OFFICIAL RELEASE

Ash Access Technology, Inc. Awarded a $2 Million Grant from the Indiana 21st Century Research and Technology Fund

Fund Director Cites Company's Cutting Edge Biomedical Therapy and the Experienced Team as Key Criteria for Selection

Wednesday, July 5, 2006 8:47 AM EST - - - (Lafayette, Indiana) - Ash Access Technology, Inc., a privately-held biomedical and medical device firm, announced today that it has been awarded a two million dollar grant from the Indiana 21st Century Research and Technology Fund. The funds are earmarked to support the Phase III clinical trial of the company's novel antimicrobial/antithrombotic therapy, designed to combat deadly catheter-related bloodstream infections (CRBSI). The clinical trial is a randomized, multi-center trial being conducted in conjunction with DaVita Clinical Research in patients undergoing hemodialysis with long-term catheters, which are a major source of CRBSI.

According to Mr. Bruce Kidd, Director, Small Business and Entrepreneurship with the Indiana Economic Development Corporation, "Of all the criteria we look at when determining a worthy company for this Fund, we recognize Ash Access as an "A" type of company that is truly cutting edge and that hits high for all our markers. The Company was a natural standout.

"One of the first markers we look for in a fund applicant, is if its product can solve "pain" in the marketplace," continued Mr. Kidd, "and Ash Access' new therapy fills that criteria, quite literally, by addressing the growing problem of antibiotic-resistant bloodstream infections in hospitals across America and around the world. That product, by our criteria, has to be close to going to market, to be considered, and with the company just entering the final clinical trial, we concluded that Ash Access could benefit from funds to help them reach commercialization.

"Another marker we weight heavily is the quality of the team," said Kidd. "Once again, Ash Access has a highly experienced team in Dr Stephen Ash and Bob Truitt, with a significant history of success in commercializing biomedical devices and products. We also look at validation the company has received outside of State funds, and found the company strong, once again. Ash Access Technology has received significant support from the U.S. federal government (in the form of a multi-million dollar SBIR grant to conduct this trial), as well as substantial validation from knowledgeable investors, such as a private fund managed by Bear Stearns and angel investors in Indiana and around the Midwest. Ash Access Technology is truly indicative of the kind of companies in which we are trying to invest with the 21st Century Fund."

The news was significant to the executives of Ash Access Technology. According to Mr. Bob Truitt, CEO of Ash Access Technology, Inc., "We are humbled to have been recognized in such a substantial way by people so in touch with other dynamic businesses around the State of Indiana. We hope we can continue to add jobs and fuel economic growth in the State, as we have begun to do," said Truitt. "We are also grateful to be able to use the grant to help fund our pivotal clinical trial, and continue on our path towards commercialization. We feel strongly that this therapy will meet a significant unmet medical need by preventing and combating deadly bloodstream infections, (without the drawbacks of antibiotics), and ultimately save many lives."

The product entering the clinical trial is an antimicrobial/antithrombotic formula, which has experienced significant laboratory success in killing freely suspended organisms (planktonic) and in preventing biofilm. Microbial biofilm develops when microorganisms irreversibly adhere to catheter surfaces and produce extracellular polymers that facilitate adhesion and provide a structural matrix for growth. Biofilm-associated microorganisms behave differently from planktonic (freely suspended) organisms, with respect to growth rates and ability to resist antimicrobial treatments such as antibiotics, and are known to play a major role in CRBSI. When biofilm ruptures, microorganisms flow into the bloodstream causing systemic infection that can lead to death.

Ash Access Technology, Inc. is a privately-held company founded to develop antimicrobial and vascular access technologies, devices and methodologies to combat the deadly and expensive problem of catheter-related bloodstream infections, with an emphasis on prevention. Dr. Stephen A. Ash, Chairman and Director, Research and Development, is a practicing Nephrologist with the Arnett Clinic in Lafayette, Indiana, and is a world-recognized researcher and patent holder in extracorporeal devices, sorbent chemistry, and vascular and peritoneal access devices. Ash Access Technology is located in Lafayette, Indiana in the INOK Business Center.

This press release contains forward-looking statements, which if not based on historical facts, involve risks and uncertainties. Our actual results may differ materially from the results or events stated in the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, certain events not within the Company's control.