The bizarre pattern of communication over the last few days has left a lot of us very confused. I spoke to someone who has had a more in-depth discussion with Pentony, and with his permission, I'll take a shot at sorting things out (not to defend the strange messages, but to at least to explain them...)
For over three years Medizone has been attempting to gain EPA approval for the AS system, meaning the machine with its ozone generator and scrubber, and the hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) additive.
The EPA arbitrarily classified the system as a pesticide, which made it necessary to fulfill the testing regimens for that class of products, even though this is not exactly what AS is. There was no other category to fit it into, so pesticide it was. This led to ongoing delays, as we have experienced over the years.
(The in-house experts seem to have contributed somewhat to the delays, by not always being up on the specific requirements for approval.)
A while back, one of the medical experts in Medizone came up with an alternative strategy. While continuing to push for the approval as a pesticide, why not take a different approach at the same time. Let's have the manufacturer of the machine (Cogmedix) apply for approval of the machine itself, as an "applicator" (think of an aerosol spray can, without regard to its contents), and not asking for approval for the H2O2.
This involved a totally separate division of the EPA, that has no connection with the pesticide people.
If this would work, it would open up the US markets, testing can begin, and the end-users, a hospital for example, can purchase the H2O2 on their own from a producer that already has EPA approval.
So that's what happened last week. This is not the end of the EPA process, because the original application is still active and pending. The final approval as a pesticide will permit Medizone to market its own H2O2, creating another source of profit.
Nonetheless, last week's success really is a breakthrough, and it seems that a prestigious US hospital is ready to begin buying and testing.
So shout it from the rooftops, right?
Well, that was management's first impulse. But the DC consultants cautioned that this may not be the wisest course to choose, because of the internal dynamics within the EPA.
He suggested that publicizing on IHub or even on Twitter is not going to do anything to dramatically heighten the visibility of this first approval - but putting out a PR may just do that, and there is some concern that the EPA pesticide division might just say, "Why bother with these AS fellows, they have their approval anyway, they're selling machines, they went through their own channels, there's no rush to deal with their application."
So he recommended not issuing a conventional PR just yet.
Is this an accurate assessment on the part of the consultants? I have no clue. But as I said at the beginning, I'm not defending this decision, just explaining it.
So Ed and the BOD are facing the ultimate irony: what they've been working toward and anticipating for years finally came through... and they can't talk about it!
Maybe there's a certain poetic justice here: We've been starving for news, for better communication, for years, and the Company didn't come through. Now when they really have something to say, they're being muzzled!
Measure for measure.... at any rate, I hope this helps to clear some of the confusion.
