J&J To Ramp Up Medical Device Filings, Focus On Emerging Markets
By Jof Enriquez,
Follow me on Twitter @jofenriq
In order to solidify its global healthcare leadership status, Johnson & Johnson (J&J) plans to introduce a slew of medical devices and focus on emerging markets, the company recently announced.
According to a recent statement, J&J will file over 30 major products through its medical devices and diagnostics (MD&D) business by the end of 2016.
“Our businesses are uniquely positioned to continue helping patients while also leading the industry by capitalizing on our breadth, depth and scale,” Dominic J. Caruso, VP, finance officer, and CFO for J&J, said in the statement. “We are developing innovative products and working with health care systems on customer-focused solutions to ultimately improve outcomes for patients.”
In the statement, J&J described its MD&D business as the largest in the world, with $28.5 billion in total sales for 2013. The company also said that it spent $1.8 billion on research and development for its MD&D unit in 2013.
The company also stated that it is well-positioned to maintain leadership in the evolving landscape of healthcare worldwide, especially in emerging markets —countries like China and Russia — where the medical device market is increasing three to four times faster than in developed markets.
In regards to the emerging market in China, Caruso said, “Building on our 28 year history in China, we are capitalizing on our established footprint to grow and expand our overall business,” according to the press release.
“More and more we realize the importance of becoming a local player [in China],” Michel Orsinger, chairman of J&J’s global orthopedics group, said in an interview with Bloomberg. “The Chinese market is about one-third composed of imported products and two-thirds driven by local products. Both markets are growing fast, but the local market is growing faster.”
In its statement, J&J said that DePuy Synthes, the orthopedic unit within J&J’s MD&D business, was recently granted Chinese government approval to produce and market trauma products from its Suzhou plant, further establishing J&J’s “local-supplier model” in China and enabling access to new markets and reimbursement opportunities.
The company’s diabetes solutions unit, which is the market leader in China, also recently inked an exclusive contract with Nova Biomedical Corporation to market StatStrip blood glucose testing systems to hospitals in China, home to a quarter of all diabetics in the world, according to the statement.
“China is important to every medical-device company given the number of people and the size of the market opportunity,” Glenn Novarro, an analyst with RBC Capital Markets in New York, said in an interview with Bloomberg. “J&J is one of the early investors in China and its paying off. They are ahead of the curve.”