Patent ID: 8777973

Claim:
An apparatus, comprising: a body assembly, having a proximal portion, a distal portion, and an orifice disposed at the distal portion; a guide member having a distal end and a proximal end, wherein a receptacle is located at the distal end of the guide member and the proximal end of the guide member is capable of being positioned at a first armed position, and a second position which is further in a proximal direction from the first armed position, the guide member being disposed in the body assembly for guiding a lancet received in the receptacle; a cap connected to the body assembly and detachable therefrom, wherein removal of the cap is required to permit the proximal end of the guide member to be retracted further in the proximal direction than the first armed position and into the second position; and an ejection mechanism, disposed in the body assembly, and contacting the lancet to prevent retraction of the lancet relative to the body assembly when the proximal end of the guide member is being retracted to the second position, thereby ejecting the lancet from the receptacle at the distal end of the guide member through the orifice disposed at the distal portion of the body assembly.