antitrust Archives - Medical Design Sourcing

FTC reportedly may scrutinize Boston Scientific’s Axonics deal

Bloomberg reports that the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) may look into the $3.7 billion acquisition of Axonics (Nasdaq:AXNX) by Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) + .

In January, Boston Scientific announced its plans to buy Axonics and its neuromodulation and hydrogel technologies. The companies said at the time that they expected the deal to close in the first half of this year.

Irvine, California-based Axonics develops neuromodulation systems for treating urinary and bowel dysfunction. The technology delivers mild electrical pulses to the sacral nerve, restoring communication between the brain and the bladder. The company also offers the Bulkamid urethral bulking agent for stress urinary incontinence symptoms.

According to the report, the scrutiny may arrive due to the companies’ shares of the urinary incontinence market. Bloomberg Intelligence Analyst Jennifer Rie claimed in the report that Boston Scien…

FTC critiques Medtronic’s legal reasoning in antitrust case

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission wants to have a say in Applied Medical Resources’ antitrust lawsuit against Medtronic.

Rancho Santa Margarita, California–based Applied Medical filed the lawsuit in February in U.S. District Court in Central California.

The lawsuit accuses the medtech giant of using its size to shut down competition in the U.S. market for advanced bipolar devices used to cut tissue and seal blood vessels. Medtronic responded with a motion to dismiss.

This week, the FTC sought permission from the court to file an amicus brief that would “correct some of Medtronic’s erroneous assertions and mistaken legal points” made in its argument for dismissal.

Medtronic’s legal arguments run against U.S. Supreme Court precedent that anticompetitiveness should not be judged according to a business arrangement’s formal terms but on its its “practical effects,” the FTC said in the brief it wants to submit.

What Applied …

Medtronic must sell Intersect ENT subsidiary to satisfy FTC concerns

The Federal Trade Commission has issued a proposed order to require Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) to sell a subsidiary of Intersect ENT within 10 days of completing its $1.1 billion acquisition of Intersect ENT.

The commission announced May 10 that it voted 4-0 to issue its complaint and accept the proposed consent order for public comment.

Under the consent order, Hemostasis (White Bear Lake, Minnesota) would acquire Intersect ENT’s Fiagon business from Medtronic. Fiagon makes balloon sinus dilation products and ear, nose and throat navigation systems.

“Today’s action by the FTC is part of our efforts to combat the problem of rising healthcare costs,” Holly Vedova, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Competition, said in a news release.

“These are already concentrated markets for critical medical instruments,” she said. “Medtronic is the top provider of ear, nose, and throat navigation systems. We are requiring Medtronic to divest Fiag…