary according to the
use of the product and the clinical setting in which it is used, may be based on payments allowed for lower cost products that are already
reimbursed, and may be incorporated into existing payments for other services. Net prices for products may be reduced by mandatory discounts
or rebates required by government healthcare programs or third-party payors and by any future relaxation of laws that presently restrict
imports of products from countries where they may be sold at lower prices than in the United States.
Because there is generally no separate reimbursement
for medical devices and other supplies used in such procedures, including our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology,
and because we believe that our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology, if approved, would be adequately described
by existing DRG and ICD-9 codes for epilepsy surgery, some of our target customers may be unwilling to adopt our cortical strip, grid
electrode and depth electrode technology over more established or lower cost therapeutic alternatives already available or subsequently
become available. Further, any decline in the amount payors are willing to reimburse our customers for procedures using our cortical strip,
grid electrode and depth electrode technology could make it difficult for new customers to adopt our cortical strip, grid electrode and
depth electrode technology and could create additional pricing pressure for us, which could adversely affect our ability to invest in
and grow our business.
Third-party payors, whether governmental or commercial,
are developing increasingly sophisticated methods of controlling healthcare costs. In addition, in the United States, no uniform policy
of coverage and reimbursement for medical device products and services exists among third-party payors. Therefore, coverage and reimbursement
for medical device products and services can differ significantly from payor to payor. In addition, payors continually review new technologies
for possible coverage and can, without notice, deny coverage for these new products and procedures. As a result, the coverage determination
process is often a time-consuming and costly process that will require us to provide scientific and clinical support for the use of our
products to each payor separately, with no assurance that coverage and adequate reimbursement will be obtained, or maintained if obtained.
If sufficient coverage and reimbursement is not
available for our any product we develop, in the United States, the demand for our products and our revenues will be adversely affected.
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Reimbursement by Medicare is highly
regulated and subject to change.
The Medicare program is administered by the Centers
for Medicare and Medicaid Services, or CMS, which imposes extensive and detailed requirements on medical services providers, including,
but not limited to, rules that govern how we structure our relationships with physicians, and how and where we provide our solutions.
Our failure to comply with applicable Medicare rules could result in discontinuing the ability for physicians to receive reimbursement
as they will likely utilize our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology under the Medicare payment program, civil
monetary penalties, and/or criminal penalties, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our business and revenues.
If our competitors are better able
to develop and market products for the diagnosis and treatment of epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, dystonia, essential tremors, chronic
pain due to failed back surgeries and other related neurological disorders that are safer, more effective, less costly, easier to use
or otherwise more attractive than our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology, our business will be adversely impacted.
The medical device industry is highly competitive
and subject to technological change. Our success depends, in part, upon our ability to establish a competitive position in the market
for the diagnosis and treatment of epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, dystonia, essential tremors, chronic pain due to failed back surgeries
and other related neurological disorders by securing broad market acceptance of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode
technology. Any product we develop that achieves regulatory clearance or approval will have to compete for market acceptance and market
share. We believe that the primary competitive factors of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology will be: reduced
infections, ability to record additional brain activity, minimally invasive surgical procedure, ease of use and cost effectiveness. We
face significant competition in the United States and internationally, which we believe will intensify. For example, our major competitors
are: (i) in the market for diagnosis, PMT, Ad-Tec Medical and Integra Lifesciences, (ii) in the market for neuro-ablation, Medtronic and
Monteris Medical and (iii) in the market for neurostimulation, Medtronic, Boston Scientific, NeuroPace Biotronik and Abbott. Each of the
foregoing competitors has systems approved in the United States and certain foreign jurisdictions and has been established for several
years. We face a particular challenge overcoming the long-standing practices by some physicians of using the existing technology of our
larger, more established competitors. Physicians may be reluctant to try new products from a source with which they are less familiar.
If these physicians do not try to subsequently adopt our product, then we may never achieve profitability and such failure to adopt our
product could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and operating results.
In addition to facing competition from major competitors
and potentially our development partner, we may also face competition from other emerging competitors or smaller companies with active
development programs that may emerge in the future.
Many of the companies developing or marketing
competing products enjoy several advantages over us, including:
● more experienced sales forces;
● greater name recognition;
● more established sales and marketing programs and distribution networks;
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● earlier regulatory clearance or approval in the United States or foreign jurisdictions;
● long established relationships with physicians and hospitals;
● significant patent portfolios, including issued U.S. and foreign patents and pending patent applications,
as well as the resources to enforce patents against us or any of our third-party suppliers and distributors;
● the ability to acquire and integrate our competitors and/or their technology;
● demonstrated ability to develop product enhancements and new product offerings;
● established history of product reliability, safety and durability;
● the ability to offer rebates or bundle multiple product offerings to offer greater discounts or incentives;
● greater financial and human resources for product development, sales, and marketing; and
● greater experience in and resources for conducting research and development, clinical studies, manufacturing,
preparing regulatory submissions, obtaining regulatory clearance or approval for products and marketing approved products.
Our competitors may develop and patent processes
or products earlier than us, obtain patents that may apply to us at any time, obtain regulatory clearance or approvals for competing products
more rapidly than us or develop more effective or less expensive products or technologies that render our technology or products obsolete
or less competitive. Furthermore, the frequent introduction by competitors of products that are, or claim to be, superior to our products
may create market confusion that may make it difficult to differentiate the benefits of our products over competitive products. In addition,
the entry of multiple new products may lead some of our competitors to employ pricing strategies that could adversely affect the pricing
of any product we may develop and commercialize. We also face fierce competition in recruiting and retaining qualified sales, scientific,
and management personnel, establishing clinical trial sites and enrolling patients in clinical studies. If our competitors are more successful
than us in these matters, our business may be harmed.
The size and future growth in the
market for our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology under development has not been established with precision
and may be smaller than we estimate, possibly materially. If our estimates and projections overestimate the size of this market, our sales
growth may be adversely affected.
Our estimates of the size and future growth in
the market for our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology under development, including the number of people with
epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, dystonia, essential tremors, chronic pain due to failed back surgeries and other related neurological
disorders who may benefit from and be amenable to using cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology for diagnosis and
treatment, is based on a number of internal and third-party studies, reports and estimates. In addition, our internal estimates are based
in large part on current treatment patterns by healthcare providers using current generation technology and our belief is that the incidence
of epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, dystonia, essential tremors, chronic pain due to failed back surgeries and other related neurological
disorders in the United States and worldwide is increasing. While we believe these factors have historically provided and may continue
to provide us with effective tools in estimating the total market for cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology, these
estimates may not be correct and the conditions supporting our estimates may change at any time, thereby reducing the predictive accuracy
of these underlying factors. The actual incidence of brain related disorders, and the actual demand for our products or competitive products,
could differ materially from our projections if our assumptions are incorrect. As a result, our estimates of the size and future growth
in the market for cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology may prove to be incorrect. If the actual number of people
with brain related disorders who would benefit from cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology and the size and future
growth in the market for cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology is smaller than we have estimated, it may impair
our projected sales growth and have an adverse impact on our business.
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We depend on intellectual property
licensed from WARF for our technology, including our technology under development, and the termination of this license would harm our
business.
WARF has granted us the WARF License, to make,
use and sell, in the United States only, products that employ certain licensed patents for a neural probe array or thin-film micro electrode
array and method. See “Business - WARF License” for additional information regarding our license agreement with WARF.
WARF may terminate this license in the event that
we default on the payments of amounts due to WARF or fail to timely submit development reports, actively pursue our development plan or
breach any other covenant in the WARF License and fail to remedy such default in 90 days or in the event of certain bankruptcy events
involving us. WARF may also terminate this license if, after royalties earned on sales begin to be paid, such earned royalties cease for
more than four calendar quarters. The WARF License otherwise expires by its terms on the date that no valid claims on the patents licensed
thereunder remain.
Disputes may arise between us and WARF regarding
intellectual property subject to this agreement, including with respect to: the scope of rights granted under the WARF License and other
interpretation-related issues; whether and the extent to which our technology and processes infringe on intellectual property of WARF
that is not subject to the WARF License; the amount and timing of milestones and royalty payments; the rights of WARF under the license;
our right to sublicense; and the ownership of inventions and know-how resulting from the WARF License. For example, if we or any of our
sublicensees for any reason contest the validity of any patent licensed under the WARF License, the royalty rate will be doubled during
the pendency of such contest and, if the contested patent is found to be valid and would be infringed by us if not for the WARF License,
the royalty rate will be tripled for the remaining term of the WARF License.
Any disputes with WARF may prevent or impair our
ability to maintain our current licensing arrangement. We depend on the intellectual property licensed from WARF to develop our cortical
strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology. The original license agreement entered into with WARF in 2014 required that we meet
certain milestones and make certain payments to WARF. We failed to do so and were in default under the original license agreement. Furthermore,
the LLC was not able to transfer the rights and obligations under the 2014 WARF Agreement to us at the time of the Merger without the
consent of WARF. As a result, in February 2017, we signed an amendment to the WARF License which, among other things, modified and removed
certain previous milestones and provided WARF’s consent to such transfer. Because of this past breach, WARF may be less likely to
waive future defaults or breaches or further amend the WARF License in the future, to the extent we request any waiver or amendment. See
“Note 4-Commitments and Contingencies” included in “Item 8 - Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” in this
Report.
Termination of our license could result in the
loss of significant rights and would harm our ability to further develop our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology.
In addition, WARF reserves the right to grant non-profit research institutions and government agencies non-exclusive licenses to practice
and use the inventions of the licensed patents for non-commercial research purposes, and we grant WARF a non-exclusive, sub-licensable,
royalty-free right and license for non-commercial research purposes to use improvements to the licensed patents. In the event that we
discontinue use or commercialization of the licensed patents or improvements thereon, we must grant WARF an option to obtain a non-exclusive,
sub-licensable royalty-bearing license to use the improvements for commercial purposes. Such rights, if exercised by WARF, could harm
our ability to develop and commercialize our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology.
We depend on our partnership with
Mayo to license certain know how for the development and commercialization of our technology. Termination of this partnership would harm
our business, and even if this partnership continues, it may not be successful.
We have entered into the Mayo Development Agreement
to (i) exclusively license worldwide certain Mayo improvements for the development and commercialization of products, methods and processes
related to flexible circuit technology for the recording and stimulation of tissue and (ii) license, on a non-exclusive basis, worldwide
Mayo thin film electrode technology know-how for the development and commercialization of products, methods and processes related to flexible
circuit technology for the recording and stimulation of tissue. Mayo has agreed to assist the Company by providing access to the Mayo
Principal Investigators in developing a minimally invasive device/delivery system and procedure for a minimally invasive approach for
the implantation of any flexible circuit technology developed by the Company, including prototype development, animal testing, protocol
development for human and animal use, abstract development and presentation and access to and license of any intellectual property that
the Mayo Principal Investigators develop relating to the procedure. See “Business-Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research
License and Development Agreement” for additional information regarding our agreement with Mayo.
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The Mayo Development Agreement generally will
expire in October 2034, unless the Mayo know-how and improvements under the Mayo Development Agreement remain in use, and the Mayo Development
Agreement may be terminated by Mayo for cause or under certain circumstances. Mayo and the Company may not be successful in their efforts
to develop any product, method, process, device, delivery system or minimally invasive approach by such expiration date or termination,
if at all. If no such minimally invasive device or delivery system and procedure for minimally invasive approach is developed, the Company
may never receive regulatory approval of its cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology under development or the market
may never accept such technology, if approved.
Disputes may arise between us and Mayo regarding
intellectual property subject to the Mayo Development Agreement or other matters, including with respect to: the scope of rights granted
under the agreement and other interpretation-related issues; the amount and timing of payments; the rights and obligations of Mayo under
the license agreement; and the ownership of inventions and know-how resulting from the joint creation or use of intellectual property
by Mayo and us.
Any disputes with Mayo may prevent or impair our
ability to maintain our current arrangement. We depend on the intellectual property licensed from and development assistance from Mayo
to develop our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology. We cannot assure you that we will be able to continue to
comply with the Mayo Development Agreement. In fact, the original license and development agreement entered into with Mayo in 2014 required
that, upon the Merger with the LLC, we make certain payments and issue shares of Common Stock to Mayo, which we failed to do at such time.
We signed the Mayo Development Agreement in May 2017, which, among other things, modified or removed certain provisions of the original
agreement, including those we breached. In addition, pursuant to the Mayo Development Agreement signed in May 2017, we agreed to pay Mayo
a cash payment of approximately $92,000 on the earlier of September 30, 2017 or the date we raise a minimum amount of financing. We did
not make this payment by September 30, 2017 and breached this provision of the Mayo Development Agreement. Mayo granted us an extension
of this deadline to December 31, 2017, and we made this payment within such extended deadline. Because of our past breach, Mayo may be
less likely to waive future defaults or breaches or further amend the Mayo Development Agreement in the future, to the extent we request
any waiver or amendment. Termination of the Mayo Development Agreement could result in the loss of significant rights and would harm our
ability to further develop our technology.
We depend on a limited number of third-party
suppliers for the components of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology, and the loss of any of these suppliers,
or their inability to provide us with an adequate supply of materials, could harm our business.
We rely on third-party suppliers to supply and
manufacture the components of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology. For our business strategy to be successful,
our suppliers must be able to provide us with components in sufficient quantities, in compliance with regulatory requirements and quality
control standards, in accordance with agreed upon specifications, at acceptable costs and on a timely basis. Future increases in sales
of our cortical strip and sheet electrode technology, if approved, whether expected or unanticipated, could strain the ability of our
suppliers to deliver an increasingly large supply of components and our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology
in a manner that meets these various requirements.
We use a small number of suppliers of components
for our products. Depending on a limited number of suppliers exposes us to risks, including limited control over pricing, availability,
quality and delivery schedules. We may not have long-term supply agreements with our suppliers and, in many cases, we may make our purchases
on a purchase order basis. Our ability to purchase adequate quantities of components or our products may be limited and we may not be
able to convince suppliers to make components and products available to us. Additionally, our suppliers may encounter problems that limit
their ability to supply components or manufacture products for us, including financial difficulties, damage to their manufacturing equipment
or facilities, product discontinuations, or complications arising in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, there is a risk
that certain components could be discontinued and no longer available to us. We may be required to make significant “last time”
purchases of component inventory that is being discontinued by the supplier to ensure supply continuity. If we fail to obtain sufficient
quantities of high quality components to meet demand for our products in a timely manner or on terms acceptable to us, we would have to
seek alternative sources of supply. Because of factors such as the proprietary nature of our products, our quality control standards and
regulatory requirements, we may not be able to quickly engage additional or replacement suppliers for some of our critical components.
Failure of any supplier to deliver components at the level our business requires could disrupt the manufacturing of our products and,
if approved, limit our ability to meet our sales commitments, which could harm our reputation and adversely affect our business.
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We may not procure volumes sufficient
to receive favorable pricing, which could impact our gross margins if we are unable to pass along price differences to our customers.
Recent global economic cost inflation trends could unfavorably impact pricing from our suppliers.
Furthermore, vandalism, terrorism or a natural
or other disaster, such as an earthquake, fire or flood, could damage or destroy equipment, our inventory of component supplies or finished
products, cause substantial delays in development or our operations, result in the loss of key information, and cause us to incur additional
expenses. We maintain Liability insurance and Property Casualty insurance, but it may not be adequate to fully cover our losses in any
particular case. In addition, regardless of the level of insurance coverage, damage to our or our suppliers’ facilities could harm
our business, financial condition and operating results.
We may also have difficulty obtaining similar
components from other suppliers that are acceptable to the FDA or other regulatory agencies, and the failure of any supplier to comply
with strictly enforced regulatory requirements could expose us to regulatory action including warning letters, product recalls, and termination
of distribution, product seizures or civil penalties. It could also require us to cease using the components, seek alternative components
or technologies and modify our products to incorporate alternative components or technologies, which could result in a requirement to
seek additional regulatory approvals. Any disruption of this nature or increased expenses could harm our development, approval or commercialization
efforts and adversely affect our operating results.
See “-The COVID-19 pandemic has adversely
impacted, and may continue to impact, our business” above.
We contract with third parties for
the manufacture of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology, including our under development and expect to continue
to do so for clinical trials and commercialization. Risks associated with the manufacturing of our products could reduce our gross margins
and negatively affect our operating results.
We currently rely, and expect to continue to rely,
on third parties for the manufacture of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology. Therefore, our business strategy
depends on our third-party manufacturers’ ability to manufacture our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology
and future generations thereof in sufficient quantities and on a timely basis so as to meet consumer demand, while adhering to product
quality standards, complying with regulatory requirements and managing manufacturing costs. To date, we have only manufactured small quantities
of our cortical electrodes. As a result, we currently have limited data and experience regarding the quality, reliability and timeliness
of our third-party manufacturers.
We are subject to numerous risks relating to the
manufacturing capabilities of our third-party manufacturers, including:
● quality or reliability defects;
● inability to secure product components in a timely manner, in sufficient quantities or on commercially
reasonable terms;
● failure to increase production to meet demand;
● inability to modify production lines to enable us to efficiently produce future products or implement
changes in current products in response to regulatory requirements;
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● difficulty identifying and qualifying alternative manufacturers in a timely manner;
● inability to manufacture product components cost-effectively;
● inability to establish agreements with future third-party manufacturers or to do so on acceptable terms;
● potential damage to or destruction of our manufacturers’ equipment or facilities;
● failure to complete sterilization on time or in compliance with the required regulatory standards;
● transportation and import and export risk;
● delays in analytical results or failure of analytical techniques that we will depend on for quality control
and release of products;
● natural disasters, labor disputes, financial distress, raw material availability, issues with facilities
and equipment or other forms of disruption to business operations affecting our manufacturers or suppliers; or
● latent defects that may become apparent after products have been released and that may result in a recall
of such products.
These risks are likely to be exacerbated by our
limited experience with our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology and its manufacturing process. As demand for
our products increases, our third-party suppliers will need to invest additional resources to purchase components, hire and train employees,
and enhance their manufacturing processes. If our manufacturers fail to increase production capacity efficiently, our sales may not increase
in line with our expectations and our operating margins could fluctuate or decline. In addition, manufacturing any future versions of
our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology may require the modification of production lines, the identification
of new manufacturers for specific components, or the development of new manufacturing technologies. It may not be possible for us to manufacture
these products at a cost or in quantities sufficient to make any future versions of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode
technology commercially viable.
Potential complications from our cortical
strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology that are currently unknown may come to light.
Based on our industry experience and the experience
of the physicians that use products similar to our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology, complications from use
of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology may include post-operative hemorrhage, infection, brain inflammation,
brain tissue necrosis, inability to accurately localize the epileptogenic focus (the area of the cerebral cortex responsible for causing
epileptic seizures), neurologic deficit (abnormal function of a body area due to weaker function of the brain, spinal cord, muscles or
nerves, such as abnormal reflexes, inability to speak and decreased sensation) and extra axial fluid collections (fluid that occurs in
the brain after surgery). If these or unanticipated complications or side-effects result from the use of our cortical strip, grid electrode
and depth electrode technology, our product development may be delayed, we may not be able to obtain regulatory clearance or approval
for certain products, we could be subject to liability and, even for cleared/approved products, our technology would not be widely adopted.
We cannot assure you that use, even for a limited time, would not result in unanticipated complications, even after the device is removed.
Undetected errors or defects in our
cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology under development or future versions thereof could harm our reputation,
decrease the market acceptance of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology or expose us to product liability
claims adversely affecting our financial condition and results of operations or liquidity.
Our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode
technology may contain undetected errors or defects. As a result, we may be subject to warranty and liability claims for damages related
to errors or defects in such products. A material liability claim or other occurrence that harms our reputation or decreases market acceptance
of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology could harm our business and operating results. This risk exists even
if a device is cleared or approved for commercial sale and manufactured in facilities licensed and regulated by the FDA or an applicable
foreign regulatory authority. Our products are designed to affect, and any future products will be designed to affect, important bodily
functions and processes. Any side effects, manufacturing defects, misuse or abuse associated with our cortical strip, grid electrode and
depth electrode technology or future versions thereof could result in patient injury or death. The medical device industry has historically
been subject to extensive litigation over product liability claims, and we cannot offer any assurance that we will not face product liability
lawsuits.
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The sale and use of our cortical strip, grid electrode
and depth electrode technology or future versions thereof could lead to the filing of product liability claims if someone were to allege
that our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology or one of our products contained a design or manufacturing defect.
A product liability claim could result in substantial damages and be costly and time consuming to defend, either of which could materially
harm our business or financial condition. Product liability claims may be brought against us by patients, healthcare providers or others
selling or otherwise coming into contact with our products, among others. If we cannot successfully defend ourselves against product liability
claims, we will incur substantial liabilities and reputational harm. In addition, regardless of merit or eventual outcome, product liability
claims may result in:
● litigation;
● distraction of management’s attention from our primary business;
● the inability to commercialize our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology;
● decreased demand;
● damage to our business reputation;
● product recalls or withdrawals from the market;
● withdrawal of clinical trial participants;
● substantial monetary awards or settlements to patients or other claimants; or
● loss of revenue.
Product liability lawsuits and claims, safety
alerts or product recalls, with or without merit, could cause us to incur substantial costs, delay our product development efforts, place
a significant strain on our financial resources, divert the attention of management from our core business, harm our reputation, increase
our product liability insurance rates, once we obtain such insurance, or prevent us from securing such insurance coverage in the future
and adversely affect our ability to attract and retain customers, if approved, any of which could harm our business, financial condition
and operating results.
We currently maintain commercial product liability
insurance with an aggregate limit of $5,000,000. We cannot be assured that such insurance would adequately protect our assets from the
financial impact of defending a product liability claim because these policies typically have substantial deductibles. Product liability
claims in excess of applicable insurance coverage would negatively impact our business, financial condition and operating results. Insurance
coverage varies in cost and can be difficult to obtain, and we cannot guarantee that we will be able to obtain insurance coverage in the
future on terms acceptable to us or at all.
We depend on sophisticated information
technology systems, and any breach or disruption affecting these systems could adversely affect our business, financial condition and
operating results.
The efficient operation of our business depends
on our information technology systems, which we use to manage product development tasks, research and development data and accounting
and financial functions. In the future, we may rely on our information technology systems for inventory management and technical support
functions. Our information technology systems are vulnerable to damage or interruption from earthquakes, fires, floods, other natural
disasters, terrorist attacks, attacks by computer viruses or hackers, power losses, and computer system or data network failures.
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In addition, our data management application and
a variety of our software systems are hosted by third-party service providers whose security and information technology systems are subject
to similar risks. If our, or our third-party service provider’s, security systems are breached or fail, unauthorized persons may
be able to obtain access to sensitive data.
To the extent that any disruption or security
breach were to result in a loss of, or damage to, our data or applications, or inappropriate disclosure of confidential or proprietary
information, we could incur liability. The failure of our or our service providers’ information technology systems or our transmitter’s
software to perform as we anticipate or our failure to effectively implement new information technology systems could disrupt our entire
operation, adversely affect our products, or result in delays in our product development, clinical trial or commercialization efforts,
increased overhead costs and damage our reputation. Any of these results could negatively affect our business, financial condition and
operating results.
Zimmer has exclusive global rights
to distribute our strip and grid cortical electrodes and electrode cable assembly products. Zimmer’s failure to timely develop or
commercialize these products would have a material adverse effect on our business and operating results. Further, our inability to agree
with Zimmer on dates of completion for product development, regulatory clearance and commercialization milestones on which various fee
payments to the Company are based under the Zimmer Development Agreement could have a material adverse impact on our financial and operating
results.
The Company granted Zimmer an exclusive global
right to distribute our strip and grid cortical electrodes and electrode cable assembly products. Additionally, we granted Zimmer the
exclusive right and license to distribute certain depth electrodes developed by the Company. The collaboration with Zimmer may not be
successful due to several factors, including the following:
● Zimmer may not be able to obtain from us or manufacture our products in a timely or cost-effective manner;
● Zimmer may not timely perform its obligations under the Zimmer Development Agreement;
● Zimmer may fail to effectively commercialize our products; or
● contractual disputes or other disagreements between us and Zimmer, including those regarding the development,
manufacture, and commercialization of our products, interpretation of the Zimmer Development Agreement, and ownership of proprietary rights.
Any of the foregoing could adversely impact the
likelihood and timing of any payments we are eligible to receive under the Zimmer Development Agreement. FDA clearance is one condition
of the Product Availability Date. The Company is reliant on Zimmer to drive the commercialization and sales of our products. If Zimmer
does not perform its obligations under the Zimmer Development Agreement, we may be forced to incur material expenses to build a sales
organization and infrastructure to market our products which sales would be substantially delayed and could result in a material adverse
effect on our business, results of operations and prospects and would likely cause our stock price to decline.
We have entered into, and may enter
into additional collaborations, in-licensing arrangements, joint ventures, strategic alliances or partnerships with third-parties that
may not result in the development of commercially viable products or the generation of significant future revenues.
In the ordinary course of our business, we may
enter into collaborations, in-licensing arrangements, joint ventures, strategic alliances, partnerships or other arrangements to develop
products and to pursue new markets. Proposing, negotiating and implementing collaborations, in-licensing arrangements, joint ventures,
strategic alliances or partnerships may be a lengthy and complex process. Other companies, including those with substantially greater
financial, marketing, sales, technology or other business resources, may compete with us for these opportunities or arrangements. We may
not identify, secure, or complete any such transactions or arrangements in a timely manner, on a cost-effective basis, on acceptable terms
or at all. We have limited institutional knowledge and experience with respect to these business development activities, and we may also
not realize the anticipated benefits of any such transaction or arrangement. In particular, these collaborations may not result in the
development of products that achieve commercial success or result in significant revenues and could be terminated prior to developing
any products.
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Additionally,
we may not be in a position to exercise sole decision making authority regarding the transaction or arrangement, which could create the
potential risk of creating impasses on decisions, and our future collaborators may have economic or business interests or goals that
are, or that may become, inconsistent with our business interests or goals. It is possible that conflicts may arise with our collaborators,
such as conflicts concerning the achievement of performance milestones, or the interpretation of significant terms under any agreement,
such as those related to financial obligations or the ownership or control of intellectual property developed during the collaboration.
If any conflicts arise with any future collaborators, they may act in their self-interest, which may be adverse to our best interest,
and they may breach their obligations to us. In addition, we may have limited control over the amount and timing of resources that any
future collaborators devote to our or their future products. Disputes between us and our collaborators may result in litigation or arbitration
which would increase our expenses and divert the attention of our management. Further, these transactions and arrangements will be contractual
in nature and will generally be terminable under the terms of the applicable agreements and, in such event, we may not continue to have
rights to the products relating to such transaction or arrangement or may need to purchase such rights at a premium.
If
we enter into in-bound intellectual property license agreements, we may not be able to fully protect the licensed intellectual property
rights or maintain those licenses. Future licensors could retain the right to prosecute and defend the intellectual property rights licensed
to us, in which case we would depend on the ability of our licensors to obtain, maintain and enforce intellectual property protection
for the licensed intellectual property. These licensors may determine not to pursue litigation against other companies or may pursue
such litigation less aggressively than we would. Further, entering into such license agreements could impose various diligence, commercialization,
royalty or other obligations on us. Future licensors may allege that we have breached our license agreement with them, and accordingly
seek to terminate our license, which could adversely affect our competitive business position and harm our business prospects.
Risks
Related to our Intellectual Property
Our
ability to protect our intellectual property and proprietary technology is uncertain.
The
medical device market in which we operate is largely technology driven. We rely primarily on patent, trademark and trade secret laws,
as well as confidentiality and non-disclosure agreements, to protect our intellectual property and proprietary technologies. We continue
to review new technological developments in order to make decisions about what additional filings would be the most appropriate for us.
We also plan to seek patent protection for our proprietary technology in select countries internationally. If we fail to timely file
a patent application in any jurisdiction, we may be precluded from doing so at a later date. Furthermore, we cannot assure you that any
patent application will be approved in a timely manner or at all. The rights granted to us under our patents, and the rights we are seeking
to have granted in our pending patent applications, may not be meaningful or provide us with any commercial advantage. In addition, those
rights could be opposed, contested or circumvented by our competitors, or be declared invalid or unenforceable in judicial or administrative
proceedings. The failure of our patents to adequately protect our technology might make it easier for our competitors to offer the same
or similar products or technologies. Even if we are successful in receiving patent protection for certain products and processes, our
competitors may be able to design around our patents or develop products that provide outcomes which are comparable to ours without infringing
on our intellectual property rights. Due to differences between foreign and U.S. patent laws, our patented intellectual property rights
may not receive the same degree of protection in foreign countries as they would in the United States. Even if patents are granted outside
the United States, effective enforcement in those countries may not be available.
We
rely on our trademarks and trade names to distinguish our products from the products of our competitors, and have registered or
applied to register many of these trademarks. For example, we have a registered U.S. trademark for the “EVO” trademark.
We cannot assure you that our trademark applications will be approved in a timely manner or at all. Third parties also may oppose
our trademark applications, or otherwise challenge our use of the trademarks. In the event that our trademarks are successfully
challenged, we could be forced to rebrand our products, which could result in loss of brand recognition, and could require us to
devote additional resources to marketing new brands. Further, we cannot assure you that competitors will not infringe upon our
trademarks, or that we will have adequate resources to enforce our trademarks.
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We
also rely on trade secrets, know-how and technology, which are not protectable by patents, to maintain our competitive position. We try
to protect this information by entering into confidentiality agreements and intellectual property assignment agreements with our officers,
employees, temporary employees and consultants regarding our intellectual property and proprietary technology. In the event of unauthorized
use or disclosure or other breaches of those agreements, we may not be provided with meaningful protection for our trade secrets or other
proprietary information. In addition, our trade secrets may otherwise become known or be independently discovered by competitors. To
the extent that our commercial partners, collaborators, employees and consultants use intellectual property owned by others in their
work for us, disputes may arise as to the rights in the related or resulting know-how and inventions. If any of our trade secrets, know-how
or other technologies not protected by a patent were to be disclosed to or independently developed by a competitor, our business, financial
condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.
If
a competitor infringes upon one of our patents, trademarks or other intellectual property rights, enforcing those patents, trademarks
and other rights may be difficult and time-consuming. Patent law relating to the scope of claims in the industry in which we operate
is subject to rapid change and constant evolution and, consequently, patent positions in our industry can be uncertain. Even if successful,
litigation to defend our patents and trademarks against challenges or to enforce our intellectual property rights could be expensive
and time consuming and could divert management’s attention from managing our business. Moreover, we may not have sufficient resources
or desire to defend our patents or trademarks against challenges or to enforce our intellectual property rights. Litigation also puts
our patents at risk of being invalidated or interpreted narrowly and our patent applications at risk of not issuing. Additionally, we
may provoke third-parties to assert claims against us. We may not prevail in any lawsuits that we initiate and the damages or other remedies
awarded, if any, may not be commercially valuable. The occurrence of any of these events may harm our business, financial condition and
operating results.
There
is limited market awareness of our technology, and we may not be able to establish or strengthen our brand.
There
is currently limited market awareness of our technology. We believe that establishing and strengthening our brand is critical to achieving
widespread acceptance of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology. Promoting and positioning our brand, and
increasing market awareness of our technology, will depend largely on the success of our marketing efforts and our ability to provide
physicians with a reliable product for successful treatment of brain-related disorders. Additionally, we believe the quality and reliability
of our product is critical to building physician support in the United States, and any negative publicity regarding the quality or reliability
of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology could significantly damage our reputation in the market. Further,
given the established nature of our competitors, it is likely that our future marketing efforts will require us to incur significant
additional expenses. These brand promotion activities may not yield increased sales and, even if they do, any sales increases may not
offset the expenses we incur to promote our brand. If we fail to successfully promote and maintain our brand, or if we incur substantial
expenses in an unsuccessful attempt to promote and maintain our brand, our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology
may not be accepted by physicians, which would adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
We
could become subject to patent litigation that could be costly, result in the diversion of management’s time and efforts, stop
our development and commercialization measures or require us to pay damages.
Our
success will depend in part on not infringing the patents or violating the other proprietary rights of third-parties. Significant litigation
regarding patent rights exists in our industry. Our competitors in both the United States and abroad, many of which have substantially
greater resources and have made substantial investments in competing technologies, may have applied for or obtained or may in the future
apply for and obtain, patents that will prevent, limit or otherwise interfere with our ability to make and sell our products. The large
number of patents, the rapid rate of new patent issuances, and the complexities of the technology involved increase the risk of patent
litigation.
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In
the future, we could receive communications from various industry participants alleging our infringement of their intellectual property
rights. Any potential intellectual property litigation could force us to do one or more of the following:
● stop
selling our products or using technology that contains the allegedly infringing intellectual
property;
● incur
significant legal expenses;
● pay
substantial damages to the party whose intellectual property rights we are allegedly infringing;
● redesign
those products that contain the allegedly infringing intellectual property; or
● attempt
to obtain a license to the relevant intellectual property from third-parties, which may not
be available on reasonable terms or at all, and if available, may be non-exclusive, thereby
giving our competitors access to the same technology.
Patent
litigation can involve complex factual and legal questions, and its outcome is uncertain. Any litigation or claim against us, even those
without merit, may cause us to incur substantial costs, and could place a significant strain on our financial resources, divert the attention
of management from our core business and harm our reputation. Further, as the number of participants in the neurostimulation market increases,
the possibility of intellectual property infringement claims against us increases.
We
may be subject to damages resulting from claims that we, or our employees, have wrongfully used or disclosed alleged trade secrets of
our competitors or are in breach of non-competition or non-solicitation agreements with our competitors.
Some
of our current or future employees may have previously been employed at other medical device companies, including those that are our
direct competitors or could potentially be our direct competitors. We may be subject to claims that we, or our employees, have inadvertently
or otherwise used or disclosed trade secrets or other proprietary information of these former employers or competitors. In addition,
we may in the future be subject to allegations that we caused an employee to breach the terms of his or her non-competition or non-solicitation
agreement. Litigation may be necessary to defend against these claims.
We
are currently subject to litigation with the former employer of a current employee of NeuroOne, which is described in more detail under
“Note 4-Commitments and Contingencies” included in “Item 8 - Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” in
this Annual Report .
Even
if we successfully defend against these claims, litigation could result in substantial costs place a significant strain on our financial
resources, divert the attention of management from our core business and harm our reputation. If our defense to those claims fails, in
addition to paying monetary damages, we may lose valuable intellectual property rights or personnel. There can be no assurance that this
type of litigation will not occur, and any future litigation or the threat thereof may adversely affect our ability to hire additional
employees. A loss of key personnel or their work product could hamper or prevent our ability to commercialize our cortical strip, grid
electrode and depth electrode technology or future versions thereof, which could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition
and operating results.
Intellectual
property rights do not necessarily address all potential threats to our competitive advantage.
The
degree of future protection afforded by our intellectual property rights is uncertain because intellectual property rights have limitations,
and may not adequately protect our business, or permit us to maintain our competitive advantage. The following examples are illustrative:
● others
may be able to make devices that are the same as or similar to our cortical strip, grid electrode
and depth electrode technology but that are not covered by the claims of the patents that
we own;
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● we
or any collaborators might not have been the first to make the inventions covered by the
issued patents or pending patent applications that we own;
● we
might not have been the first to file patent applications covering certain of our inventions;
● others
may independently develop similar or alternative technologies or duplicate any of our technologies
without infringing our intellectual property rights;
● it
is possible that our pending patent applications will not lead to issued patents;
● issued
patents that we own may not provide us with any competitive advantages, or may be held invalid
or unenforceable as a result of legal challenges;
● we
might enforce our patent rights or defend a challenge to our issued patents or pending application,
putting the patents and patent applications at risk of being invalidated or interpreted narrowly;
● our
competitors might conduct research and development activities in the United States and other
countries that provide a safe harbor from patent infringement claims for certain research
and development activities, as well as in countries where we do not have patent rights, and
then use the information learned from such activities to develop competitive products for
sale in our major commercial markets; and
● we
may not develop additional proprietary technologies that are patentable.
Risks
Related to our Legal and Regulatory Environment
Our
products and operations are subject to extensive governmental regulation, and any adverse regulatory action may materially adversely
affect our financial condition and business operations.
Our
medical devices and technologies and business activities, including marketing, manufacturing, sales and development processes, are subject
to regulation by the FDA, U.S. Department of Justice, Health and Human Services - Office of Inspector General, and other federal and
state, governmental authorities. These governmental authorities enforce laws and regulations that are meant to assure product safety
and effectiveness, including the regulation of, among other things:
● product
design and development;
● pre-clinical
studies and clinical trials;
● product
safety;
● establishment
registration and product listing;
● labeling,
content and language of instructions for use and storage;
● marketing,
manufacturing, sales and distribution;
● pre-market
clearance or approval;
● servicing
and post-market surveillance;
● record-keeping
procedures;
● product
import and export;
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● advertising
and promotion; and
● recalls
and field safety corrective actions.
The
regulations to which we are subject are complex and have tended to become more stringent over time. Regulatory changes could result in
restrictions on our ability to carry on or expand our operations, higher than anticipated costs or lower than anticipated revenues.
Failure
to comply with applicable regulations could jeopardize our ability to sell our products and result in enforcement actions such as fines,
civil penalties, injunctions, warning letters, recalls of products, delays in the introduction of products into the market, refusal of
the regulatory agency or other regulators to grant future clearances or approvals, and the suspension or withdrawal of existing approvals
by such regulatory agencies. Any of these sanctions could result in higher than anticipated costs or lower than anticipated sales and
harm our reputation, business, financial condition and operating results.
A
recall of our products, or the discovery of serious safety issues with our products, could have a significant negative impact on us.
The
FDA has the authority to require the recall of commercialized products in the event of material deficiencies or defects in design or
manufacture or in the event that a product poses an unacceptable risk to health. Our third-party suppliers may, under their own initiative,
recall a product if any material deficiency in a device is found. A government-mandated or voluntary recall by us or one of our third-party
distributors, if any, could occur as a result of an unacceptable risk to health, component failures, manufacturing errors, design or
labeling defects or other deficiencies and issues. Recalls of any of our products would divert managerial and financial resources and
have an adverse effect on our reputation, financial condition and operating results, which could impair our ability to produce our products
in a cost-effective and timely manner.
Further,
under the FDA’s medical device reporting regulations, we are required to report to the FDA any incident in which our product may
have caused or contributed to a death or serious injury or in which our product malfunctioned and, if the malfunction were to recur,
would likely cause or contribute to death or serious injury. Repeated product malfunctions may result in a voluntary or involuntary product
recall, which could divert managerial and financial resources, impair our ability to manufacture our products in a cost-effective and
timely manner and have an adverse effect on our reputation, financial condition and operating results.
Any
adverse event involving our products could result in future voluntary corrective actions, such as recalls or customer notifications,
or regulatory agency action, which could include inspection, mandatory recall or other enforcement action. Any corrective action, whether
voluntary or involuntary, will require the dedication of our time and capital, distract management from operating our business and may
harm our reputation and financial results.
We
are subject to additional federal, state and foreign laws and regulations relating to our healthcare business; our failure to comply
with those laws could have an adverse impact on our business.
Although
we will not provide healthcare services, submit claims for third-party reimbursement, or receive payments directly from government health
insurance programs or other third-party payors for our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode technology, we are subject
to healthcare fraud and abuse regulation and enforcement by federal, state and foreign governments, which could adversely impact our
business. Healthcare fraud and abuse and health information privacy and security laws potentially applicable to our operations include,
but are not limited to:
● the
Anti-Kickback Statute, which will apply to our marketing practices, educational programs,
pricing policies and relationships with healthcare providers, by prohibiting, among other
things, soliciting, receiving, offering or providing remuneration intended to induce the
purchase or recommendation of an item or service reimbursable under a federal healthcare
program, such as the Medicare or Medicaid programs. A person or entity does not need to have
actual knowledge of this statute or specific intent to violate it to have committed a violation;
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● federal
civil and criminal false claims laws and civil monetary penalty laws, including civil whistleblower
or qui tam actions that prohibit, among other things, knowingly presenting, or causing to
be presented, claims for payment or approval to the federal government that are false or
fraudulent, knowingly making a false statement material to an obligation to pay or transmit
money or property to the federal government or knowingly concealing or knowingly and improperly
avoiding or decreasing an obligation to pay or transmit money or property to the federal
government. The government may assert that a claim including items or services resulting
from a violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute constitutes a false or fraudulent claim for
purposes of the false claims statutes;
● HIPAA,
and its implementing regulations, which created federal criminal laws that prohibit, among
other things, executing a scheme to defraud any healthcare benefit program or making false
statements relating to healthcare matters. A person or entity does not need to have actual
knowledge of these statutes or specific intent to violate them;
● HIPAA,
as amended by the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act of 2009,
and their implementing regulations, also imposes certain regulatory and contractual requirements
regarding the privacy, security and transmission of individually identifiable health information;
● federal
“sunshine” requirements imposed by the ACA on device manufacturers regarding
any “transfer of value” made or distributed to physicians and teaching hospitals.
Failure to submit required information may result in civil monetary penalties of up to an
aggregate of $150,000 per year (or up to an aggregate of $1 million per year for “knowing
failures”), for all payments, transfers of value or ownership or investment interests
that are not timely, accurately, and completely reported in an annual submission. Manufacturers
must submit reports by the 90th day of each subsequent calendar year;
● federal
consumer protection and unfair competition laws, which broadly regulate marketplace activities
and activities that potentially harm consumers;
● state
law equivalents of each of the above federal laws, such as anti-kickback and false claims
laws that may apply to items or services reimbursed by any third-party payor, including commercial
insurers; state laws that require device companies to comply with the industry’s voluntary
compliance guidelines and the relevant compliance guidance promulgated by the federal government
or otherwise restrict payments that may be made to healthcare providers; state laws that
require device manufacturers to report information related to payments and other transfers
of value to physicians and other healthcare providers or marketing expenditures; and state
laws governing the privacy and security of certain health information, many of which differ
from each other in significant ways and often are not preempted by HIPAA; and
The
risk of our being found in violation of these laws and regulations is increased by the fact that the scope and enforcement of these laws
is uncertain, many of them have not been fully interpreted by the regulatory authorities or the courts, their provisions are open to
a variety of interpretations, or they vary country by country. We are unable to predict what additional federal, state or foreign legislation
or regulatory initiatives may be enacted in the future regarding our business or the healthcare industry in general, or what effect such
legislation or regulations may have on us. Federal, state or foreign governments may (i) impose additional restrictions or adopt interpretations
of existing laws that could have a material adverse effect on us or (ii) challenge our current or future activities under these laws.
Any of these challenges could impact our reputation, business, financial condition and operating results.
If
our operations are found to be in violation of any of the laws described above or any other governmental regulations that apply to us
now or in the future, we may be subject to penalties, including civil and criminal penalties, damages, fines, disgorgement of profits,
exclusion from governmental health care programs, and the curtailment or restructuring of our operations, any of which could adversely
affect our ability to operate our business and our financial results. Any
federal, state or foreign regulatory review to which we may become subject, regardless of the outcome, would be costly and time-consuming.
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For
example, to enforce compliance with the federal laws, the U.S. Department of Justice, or DOJ, has recently increased its scrutiny of
interactions between healthcare companies and healthcare providers, which has led to a number of investigations, prosecutions, convictions
and settlements in the healthcare industry. Dealing with investigations can be time and resource consuming and can divert management’s
attention from our core business. Additionally, if we settle an investigation with law enforcement or other regulatory agencies, we may
be forced to agree to additional onerous compliance and reporting requirements as part of a consent decree or corporate integrity agreement.
Any such investigation or settlement could increase our costs or otherwise have an adverse effect on our business.
We
may be liable if the FDA or another regulatory agency concludes that we have engaged in the off-label promotion of our products.
Our
promotional materials and training methods must comply with FDA and other applicable laws and regulations, including the prohibition
of the promotion of the off-label use of our products. Healthcare providers may use our products, if approved, off-label, as the FDA
does not restrict or regulate a physician’s choice of treatment within the practice of medicine. However, if the FDA determines
that our promotional materials or training constitute promotion of an off-label use, it could request that we modify our training or
promotional materials or subject us to regulatory or enforcement actions, including the issuance of an untitled letter, a warning letter,
injunction, seizure, civil fine and criminal penalties. It is also possible that other federal, state or foreign enforcement authorities
might take action if they consider our promotional or training materials to constitute promotion of an unapproved use, which could result
in significant fines or penalties. Although we intend to train our marketing and direct sales force to not promote our products for uses
outside of their cleared uses and our policy will be to refrain from statements that could be considered off-label promotion of our products,
the FDA or another regulatory agency could disagree and conclude that we have engaged in off-label promotion. In addition, the off-label
use of our products may increase the risk of product liability claims. Product liability claims are expensive to defend and could result
in substantial damage awards against us and harm our reputation.
Legislative
or regulatory healthcare reforms may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results or operations and cash
flows.
Recent
political, economic and regulatory influences are subjecting the healthcare industry to fundamental changes. The sales of our products
depend in part on the availability of coverage and reimbursement from third-party payors such as government health administration authorities,
private health insurers, health maintenance organizations and other healthcare-related organizations. Both the federal and state governments
in the United States continue to propose and pass new legislation and regulations designed to contain or reduce the cost of healthcare.
This legislation and regulation may result in decreased reimbursement for medical devices, which may further exacerbate industry-wide
pressure to reduce the prices charged for medical devices. This could harm our ability to market our products and generate sales.
In
addition, FDA regulations and guidance are often revised or reinterpreted by the FDA in ways that may significantly affect our business
and our products. Any new regulations or revisions or reinterpretations of existing regulations may impose additional costs or lengthen
review times of our products. Delays in receipt of or failure to receive regulatory clearances or approvals for our products would harm
our business, financial condition and operating results.
While
one often stated goal of healthcare reform is to expand coverage to more individuals, it also involves increased government price controls,
additional regulatory mandates and other measures designed to constrain medical costs. For example, the ACA and Health Care and Education
Affordability Reconciliation Act of 2010 were enacted into law in the U.S. in March 2010. Certain provisions of this law, including comparative
effectiveness research, pilot programs to evaluate alternative payment methodologies and other changes to the payment systems, have started
changing the way healthcare is delivered, reimbursed and funded. While the extent to which it has affected our business is not clear,
these changes, over the long-term, may adversely affect our business and results of operations. The current U.S. administration may attempt
to reverse some of the previous administration’s changes to the ACA, particularly related to healthcare coverage for the uninsured,
and is further expected to introduce more ambitious healthcare legislation, which could include what is commonly referred to as a “public
option” or changes to Medicare age requirements. If passed, this legislation would lead to increased coverage levels and utilization
of services; however, at this point, the impact of any such changes is unclear because specific changes have not been enacted or implemented.
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We
cannot predict whether any additional healthcare reform proposals will be adopted or how such proposals may impact our business and operations.
However, any changes that lower reimbursements for either our products or procedures using our products, reduce medical procedure volumes,
increase cost containment pressures on us or others in the healthcare sector, or impose additional or heightened regulatory requirements
could adversely affect our business and results of operations.
Risks
Related to our Common Stock
The
price of our Common Stock might fluctuate significantly, and you could lose all or part of your investment.
Volatility
in the market price of our Common Stock may prevent you from being able to sell your shares of our Common Stock at or above the price
you paid for your shares. The trading price of our Common Stock may be volatile and subject to wide price fluctuations in response to
various factors, including:
● actual
or anticipated fluctuations in our quarterly financial and operating results;
● our
progress toward developing our cortical strip and sheet electrode technology;
● the
commencement, enrollment and results of our future clinical trials;
● adverse
results from, delays in or termination of our clinical trials;
● adverse
regulatory decisions, including failure to receive regulatory approval;
● publication
of research reports about us or our industry or positive or negative recommendations or withdrawal
of research coverage by securities analysts, if any;
● perceptions
about the market acceptance of our products and the recognition of our brand;
● adverse
publicity about our products or industry in general;
● overall
performance of the equity markets;
● introduction
of products, or announcements of significant contracts, licenses or acquisitions, by us or
our competitors;
● legislative,
political or regulatory developments;
● additions
or departures of key personnel;
● threatened
or actual litigation and government investigations;
● third-party
promotional activities, which are subject to ongoing regulatory obligations;
● sale
of shares of our Common Stock by us or members of our management; and
● general
economic conditions.
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These
and other factors might cause the market price of our Common Stock to fluctuate substantially, which may negatively affect the liquidity
of our Common Stock. In addition, in recent years, the stock market has experienced significant price and volume fluctuations. This volatility
has had a significant impact on the market price of securities issued by many companies across many industries. The changes frequently
appear to occur without regard to the operating performance of the affected companies. Accordingly, the price of our Common Stock could
fluctuate based upon factors that have little or nothing to do with our Company, and these fluctuations could materially reduce our share
price.
Securities
class action litigation has often been instituted against companies following periods of volatility in the overall market and in the
market price of a company’s securities. This litigation, if instituted against us, could result in substantial costs, divert our
management’s attention and resources, and harm our business, operating results and financial condition.
Any
failure to maintain an effective system of internal controls could result in material misstatements of our financial statements or cause
us to fail to meet our reporting obligations or fail to prevent fraud in which case, our stockholders could lose confidence in our financial
reporting, which would harm our business and could negatively impact the price of our stock.
We
are required to comply with the internal control evaluation and certification requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of
2002 (“SOX”) and management is required to report annually on our internal control over financial reporting. Our independent
registered public accounting firm will not be required to formally attest to the effectiveness of our internal control over financial
reporting pursuant to Section 404(b) of SOX until the date we have a public float of $75 million or greater.
If
we fail to maintain effective internal controls and procedures for financial reporting, it could result in material misstatements in
the annual or interim financial statements that would not be prevented or detected in a timely manner. We identified material weaknesses
in our internal control over financial reporting in 2018, and we cannot assure you that material weaknesses or significant deficiencies
will not occur in the future and that we will be able to remediate such weaknesses or deficiencies in a timely manner, which could impair
our ability to accurately and timely report our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.
We
intend to issue more shares to raise capital, which will result in substantial dilution.
Our
certificate of incorporation authorizes the issuance of a maximum of 100,000,000 shares of Common Stock and 10,000,000 shares of preferred
stock. Until we can generate significant revenue from product sales, if ever, we expect to finance our operations through the sale of
equity, debt financings, or other capital sources. Any additional financings effected by us may result in the issuance of additional
securities without stockholder approval and the substantial dilution in the percentage of Common Stock held by our then existing stockholders.
Moreover, the Common Stock issued in any such transaction may be valued on an arbitrary or non-arm’s-length basis by our management,
resulting in an additional reduction in the percentage of Common Stock held by our current stockholders. Our Board has the power to issue
any or all of such authorized but unissued shares without stockholder approval. To the extent that additional shares of Common Stock
are issued, dilution to the interests of our stockholders will occur and the rights of the holder of Common Stock might be materially
and adversely affected.
As
of September 30, 2022, we had outstanding warrants to purchase an aggregate of 7,103,344 shares of Common Stock at a weighted average
exercise price of $5.98 per share, and options to purchase an aggregate of 1,239,915 shares of Common Stock at a weighted average exercise
price of $5.40 per share. For a description of our outstanding warrants and information about the number of shares of Common Stock for
which they are exercisable, see “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations-Liquidity
and Capital Resources-Historical Capital Resources.” To the extent these outstanding options or warrants are exercised, there will
be further dilution to holders of our Common Stock.
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Anti-takeover
provisions in the Company’s certificate of incorporation and bylaws may prevent or frustrate attempts by stockholders to change
the Board or current management and could make a third-party acquisition of the Company difficult.
The
Company’s certificate of incorporation and bylaws contain provisions that may discourage, delay or prevent a merger, acquisition
or other change in control that stockholders may consider favorable, including transactions in which stockholders might otherwise receive
a premium for their shares. For example, our certificate of incorporation permits the Board without stockholder approval to issue up
to 10,000,000 shares of preferred stock and to fix the designation, power, preferences, and rights of those shares. Furthermore, our
Board has the ability to increase the size of the Board and fill the newly created vacancies without stockholder approval. These provisions
could limit the price that investors might be willing to pay in the future for shares of the Common Stock.
We
are a smaller reporting company, and the reduced reporting requirements applicable to smaller reporting companies may make our Common
Stock less attractive to investors.
We
are a “smaller reporting company” as defined in Section 12 of the Exchange Act. For as long as we continue to be a smaller
reporting company, we may take advantage of exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies
that are not smaller reporting companies such as, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our annual and periodic
reports and proxy statements and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. We will remain a “smaller
reporting company” as long as (i) our public float remains less than $250 million or (ii) our annual revenues are less than $100
million and we either have no public float, or our public float is less than $700 million. Public float is measured as of the last business
day of our most recently-completed second fiscal quarter, and annual revenues are as of the most recently completed fiscal year for which
audited financial statements are available. We cannot predict if investors will find our Common Stock less attractive because we may
rely on these exemptions. If some investors find our Common Stock less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market
for our Common Stock and our stock price may be more volatile.
We
have not paid dividends in the past and do not expect to pay dividends in the future, and any return on investment may be limited to
the value of our stock.
We
have never declared or paid cash dividends on our capital stock. We currently intend to retain all available funds and any future earnings
for use in the operation and expansion of our business and do not anticipate paying any cash dividends in the foreseeable future. Accordingly,
you may have to sell some or all of your shares of our Common Stock in order to generate cash flow from your investment. You may not
receive a gain on your investment when you sell shares and you may lose the entire amount of the investment.
If
securities or industry analysts do not publish research or reports, or publish unfavorable research or reports, about us, our business
or our market, our stock price and trading volume could decline.
The
trading market for our Common Stock will be influenced by the research and reports that securities or industry analysts publish about
us and our business. Securities or industry analysts may elect not to provide coverage of our Common Stock, and such lack of coverage
may adversely affect the market price of our Common Stock. In the event we do not secure additional securities or industry analyst coverage,
we will not have any control over the analysts or the content and opinions included in their reports. The price of our stock could decline
if one or more securities or industry analysts downgrade our stock or issue other unfavorable commentary or research. If one or more
securities or industry analysts ceases coverage of our Company or fails to publish reports on us regularly, demand for our stock could
decrease, which in turn could cause our stock price or trading volume to decline.
If
we fail to comply with the continued listing standards of the Nasdaq Capital Market, our Common Stock could be delisted. If it is delisted,
our Common Stock and the liquidity of our Common Stock would be impacted.
The
continued listing of our Common Stock on Nasdaq is contingent on NeuroOne’s continued compliance with a number of listing standards.
There is no assurance that NeuroOne will remain in compliance with these standards. Delisting from Nasdaq would adversely affect our
ability to raise additional financing through the public or private sale of equity securities, significantly affect the ability of investors
to trade our securities and negatively affect the value and liquidity of our Common Stock. Delisting also could limit our strategic alternatives
and attractiveness to potential counterparties and have other negative results, including the potential loss of employee confidence,
the loss of institutional investors or interest in business development opportunities. Moreover, NeuroOne committed in connection with
the sale of securities to use commercially reasonable efforts to maintain the listing of its Common Stock during such time that certain
warrants are outstanding.
56
NeuroOne
Medical Technologies Corporation
FORM 10-K
Risks
Related to the Acquisition
We
may be subject to unknown risks as a result of our completed Acquisition by Original Source Entertainment, Inc.
Original
Source Entertainment, Inc., which was renamed NeuroOne Medical Technologies Corporation in connection with the Acquisition, was formed
to license songs to the television and movie industry and has generated very little revenues. Prior to the Acquisition, its operations
have been primarily limited to organizational, start-up, and capital formation activities, with no employees other than the former officers.
In connection with the Acquisition, the liabilities existing in Original Source Entertainment, Inc. at the time of the Acquisition were
cancelled or paid by a related party, as required by the Merger Agreement with NeuroOne, Inc. and OSOK Acquisition Company (the “Merger
Agreement”). Despite this requirement and the representations and warranties of Original Source Entertainment, Inc. in the Merger
Agreement, there may be unknown liabilities, or liabilities that were known but believed to be immaterial, related to the business of
Original Source Entertainment, Inc. that may become material liabilities we are subject to in the future. If we are subject to material
liabilities as a result of the conduct of Original Source Entertainment, Inc., we may have limited recourse for such liabilities, which
could have a material impact on our business and stock price.
Additional
risks may exist since we were engaged in a transaction that can be generally characterized as a “reverse merger” with a shell
company. Securities analysts of major brokerage firms may not provide coverage of the Company since there is little incentive to brokerage
firms to recommend the purchase of the Common Stock. No assurance can be given that brokerage firms will want to conduct any secondary
offerings.
General
Risk Factors
Changes
in tax laws or exposure to additional income tax liabilities could have a material impact on our business, results of operations, financial
condition and cash flows.
We
are subject to income and other non-income-based taxes and tariffs in the U.S., and our operations, plans and results are affected by
tax and other initiatives. The rules dealing with U.S. federal, state and local income taxation are constantly under review by persons
involved in the legislative process and by the Internal Revenue Service, the U.S. Treasury Department, and state/local taxing authorities.
The tax laws in the U.S. could change on a prospective or retroactive basis, and any such changes could materially adversely affect our
business, our results of operations, our effective tax rate, and holders of our common stock. We cannot predict whether, when, in what
form, or with what effective dates, tax laws, regulations and rulings may be enacted, promulgated or decided, which could result in an
increase in our, or our stockholders’, tax liability or require changes in the manner in which we operate in order to minimize
increases in our tax liability. In recent years, many such changes have been made and changes are likely to continue to occur in the
future. Future changes in tax laws could have a material adverse effect on our business, cash flow, financial condition, results of operations,
tax provision, cash tax liability, and effective tax rate. For example, in August 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (“IRA”)
was enacted into law. The IRA includes a 15% corporate alternative minimum tax and a 1% excise tax on share repurchases.
We
urge investors to consult with their legal and tax advisers regarding the implications of potential changes in tax laws on an investment
in our common stock.
We
are also subject to regular reviews, examinations, and audits by the Internal Revenue Service and other taxing authorities with respect
to our taxes. Although we believe our tax estimates are reasonable, if a taxing authority disagrees with the positions we have taken,
we could face additional tax liability, including interest and penalties. There
can be no assurance that payment of such additional amounts upon final adjudication of any disputes will not have a material impact on
our results of operations and financial position.
57
NeuroOne
Medical Technologies Corporation
FORM 10-K
We
may seek to grow our business through acquisitions of complementary products or technologies, and the failure to complete acquisitions,
or the failure to integrate them with our existing business, could harm our business, financial condition and operating results.
From
time to time, we may consider opportunities to acquire other companies, products or technologies that may enhance our product platform
or technology, expand the breadth of our markets or customer base, or advance our business strategies. The success of our strategy relating
to future acquisitions, investments or alliances will depend on a number of factors, including our ability to:
● identify
suitable opportunities for acquisition, investment or alliance, if at all;
● manage
acquisition, investment or alliance opportunities within our capital capacity and prioritize
those investments to execute on our strategy;
● manage
our due diligence process to uncover potential issues and liabilities with targets;
● finance
any future acquisition, investment or alliance on terms acceptable to us, if at all;
● complete
acquisitions, investments or alliances in a timely manner on terms that are satisfactory
to us, if at all;
● successfully
integrate and operate acquired businesses;
● successfully
identify and retain key target employees;
● comply
with applicable laws and regulations;
● protect
intellectual property and to prevail in litigation related to newly acquired technologies;
● assimilate
the acquired products or technologies;
● maintain
uniform standards, procedures, controls and policies;
● anticipate
costs associated with acquisitions;
● avoid
the diversion of management’s attention from our existing business;
● manage
risks associated with entering new markets in which we have limited or no experience; and
● manage
legal and accounting costs relating to the acquisitions or compliance with regulatory matters.
We
have no current commitments with respect to any acquisition. We do not know if we will be able to identify acquisitions we deem suitable,
whether we will be able to successfully complete any such acquisitions on favorable terms or at all, or whether we will be able to successfully
integrate any acquired products or technologies. Our potential inability to integrate any acquired products or technologies effectively
may adversely affect our business, operating results and financial condition.
58
NeuroOne
Medical Technologies Corporation
FORM 10-K
Our
future success depends on our ability to retain key executives and to attract, retain and motivate qualified personnel.
We
are highly dependent on the management, research and development, clinical, financial and business development expertise of our officers
and advisory board members. Although we have an employment agreement with David Rosa, he (and each of our other key employees) may terminate
his employment with us at any time and will continue to be able to do so. We do not maintain “key person” insurance for any
of our executives or employees.
Recruiting
and retaining qualified scientific and clinical personnel will also be critical to our success. The loss of the services of our executive
officers or other key employees could impede the achievement of our research, development and commercialization objectives and seriously
harm our ability to successfully implement our business strategy. Furthermore, replacing executive officers and key employees may be
difficult and may take an extended period of time because of the limited number of individuals in our industry with the breadth of skills
and experience required to successfully develop, gain regulatory approval of and commercialize our products. Competition to hire from
this limited pool is intense, and we may be unable to hire, train, retain or motivate these key personnel on acceptable terms given the
competition among numerous medical device companies for similar personnel, many of which have greater financial and other resources dedicated
to attracting and retaining personnel. We also experience competition for the hiring of scientific and clinical personnel from universities
and research institutions. In addition, we rely on consultants and advisors, including scientific and clinical advisors, to assist us
in formulating our research and development and commercialization strategy. Our consultants and advisors may be employed by employers
other than us and may have commitments under consulting or advisory contracts with other entities that may limit their availability to
us. If we are unable to continue to attract and retain high quality personnel, our ability to pursue our growth strategy will be limited.
Prolonged
negative economic conditions could adversely affect us, our customers and third-party partners, manufactures or suppliers, if any, which
could harm our financial condition.
We
are subject to the risks arising from adverse changes in general economic and market conditions, including, but not limited to, changes
related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Uncertainty about future economic conditions could negatively impact our existing and potential customers,
adversely affect the financial ability of health insurers to pay claims, adversely impact our expenses and ability to obtain financing
of our operations, and cause delays or other problems with key suppliers.
Healthcare
spending in the United States has been, and is expected to continue to be, under significant pressure and there are many initiatives
to reduce healthcare costs. As a result, we believe that some insurers are scrutinizing insurance claims more rigorously and delaying
or denying coverage and reimbursement more often. Because the sale, if approved, of our cortical strip, grid electrode and depth electrode
technology under development will generally depend on the availability of third-party coverage and reimbursement, any delay or decline
in coverage and reimbursement will adversely affect our sales.
We
have incurred, and may continue to incur increased costs and demands upon management as a result of being a public company.
As
a public company in the United States, we incur significant legal, accounting and other costs. These additional costs could negatively
affect our financial results. In addition, changing laws, regulations and standards relating to corporate governance and public disclosure,
including regulations implemented by the SEC and the stock exchange on which we may list our Common Stock, may increase legal and financial
compliance costs and make some activities more time-consuming. These laws, regulations and standards are subject to varying interpretations
and, as a result, their application in practice may evolve over time as new guidance is provided by regulatory and governing bodies.
We intend to invest resources to comply with evolving laws, regulations and standards, and this investment may result in increased general
and administrative expenses and a diversion of management’s time and attention from revenue-generating activities to compliance
activities. If, notwithstanding our efforts to comply with new laws, regulations and standards, we fail to comply, regulatory authorities
may initiate legal proceedings against us and our business may be harmed.
59
NeuroOne
Medical Technologies Corporation
FORM 10-K
Failure
to comply with these rules might also make it more difficult for us to obtain some types of insurance, including director and officer
liability insurance, and we might be forced to accept reduced policy limits and coverage or incur substantially higher costs to obtain
the same or similar coverage. The impact of these events could also make it more difficult for us to attract and retain qualified persons
to serve on our Board, on committees of our Board or as members of senior management.
ITEM
1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS
Not
applicable.