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Medicare Administrator Issues Positive Coverage Determination for Cypress Bioscience's Avise PG(SM) Testing Service

Cypress Bioscience, Inc. (NASDAQ: CYPB) announced today that Palmetto GBA, administrator for Medicare Part B in California, has issued a positive coverage determination for the company's Avise PG testing service. Avise PG is a test which aids doctors in therapy decisions regarding methotrexate, one of the most widely prescribed drugs for rheumatoid arthritis.

"This decision to include Avise PG in the Medicare reimbursement guidelines was based upon a demonstration of the clinical validity and utility of the test, providing physicians with insight into their patient's metabolism of methotrexate," said Mike Gendreau, Chief Medical Officer at Cypress. Over 10,000 Avise PG tests have been conducted since the launch of the testing service at the American College of Rheumatology meeting in late 2008.

This marks a major milestone in the establishment of third-party payer coverage for the company's flagship laboratory service. Cypress also offers Avise MCV, a sensitive and specific marker used in the diagnosis and prognosis of rheumatoid arthritis and is at an advanced stage with a novel testing service to aid in the diagnosis of systemic lupus erythematosus.

About Avise PG
AVISE PG is the first and only testing service to measure methotrexate (MTX) polyglutamates, the active metabolites of MTX. Avise PG can help a doctor determine whether partial or non-responders to MTX may benefit from continued dose escalation or may need a change in therapy. All Avise PG tests are performed in Cypress' CLIA-certified, CAP-accredited laboratory. Avise PG has been approved by state agencies in New York and California.

About Cypress Bioscience
Cypress Bioscience, Inc. provides therapeutics and personalized medicine services, facilitating improved and individualized patient care. Cypress addresses the evolving needs of specialist physicians and their patients by identifying unmet medical needs in the areas of pain, rheumatology, and physical medicine and rehabilitation, including challenging disorders such as fibromyalgia and rheumatoid arthritis. This approach to improving patient care creates a unique partnership with physicians. Current products include Savella® (milnacipran HCI) and the Avise PG(SM) and Avise MCV(SM) therapeutic monitoring, diagnostic and prognostic tests for rheumatoid arthritis.

For more information about Avise PG and Avise MCV, please visit our website at www.avisetest.com. For more information about Cypress Bioscience, please visit our website at www.cypressbio.com.

This press release, as well as Cypress' SEC filings and website at http://www.cypressbio.com, contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements include statements related to Medicare reimbursement and other third party payer coverage for Cypress' personalized medicine testing services, our personalized medicine services and the ability of our products and services to meet the needs of physicians and patients, and our ability to finalize the development and launch another testing service to aid in the diagnosis of systemic lupus erthythematosus. Actual results could vary materially from those described as a result of a number of factors, including the risks involved with Cypress' ability to successfully market its services, marketing strategy, risks around market acceptance of our personalized medicine services and whether they will facilitate improved diagnostic, prognostic and therapeutic decision making for physicians and patients, risks around the change in treatment guidelines for rheumatoid arthritis, risks around reimbursement and the pricing for such reimbursement for our services in light of the changing healthcare reimbursement landscape, risks involved with the development and commercialization of Cypress' product candidates and personalized medicine services, and other risks and uncertainties described in Cypress' most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and any subsequent SEC filings. You are urged to consider statements that include the words "may," "will," "would," "could," "should," "believes," "potential," "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "intends," or the negative of those words or other comparable words to be uncertain and forward-looking. The statements in this press release speak only as the date hereof, and Cypress undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.