Some rivals of Edwards Lifesciences Corp. are in the market for startups that could help them cut into the Irvine-based company’s lead in the race for the market for heart valves that don’t require major surgery for implantation.
The segment could be worth as much as $2 billion, according to a recent Bloomberg article.
Bloomberg reported that New Brunswick, N.J.-based Johnson & Johnson and Abbott Laboratories of the Chicago area are seeking to catch up with Edwards’ Sapien, a less-invasive replacement heart valve.
Sapien is in a clinical trial with an eye toward possible Food and Drug Administration approval late next year. Edwards sells Sapien in Europe and has projected sales of $200 million for 2010.
Edwards’ success with Sapien “tilts the probability of earlier stage merger and acquisition transactions” among competitors, Jed Cohen, a managing director with Boston-based investment bank Leerink Swann LLC, told Bloomberg.
In looking for deals, Abbott and J&J are likely to target smaller, more efficient valve technologies to help them overcome Edwards’ head start, according to the report.
“All the big corporations that are not in this space, and even some that have their own internal programs” want to buy less-invasive heart valve makers, said Antoine Papiernik, a managing partner with French venture capital firm Sofinnova Partners.
Sofinnova was an investor in Irvine startup CoreValve Inc., which was bought in 2009 by Minnesota device maker Medtronic Inc. for $700 million.
Both J&J and Abbott have cash to make potential deals—J&J had $14.4 billion in cash and equivalents as of September, while Abbott had $3.8 billion in cash.
Abbott and J&J declined to comment on potential deals.
As for what companies could be on the block, none in Orange County were listed as likely by Bloomberg. The report mentioned heart valve developers such as Direct Flow Medical Inc. of Santa Rosa and Los Gatos-based Sadra Medical Inc.
The article also gave some analysts’ views on Edwards and Sapien. Analyst Michael Weinstein of JPMorgan Securities said in a September client note that Edwards might seek U.S. marketing approval for Sapien by late next year.
Medicare Comparison Website
HealthCompare Insurance Services Inc., part of Orange-based Word & Brown Cos., has launched Joppel, a website that’s designed to help seniors evaluate, compare and enroll with private health insurers that offer Medicare Advantage coverage.
The site also provides information on Medigap plans, which cover things that traditional Medicare does not, and Part D drug plans. It allows users to invite up to three other people to review plan information with them.
Joppel grew from “a vision of mine to be able to give Medicare-eligible people who have a significant passion for a way to make informed decisions about healthcare,” said Kathy Feeny, senior vice president for Joppel and HealthCompare.
Feeny is a longtime player in the senior health scene—she formerly worked for Cypress-based PacifiCare Health Systems Inc., now part of UnitedHealth Group Inc. She ran the Secure Horizons Medicare HMO for PacifiCare.
Joppel is free to its users and the plans that are listed on it. It’s considered to be what’s called an “e-broker” and receives commissions from sales of Medicare policies, Feeny said.
The site was the result of three years of research, development and feedback from consumers and advocates associated with healthcare, online commerce and Internet security, Feeny said.
The site comes as about 47 million Americans are selecting their 2011 Medicare coverage during the federal plan’s annual election period.
Feeny and four others established Joppel three years ago. Joppel was looking to get funding to run as an independent company before Word & Brown acquired it about a year ago.
Locals Give for Center
Orange-based hospital operator St. Joseph Health System has joined with the OC office of St. Louis-based healthcare builder McCarthy Building Cos. and Newport Beach architectural firm Taylor on a community center and park for Santa Ana nonprofit Latino Health Access.
Latino Health Access’ community center and park is set to be done in December 2011. The group and its partners plan to offer nutrition, exercise, parenting and other health-related classes.
Ana Carricchi, Latino Health Access’ director of public policy, said in a release that donations from a team of medical professionals, architects, engineers and landscape designers to build the project have been worth several hundred thousand dollars to a project that’s estimated to cost about $4 million to build and operate.
Bits and Pieces
Lawrence Mastrovich, former president and chief operating officer of Lake Forest-based Apria Healthcare Group Inc., is the new chief executive of San Ramon-based Breathe Technologies Inc., a medical device maker … InSight Health Services Holdings Corp., a Lake Forest medical imaging provider, said it bought an imaging center in Roanoke, Va., for an undisclosed purchase price. InSight said the deal brought its presence in Virginia to four locations … Auxilio Inc., a Mission Viejo company that helps healthcare providers reduce their dependence on paper documents, said it expanded a contract it had with California Pacific Medical Center in the Bay Area to add three hospitals.
