Legal cases providing funding for REX
These developments help to establish an important principle - that individuals who experience a life-changing injury can secure funding for access to this valuable technology.
Stewarts Law has announced that Ben Barnes, a 30 year-old man who sustained a spinal cord injury in a road traffic accident, has become the first recipient of a British High Court damages settlement to pay for a REX, the robot that enhances the mobility of wheelchair users.
Mr Barnes has settled his case, winning a damages settlement including, among other items, approximately ?550,000 to cover the purchase of a REX robot, its replacements and associated costs. He was represented by Ben Rogers, Partner at Stewarts Law LLP, who was able to show that the REX would be beneficial to Ben Barnes' health and sense of well-being.
Ben Rogers of Stewarts Law, commented: "This is a landmark award of damages which means that Ben Barnes can purchase his own REX to use at home."
Ben Barnes commented: "Since my car crash in 2011 I have been in a wheelchair. I am delighted that the REX is included as part of my settlement. Having been told I would never walk again, you can understand my excitement when I first heard about REX and the freedom it provides for people like me with paralysis. The initial feeling of being upright and at eye level is priceless, not to mention the health benefits. This truly is a life changing piece of technology."
In a separate case, a man who sustained spinal cord damage as s a result of alleged clinical negligence has been provided with interim funding for an intensive course of robot-assisted physiotherapy with REX, pending a final settlement of the insurance claim.
Crispin Simon, Chief Executive Officer of Rex Bionics, said: "These awards are an endorsement from the courts and from the insurance industry, of the principle that the REX robot technology can enable people with spinal cord injuries to remain healthy; and to resume activities they may have thought were no longer available to them."
"I believe everyone can see that REX is break-through technology but it still needs to be paid for. There is a long way to go, but these two cases are really significant milestones in our mission to make REX available to everyone who needs it."
About Rex Bionics
Rex Bionics (AIM: RXB) is the UK AIM-listed pioneer of the REX Robot that enhances the mobility of wheelchair users. Founded in Auckland, New Zealand by two robotics engineers with first-hand experience of wheelchair users and their needs, Rex Bionics is working with physiotherapists to develop the practice of Robot-Assisted Physiotherapy (RAP). In a session of RAP, REX lifts patients from a sitting position into a robot-supported standing position, allowing them to take part in a set of supported walking and stretching exercises, designed by specialist physiotherapists.
Wheelchair users are at risk of developing numerous medical complications from extended periods of sitting. By enabling them to spend more time standing, walking and exercising, REX may offer significant health benefits, including improved sleep, cardiovascular performance, maintenance of joint range, and a reduction in spasm, pain, common abdominal problems and prescription drug use. A programme of clinical trials is now under way to evaluate these potential benefits.
REX has, up till now, been most commonly used by people with a spinal cord injury, but has also been used by people who have suffered a stroke or other traumatic brain injury; and people with multiple sclerosis and muscular dystrophy. REX P, for use in the home, enables users to walk and stand with their hands free - providing more work and recreation options.
Rex Bionics has been listed on AIM since April 2014. REX is not approved for At-Home use in the United States of America.
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