REHOVOT, Israel – August 16, 2018 -- Kamada Ltd. (Nasdaq: KMDA) (KMDA.TA), a plasma-derived protein therapeutics company, today announced that on August 15, 2018, the Company, the Employees’ Committee of Kamada’s Beit Kama production facility in Israel (the “Employee’s Committee”), the Histadrut - General Federation of Labor in Israel (the “Histadrut”), and a Mediator appointed by the parties, signed a binding Memorandum of Understanding (the “Binding MoU”) that terminates the previously disclosed labor strike. Such Binding MoU will form the basis of a new four-year collective bargaining agreement to be entered into between the parties within the next 60 days.
All unionized employees have now returned to work at the Beit Kama production facility. The strike had no impact on the market availability of GLASSIA® or KEDRAB®.
The Company is currently assessing the impact of the labor strike on its full-year 2018 revenues, and will provide, in the near term, an update on its previously provided guidance. As previously disclosed, due to the work stoppage, Kamada will report a one-time loss of $1 million in the third quarter due to the loss of in process material.
About Kamada
Kamada Ltd. is focused on plasma-derived protein therapeutics for orphan indications, and has a commercial product portfolio and a late-stage product pipeline. The Company uses its proprietary platform technology and know-how for the extraction and purification of proteins from human plasma to produce Alpha-1 Antitrypsin (AAT) in a highly-purified, liquid form, as well as other plasma-derived Immune globulins. AAT is a protein derived from human plasma with known and newly-discovered therapeutic roles given its immunomodulatory, anti-inflammatory, tissue-protective and antimicrobial properties. The Company’s flagship product is GLASSIA®, the first liquid, ready-to-use, intravenous plasma-derived AAT product approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Kamada markets GLASSIA® in the U.S. through a strategic partnership with Baxalta (now part of Shire plc) and in other counties through local distributors. In addition to GLASSIA®, Kamada has a product line of six other plasma-derived pharmaceutical products administered by injection or infusion, that are marketed through distributors in more than 15 countries, including Israel, Russia, Brazil, India and other countries in Latin America and Asia. Kamada has late-stage products in development, including an inhaled formulation of AAT for the treatment of AAT deficiency, and in addition, its intravenous AAT is in development for other indications, such as type-1 diabetes, GvHD and prevention of lung transplant rejection. Kamada's rabies immune globulin (Human) product received FDA approval for Post-Exposure Prophylaxis against rabies infection in August 2017 and was launched in the US during Q1-2018. Kamada also leverages its expertise and presence in the plasma-derived protein therapeutics market by distributing more than 10 complementary products in Israel that are manufactured by third parties.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts, such as statements regarding Kamada’s ability to secure a new collective bargaining agreement, as well as the company’s full-year 2018 total revenue guidance and the effects of the strike. Forward-looking statements are based on Kamada’s current knowledge and its present beliefs and expectations regarding possible future events and are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Actual results and the timing of events could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of several factors including, but not limited to, those risk factors set forth in Kamada’s Form 20-F for the period ended December 31, 2017, including specifically the risk factor in the Form 20-F entitled: “We have entered into a collective bargaining agreement with the employees' committee and the Histadrut (General Federation of Labor in Israel), and we could incur labor costs or experience work stoppages or labor strikes as a result of any disputes in connection with such agreement.” The forward-looking statements made herein speak only as of the date of this announcement and Kamada undertakes no obligation to update publicly such forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances, except as otherwise required by law.