Layoffs in medtech: These companies recently reduced their workforce

[Image courtesy of Nastuh Abootalebi on Unsplash] The workforce reduction trend has swept the economy recently, and unfortunately, the medtech space is not immune to layoffs.

You’ve probably read about the ongoing layoffs sweeping the tech industry, media and more.

For instance, Yahoo, Disney, Zoom and more all reported workforce reductions as companies across industries grapple with economic pressures. Think inflation, supply chain challenges and more.

Medtech has shown some resilience in the present environment. Some major medical device companies released positive earnings.  However, others announced headcount reductions, citing macroeconomic headwinds. Others felt the weight of regulatory issues and restructuring efforts.

Here are a few companies across medtech that enacted layoffs over the past several months.

3M

In 3M’s fourth-quarter earnings report, the company announced that it plans to reduce its global manufacturing workforc…

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3M faces more hurdles over earplug lawsuits strategy

Lawyers representing present and former U.S. military members want a U.S. bankruptcy judge to dismiss 3M subsidiary Aearo Technologies’ Chapter 11 filing.

The tort claimants committee filed a motion to dismiss in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Southern Indiana on Feb. 3. They’ve long claimed that having Aearo file for bankruptcy was a strategy to deny the present and former servicemembers the relief they seek from hearing loss caused by allegedly defective earplugs. 3M potentially faces billions of dollars in losses from the more than 230,000 lawsuits.

Now the lawyers filing the lawsuits want Aearo’s bankruptcy case dismissed.

A ‘Texas two-step’ like J&J’s case?

Their dismissal motion came just days after Johnson & Johnson lost an appeal over an arguably similar “Texas two-step” type of strategy in which a spun-out LLC called LTL Management had filed for Chapter 11. In J&J’s case, the company fa…

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3M has a new medical adhesive that lasts for up to 28 days

[Shutterstock stock art courtesy of 3M]

3M (NYSE:MMM) today announced the launch of a medical adhesive that can stick to the skin for up to 28 days.

The news comes less than a year after 3M launched a 21-day adhesive skin tape. Prior to 2022, the standard medical adhesive wear time was up to 14 days, according to the Maplewood, Minnesota–based manufacturing giant.

The new 3M Medical Tape 4578 can provide longer wear time for a wide array of health monitors, sensors, and long-term medical wearables. Think glucose and heart monitors — and much more.

“Our 3M scientists created a technology and then pushed that tech to its boundaries without compromising skin health,” Chad Reed, director of global business for 3M Medical Materials and Technologies, said in a news release. “Medical wearables are a cornerstone for the future of health care, and we’re committed to unlocking its po…

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Johnson & Johnson, 3M stocks down on ‘Texas two-step’ decision

[Image from Unsplash]Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) stock dropped more than 3% in value today after a federal appeals court rejected its complex legal maneuver to shield itself from liability in talc-related lawsuits.

3M (NYSE: MMM) — which has also been seeking to do a “Texas two-step” to shield itself from liability in military earplug lawsuits — was down more than 2%. (MassDevice‘s MedTech 100 Index, which includes stocks of the world’s largest medical device companies, was up more than 9%.)

Critics alleged that J&J seeks to shield itself from billions of dollars worth of lawsuit payouts involving people who claim J&J’s talc-based baby powder caused them to develop cancer.

A New Yorker expose last year detailed how J&J created a new LLC called LTL Management and then moved the talc liability over to LTL. The new LLC then filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Calling the bankruptcy a “shell game,” plaintiffs in …

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3M announces mixed Q4 results, will reduce manufacturing workforce by 2,500

3M (NYSE:MMM) today announced fourth-quarter financial results that missed the consensus earnings per share (EPS) forecast.

The company also announced that it plans to reduce its global manufacturing workforce by 2,500. 3M Chair and CEO Mike Roman attributed the decision to a need to align with adjusted production volumes.

MMM shares dipped 4.5% at $117.11 apiece before the market opened this morning. They dropped even further after the market opened, falling 5.7% at $115.63 apiece. MassDevice‘s MedTech 100 Index, which includes stocks of the world’s largest medical companies, was up more than 9%.

The St. Paul, Minnesota–based company posted profits of $541 million. That amounts to 98¢ per share on sales of $8.08 billion for the three months ended Dec. 31, 2022.

3M posted a 59.6% bottom-line slide on a sales decline of 6.2%.

Adjusted to exclude one-time items, earnings per share came in at $2.28. That fell 8¢ short of Wall Stree…

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3M Oral Care launches custom matrix for restorative procedures

3M Oral Care today launched its Filtek Matrix restorative solution for composite placement.

Dental composites are used to restore or improve the esthetics of a patient’s smile, but the gold-standard process can be long and complicated, according to 3M. Filtek Matrix uses a digital restoration design to create a patient-specific matrix that helps clinicians transfer the digital design to the patient’s teeth using dental composites.

Filtek Matrix uses additive composite techniques that require little to no tooth reduction. In one clinical evaluation, 3M said dentists reported that using the matrix increased their confidence and delivered predictable and esthetic results while also saving chair time.

“This product brings together leading material science and digital innovation to enable clinicians to predictably and efficiently transform patient smiles,” global portfolio director of 3M Oral Care Andrew Milder said in a news release. …

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4 ways to usher in next-gen medical device design

[Photo courtesy of 3M]

The future of medical device design is in our hands. Here’s what it’ll take to get there.

Tony Kaufman, 3M

It’s an exciting and challenging time in medical device history. From tracking vital signs to enabling more informed conversations with health professionals, device users can take control of their health in new and powerful ways.

But the rapid acceleration and advancement of data is only just beginning. What lies ahead is a complex web of questions that one person, one team, one company alone can’t solve.

For example, how can we further prioritize user experience from the start of the device’s development? How can we keep pushing the bounds of wear time? What have we learned from COVID that we can bring forward?

To unlock continued innovation that improves lives, all of us from across the device development process must come toge…

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3M’s V.A.C. Therapy hits 2,000 medical journal studies mark

V.A.C. Therapy. [Image from 3M]3M (NYSE:MMM) Healthcare’s Medical Solutions Division announced the surpassing of 2,000 published studies for its V.A.C. Therapy.

Maplewood, Minnesota-based 3M’s V.A.C. delivers negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT). The company said it’s the only NPWT tech to hit the milestone of 2,000 published, peer-reviewed medical journal studies.

According to a news release, V.A.C. therapy accounts for more than 75% of published NPWT clinical evidence.

“Clinical evidence has always been a foundational element to establishing credibility for V.A.C. Therapy and our NPWT products in the wound care community,” said Dr. Ronald Silverman, M.D., 3M Health Care SVP of clinical affairs and CMO. “Published studies have also helped to promote adoption of NPWT and spur therapy innovations, including 3M Prevena therapy for incision management, 3M Veraflo therapy for instillation therapy for open wounds, 3M AbThera…

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3M launches Verify platform to spot counterfeit products

3M (NYSE:MMM) announced today that it established a new 3M Verify platform to report potential counterfeit 3M products.

The effort builds upon its anti-counterfeit efforts during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. At the time, a number of sellers claimed to offer 3M respirators. Instead, many offered fake, defective and damaged N95 masks at inflated prices.

St. Paul, Minnesota-based 3M worked closely with law enforcement and governments around the world to stop counterfeit 3M respirators and COVID-19-related fraud. According to a news release, the company seized more than 58 million counterfeit respirators. It removed tens of thousands of fraudulent e-commerce offerings and suing wrongdoers to stop misleading schemes targeting frontline workers.

3M said the platform expands its counterfeit reporting process to include all products made by the company. The platform can be found HERE. It offers resources and information to help customers, distributors, e…

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Report: 3M faces losses of $100B in earplug lawsuits

3M (NYSE:MMM) could reportedly see more than $100 billion in losses due to lawsuits regarding allegedly faulty earplugs.

Bloomberg reported earlier this week that a litigation consultant hired by lawyers suing 3M suggested that the losses and bankruptcy could come from suites from veterans who blame hearing problems on the company’s earplugs.

The report stated that initial results from test cases demonstrate that the losses could add up with more than 230,000 lawsuits related to the military earplugs potentially moving forward, according to testimony from J.B. Heaton — the plaintiff’s adviser — in bankruptcy court.

Heaton also alleged that it is “more and more likely” that bankruptcy could be on the horizon “within the next several years,” according to Bloomberg. The report also said that, following the company’s disputing of his testimony, Heaton conceded that a judge may not deem the $100 billion total as ̶…

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3M announces upgrades to wound therapy tech

A VAC Ulta therapy unit [Image from 3M]The 3M (NYSE:MMM) Health Care’s medical solutions business announced upgrades to advance the delivery of certain wound care technologies.

A new 3M Veraflo Cleans Choice Complete dressing kit and a software upgrade for the 3M VAC Ulta therapy unit were introduced at no increased cost to the customer.

3M said in a news release that the new offerings help to simplify the care delivery processes for clinicians using Veraflo negative pressure wound therapy with installation and help to make dressing changes easier, faster and less painful for patients when compared to previous Veraflo therapy dressings.

Veraflo therapy is used for patients with open soft issue wounds to help cleanse and stimulate the formation of granulation tissue. The company pointed to a recent publication — titled Effects of Negative-Pressure Wound Therapy with Instillation versus Standard of Care in Multiple Wound Types: Systematic Literature Rev…

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3M Health Care to become standalone company

3M (NYSE: MMM) announced today that it plans to spin off its Health Care business by the end of 2023.

The new Health Care business will be a roughly $9-billion-a-year company with a focus on wound care, oral care, healthcare IT and biopharma filtration. 3M officials argue that the transaction will better position Health Care to innovate. 3M will retain a 19.9% stake in Health Care that it will monetizedover time.

“Today’s actions advance our ability to create value for customers and shareholders,” 3M CEO Mike Roman said ina. news release. “Disciplined portfolio management is a hallmark of our growth strategy. Our management team and board continually evaluate the strategic options that will best drive long-term sustainable growth and value. The decision to spin off our Health Care business will result in two well-capitalized, world-class companies, well positioned to pursue their respective priorities.”

 

 

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