Medtronic and DaVita have together announced their intent to form a new, independent kidney care-focused medical device company in an effort to enhance the patient treatment experience and improve overall outcomes.
According to a joint press release, the new company will be uniquely positioned to advance the development of differentiated therapies for patients with kidney failure and will focus on developing a broad suite of novel kidney care products and solutions, including future home-based products, to make different dialysis treatments more accessible to patients.
“This is an exciting moment that will shape the future of kidney care,” said Ven Manda, president of Medtronic’s renal care products business and the new company’s CEO upon close. “Our singular focus on end-to-end kidney health solutions will position this new company to make a measurable difference in the lives of more than three million patients with kidney failure globally—a figure expected to double over the next decade.”
DaVita CEO, Javier Rodriguez, added: “We’re excited to collaborate with Medtronic and share our deep insight into patient and physician needs with the goal of accelerating the development and commercialisation of scalable kidney care technologies. DaVita is committed to best-in-class solutions that improve outcomes, access and the quality of life of our patients, and this is another way to provide more options to the market.”
The new company will be co-owned by Medtronic and DaVita, each with equal equity stakes, and led by an independent management team. Medtronic will contribute its renal care solutions business including the current product portfolio (renal access, acute therapies, and chronic therapies), product pipeline, and global manufacturing research and development teams and facilities.
No other Medtronic products or portfolios, including those in the AV access portfolio in the peripheral vascular health business, are included in this agreement. Both companies will provide an initial investment to fund the new company and future certain operating capital.
The new company will be renamed and rebranded at close, and will operate as an independent company governed by a six-person board of directors composed of two directors each from Medtronic and DaVita, and two independent directors.
According to the press release, the transaction is expected to close in the next calendar year, subject to the completion of the information and consultation obligations with employee representative groups under applicable laws and receipt of customary regulatory approvals and satisfaction of customary closing conditions.
