John Shanks

Conceptus, Inc. is a leader in the design, development, and marketing of innovative solutions in women's healthcare. The Company manufactures and markets the Essure procedure, which was FDA approved in 2002 and is the first permanent birth control method that can be performed in the comfort of a physician's office in less than 10 minutes (average hysteroscopic time) without hormones, cutting, burning or the risks associated with general anesthesia or tubal ligation. Soft, flexible inserts are placed in a woman's fallopian tubes through the cervix without incisions. Over the next three months, the body forms a natural barrier around the micro-inserts to prevent sperm from reaching the egg. The Essure procedure is 99.95% effective based on one year of follow up with zero pregnancies reported in clinical trials, making it the most effective form of permanent birth control on the market. The procedure is covered by most insurance plans, and when it is performed in a doctor's office the cost to the patient may be as low as a simple co-pay. Three months after the Essure procedure, a doctor is able to perform an Essure Confirmation Test to confirm that the inserts are properly placed and the fallopian tubes are fully blocked, giving the patient reliance on Essure for permanent birth control. Essure has been proven and trusted by physicians since 2002, with nearly 500,000 women worldwide having undergone the Essure procedure.