Reprocessors unite amid rising scrutiny
This article was originally published in The Gray Sheet
Executive Summary
Alliance Medical and Vanguard Medical Concepts, two of the three major U.S. device reprocessors, officially merged Dec. 19. The combined entities will improve product offerings and increase client savings, the companies say (1"The Gray Sheet" Aug. 22, 2005, p. 12). However, government scrutiny of the industry has increased since the deal was proposed in August. In separate letters dated Dec. 16, House Government Reform Committee Chairman Tom Davis (R-VA) and Ranking Member Henry Waxman (D-CA) asked the Government Accountability Office to investigate the industry and gave FDA a Jan. 3 deadline to provide detailed information about the regulation of reprocessed devices. The congressmen were reacting to a Dec. 11-12 series in The Washington Post questioning the safety of reprocessed single-use devices (2"The Gray Sheet" Dec. 19, 2005, In Brief)...