Say hello to MassDevice +5, a bite-sized view of the top five medtech stories of the day. This feature of MassDevice.com’s coverage highlights our 5 biggest and most influential stories from the day’s news to make sure you’re up to date on the headlines that continue to shape the medical device industry.
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5. Senate panel slated to vote on HHS nominee Price
A U.S. Senate panel is slated to vote tomorrow on whether to approve the Trump administration’s nominee to head the Health & Humans Services Dept., Rep. Tom Price (R-Ga.).
Price, a physician who is chairman of the House budget committee and a member of the House Ways & Means panel, has drawn scrutiny for the timing of some of his investments. He bought shares in Zimmer Biomet just days before introducing a bill to delay a program designed to change the way large joint implants are paid for; after the vote, Zimmer Biomet’s political action committee donated to Price’s re-election campaign. Read more
4. Zimmer Biomet logs 3rd win in NexGen Flex bellwether trials
Zimmer Biomet last week won its 3rd bellwether trial in the multi-district litigation brought over the NexGen Flex knee implant, after a federal jury in Illinois found against the plaintiff.
The FDA in 2007 cleared the NexGen Flex implant, designed to provide more flexibility than other knee replacement devices. Beverly Goldin is 1 of thousands of product liability plaintiffs in the MDL who allege that the device can’t withstand that extra flexion, despite the Warsaw, Ind.-based company’s marketing claims. The plaintiffs also allege that a design flaw makes the device more prone to premature loosening requiring revision procedures. Read more
3. FDA approves Gore’s Viabahn stent graft for iliac artery lesions
W.L. Gore & Assoc. said today that it won FDA approval for its Viabahn stent graft for treating iliac artery lesions, including those found at the aortic bifurcation.
Flagstaff, Ariz.-based Gore said the approval means the device is the only balloon-expandable stent graft indicated for the iliac artery. Read more
2. Covidien spinout Mallinckrodt closes $690m sale of nuclear imaging biz
Covidien spinout Mallinckrodt plc said today that it closed the $690 million sale of its nuclear imaging business to IBA Molecular. Mallinckrodt’s nuclear imaging business includes 2 manufacturing facilities and more than 800 employees.
The $690 million deal, which was announced in August last year, consists of Mallinckrodt’s portfolio of diagnostic imaging products, including medical isotope molybdenum-99, the parent isotope to technetium 99m which is used in nearly 80% of all nuclear medicine procedures around the world. Read more
1. Pacemaker data lead to arson charges for Ohio man
Pacemaker data reportedly led to arson and fraud charges for an Ohio man accused of torching his home for the insurance money.
Ross Compton of Middletown, Ohio, faces felony counts of aggravated arson and insurance fraud for the Sept. 19 fire at his home, which allegedly caused about $400,000 in damages and destroyed the 2,000-square-foot house, according to news reports. Read more
