In what can only be bad news for high-powered German car driving orthopedic surgeons, a handful of orthopedic implant companies have been subpoenaed. Biomet, Stryker, Zimmer and DePuy (a Johnson and Johnson subsidiary) have been served search warrants, and have little to say to the press…
Biomet said: “It is the company’s belief that similar inquiries have been directed to other companies in the orthopedics industry.” Officials at the other two companies declined to comment. A Justice Department spokeswoman confirmed that the agency’s antitrust division was “investigating the possibility of anti-competitive conduct in the implant device industry.” She declined further comment.
This comes in the wake of previous investigations into the industry:
An earlier industry investigation started 15 months ago involved agreements between orthopedics companies and physicians. Lehman Brothers analyst Bob Hopkins said in a research note that the original investigation may have escalated. “There is a possibility that this is a completely separate investigation, but it is likely that the two are related,” Hopkins wrote. “Either way the involvement of the antitrust division and the wording of the subpoena suggest a serious investigation that may be ongoing for some time.” Jan Wald, a healthcare analyst with A.G. Edwards & Sons, said he didn’t know the root of the investigation but thought it could relate to whether scientific studies the companies presented at medical conferences really amounted to marketing.
Wait, you’re saying a single bone screw might not actually be worth $800? Nonsense. When you’re in a phenomenally profitable industry offering (relatively) basic devices, that makes you a ripe target for investigation. To be fair, the money to be made in the industry drives a fair amount of innovation and product diversity. Unfortunately, with so many devices on the market, there’s not enough independent money to fund testing them all. As such, we have many a published/presented study funded entirely by that device’s manufacturer.
More from the original AP release…
