FRISCO, Texas, April 24, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Assured Pharmacy (APHY: OTC Markets), a leading specialty pharmacy group providing prescription medications to sufferers of chronic pain, released its 2013 shareholder letter.

Dear Shareholders,

Every day, prescription pain medications play a role in improving quality of life for the 75 million people who suffer from chronic pain in the US.  With the population aging, cancer incidence increasing and the number of surgeries performed growing, that number is expected to increase significantly in the coming years.

The growth of the pain-management market has created opportunities for patients, physicians and the healthcare industry alike, but it has also created challenges: according to the Centers for Disease Control, the illegal use and abuse of controlled medications is an epidemic in the United States.

With the global pain management market expected to reach $60 billion in 2015, the safe and efficient distribution of controlled substances will be crucial to maximizing benefits to patients and physicians, while minimizing the challenges and risks.  A pharmacy that specializes in the safe distribution of controlled medications with more than eight years of service to patients, physicians and major drug distributors, Assured Pharmacy is more committed than ever to being the leader in this field. 

In order to meet this objective, we are embarking on an aggressive new store-opening campaign for 2013, with the aim of creating a national footprint over the next three years. The low cost of a new store opening, coupled with increased demand for our services, sets the stage for a major expansion, with several near-term milestones on the horizon: 

1. We have already identified six locations for new stores.  Using our successful Kansas store opening as a model, we will enlist the support of physician groups prior to opening the new stores to ensure rapid growth and profitability from the start.
2. We currently have a backlog of patients waiting to begin using Assured that can double the patient base of our existing stores. We are actively raising additional equity capital to accelerate the intake of these new patients. 
3. We are creating strategic relationships with manufacturers to assist them with the distribution of their new products.
4. Enhancements to our compliance program will ensure our leadership in the safe distribution of controlled medications.
5. We expect to uplist to NASDAQ or AMEX.
6. Launch of a long-term investor relations effort will enhance shareholder awareness.

As a small public company we faced many challenges. Last year was no different. We struggled to raise the capital needed for growth. Despite our financial constraints we successfully opened our newest store in Kansas. The Kansas store has set the standard for all new stores and has quickly become our largest and most profitable store, as a result we have begun to adopt many of the model changes in our existing stores. We also expanded our sales target market to include all controlled substances and restructured our terms with our primary wholesaler to significantly improve our gross profit margins. In addition to the operating enhancements, we also uplisted to the OTCQB market, which has given us access to new shareholders and funding opportunities.

Looking back, Assured may have been a little early to the market as a pharmacy specializing in pain management, but we have taken advantage of that time to hone our expertise in the safe and efficient distribution of controlled substances resulting in an efficient, scalable pharmacy model that can be replicated throughout the United States.  As the pain management market continues to grow amid tighter regulation and rising concerns about abuse and misuse, Assured remains committed to meeting evermore stringent standards of safety, reliability and compliance — all while providing an exceptional level of service to customers, and value to our shareholders.    

Looking ahead, we are excited by the opportunities before us and are grateful to be in a position to capitalize on them, thanks to your support as our shareholders.  With an aggressive growth strategy in place and several milestones on the horizon, we look forward to rewarding your support in the year ahead.

Best Regards,

Robert DelVecchio

CEO
Assured Pharmacy, Inc.

About Assured Pharmacy, Inc.

Assured Pharmacy, Inc. is a growing provider of pharmacy services to patients and physicians in the treatment of chronic pain.  Through its network of pharmacies, the Company predominantly dispenses highly regulated pain mediations to sufferers of chronic pain, while stringently adhering to federal and state reporting requirements for both patients and physicians.  The majority of the Company's business is derived from repeat visits from its customer base of physician-referred chronic pain patients. The Company currently has four operating pharmacies which are wholly owned.

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Act of 1934.  These forward-looking statements are based largely on the expectations or forecasts of future events, can be affected by inaccurate assumptions, and are subject to various business risks and known and unknown uncertainties, a number of which are beyond the control of management.  Therefore, actual results could differ materially from the forward-looking statements contained in this press release.  A wide variety of factors that may cause actual results to differ from the forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the following: the Company's ability to increase revenue and profits in the current economic climate; the effect of changing economic conditions; lack of sufficient financing for opening new pharmacies; inability to manage growth; and changes in government regulations, controls and similar matters.  These cautionary statements should not be construed as exhaustive or as any admission as to the adequacy of the Company's disclosures.  The Company cannot predict or determine after the fact what factors would cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by the forward-looking statements or other statements.  The reader should consider statements that include the words "believes", "expects", "anticipates", "intends", "estimates", "plans", "projects", "should", or other expressions that are predictions of or indicate future events or trends, to be uncertain and forward-looking.  The Company does not undertake to publicly update or revise forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.  

SOURCE Assured Pharmacy, Inc.