Minnesotan To Meet: Jason Lawinger's 'NefCase'

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Millions of Americans have food allergies and for many parents, it's not until it's too late when they realize their child has a food allergy.

That's exactly what happened to father of two Jason Lawinger. After he learned his son Zac was allergic to tree nuts, the medical device engineer wanted to make sure the EpiPen was safe and secure out of his son's reach.

Like many Minnesotans, the Lawinger family spends their summers up at the family cabin.

"I was up there having some cashews, and using the classic cabin napkin, wiping it on my shirt," Lawinger said.

That's when an afternoon snack at the lake turned into quite the scare for father of two.

"We were wrestling around having a really good time, when he got done, he looks up at me," said Jason describing what his son's face looked like after being exposed to cashews. "His face was all red, but we got him some Benadryl and he was fine after that."

After the doctor's visit he learned he and his wife would need to have an EpiPen on standby. During his son's doctor visit, Zac got his hands on the replica pen.

"Zach saw that and it's kind of a colorful trainer, he (the doctor) handed it over to Zac. Then Zac bites off the cap and now he's running around with what would be a live EpiPen," Lawinger said.

Lawinger , who's a full-time medical device engineer with more than a decade of experience, decided to do something about it and make something that made carrying the EpiPen easy for parents.

"I couldn't find anything that would be robust, strong and waterproof and kid-proof at the same time," Lawinger said. "That's where the idea of the push-down and turn cap came from."

So, with a 3-D printer at home, this dad got to work. The result: NefCase, the first intuitive child-resistant container for EpiPens and insulin pens on the market.

"Nef is from epinephrine, and case as in protecting the Epipen," Lawinger said, referring to a phone case.

Lawinger is hoping NefCase will be a helpful for parents just like him. It took Jason about a year from start to finish design and launch the product.

The product just launched in March.

According to the FDA, there are 30,000 emergency visits every year as a result of allergic reactions to food and 150 of those are deadly.