May.15.2014
An Orrick team's pro bono assistance to The Implantable Insulin Pump Foundation in obtaining tax-exempt status will "make a remarkably positive difference in the lives of millions of diabetics," according to the foundation's Executive Director Greg Peterson. The Orrick team incorporated the not-for-profit corporation and also secured federal and state tax-exempt status for the organization.
Type 1 diabetics must take insulin—virtually all are dependent on insulin delivered subcutaneously, which, while life-saving, is far from ideal. With 1 to 3 million Type 1 diabetics in the United States (and the rate of diagnosis increasing by 3% annually), there is a clear need for a better treatment.The Implantable Insulin Pump Foundation seeks to support informational, educational and research activities that will help develop and make technology more widely available for implantable insulin pumps that deliver insulin in a significantly more effective manner.
Greg Peterson, the founder, reached out to Dan Yost in 2011 to ask if Orrick would take on his foundation as a pro bono client. Dan and Rene Kathawala introduced Greg to Kim Loocke, Michael Paratore and Karen Dempsey, who helped Greg overcome many hurdles over the past three years. The Implantable Insulin Pump Foundation finally received its 501(c)(3) exemption status from the IRS last month.
"There is an immense amount of data, personal experience (of patients and their physicians), physiological theory and peer-reviewed medical research that supports not only the efficacy of but also the superiority of peritoneal insulin delivery," said Greg. "Perhaps the most important result of this technology is that the few hundreds of Type 1 Diabetics who have had the good luck to experience it uniformly say, 'At times I almost forget that I am diabetic,' and 'Is this what it is like to feel normal?'"
"Thank you for your expert and generous pro bono assistance in making it possible for The Implantable Insulin Pump Foundation to begin to plan a role in making this technology available."
- Greg Peterson