Two Minnesota medtech contract manufacturers are taking a hard look at producing ventilators, including one from the plans that Medtronic made public last week to address the coronavirus outbreak. Maple Grove-based Nortech Systems (NSDQ:NSYS) told Medical Design & Outsourcing it is seriously considering starting to produce the machines based on the design specifications of Medtronic’s Puritan Bennett 560 (PB 560) […]
Respiratory
Materialise touts 3D printed oxygen mask that could free up ventilators
Materialise announced today that it developed a 3D printed device to convert standard hospital equipment into a mask to facilitate breathing for patients by creating positive pressure in the lungs.The Leuven, Belgium-based company’s Materialise NIP Connector is designed to give clinicians the ability to reduce the time that patients need access to ventilators, relieving the strain […]
Getinge to expand ventilator production
Getinge (STO:GETI-B) Getinge announced today that it is more than doubling its production capacity for intensive care unit ventilator machines amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The Gothenburg, Sweden-based company said in a news release that it produced 10,000 ventilators in 2019 and is set to increase that number to 26,000 (160% increase) in 2020. Getinge had already […]
Honeywell expanding Phoenix operations, adding 500 jobs to make N95 masks
Honeywell (NYSE:HON) is adding an N95 respirator mask production line at its Phoenix aerospace plant to further boost its production of the masks — needed in the war against COVID-19. Arizona will get 500 new jobs from the manufacturing expansion. The news comes on top of Honeywell’s recent announcement that it is expanding operations at its […]
Elon Musk criticized for donating sleep apnea ventilators
Tesla co-founder & CEO Elon Musk is receiving criticism after the more than 1,000 ventilators he donated for COVID-19 relief were reportedly not the specific kind for use in intensive care units. According to a report in the Financial Times, among the 1,255 donated FDA-approved ventilators from ResMed (NYSE:RMD), Philips (NYSE:PHG) and Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) that were part […]
How 3D printing is enabling ventilator splitting
Amid the shortage of ventilators due to the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers are finding success using 3D printing to enable “ventilator splitting.” The search continues to go on for more machines, but there have already been government actions taken to increase amounts, while researchers have taken it into their own hands to create homemade-style ventilators. However, there could […]
Europe waives tariffs, import taxes on COVID-19 medtech
The European Commission has decided to waive tariffs and value-added taxes (VAT) on certain medical devices and personal protective equipment (PPE) coming from outside the EU during the coronavirus pandemic. The measure includes testing kits, ventilators and other medical equipment and will remain in force for six months, the commission said today. Get the full […]
Smith+Nephew to build ventilators with UK government
Smith & Nephew (NYSE:SNN) announced today that it has landed a contract with the UK government to build OxVent ventilators amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The London-based company’s OxVent system is currently under review by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Authority (MHRA), making the contracted order subject to the device receiving authorization from the governing body. […]
Trump uses DPA to boost supplies to certain ventilator manufacturers
President Donald Trump yesterday invoked the Defense Production Act to reduce supply-chain problems for certain manufacturers to produce ventilators. In the executive order, the president gave the secretaries of the departments of Health & Human Services and Homeland Security the power to secure materials for General Electric (NYSE:GE), Hillrom (NYSE:HRC) , Medtronic (NYSE:MDT), ResMed (NYSE:RMD), Philips (NYSE:PHG) and Vyaire Medical. Ventilator […]
FDA eases mask regulations, seeks to boost decontamination of used masks
The FDA yesterday further relaxed regulations on medical and surgical masks and face shields to ease shortages during the coronavirus pandemic, and invited companies that decontaminate masks to submit proposals for emergency authorizations. In a new guidance, the agency also gave its blessing to healthcare providers to use improvised masks during the public health emergency […]
U.S. government distributes 192,000 N95 respirator masks taken from price gougers
The U.S. Departement of Justice and Department of Health and Human Services are taking 192,000 N95 respirator masks confiscated from price gougers and distributing them in New York and New Jersey — which are especially hard-hit by the coronavirus pandemic. HHS used its authority under the Defense Production Act to distributing the confiscated supplies, which […]