Medtronic launches Beacon HF monitoring service

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) said today it launched its Beacon heart failure management service in the U.S., designed to monitor data from cardiac pacing devices to improve early interventions before heart failure events.

The service, which integrates data from the company’s implantable cardioverter defibrillator and cardiac resynchronization therapy devices, will allow patients to engage in daily health checks to both educate patients about conditions and to collect symptoms and biometrics.

“Beacon is a significant advance in our heart failure management arsenal. With its combination of valuable device diagnostics, day-to-day patient status and symptoms, and expert oversight of a trained care manager, Beacon allows clinicians to better identify, evaluate, and potentially intervene with their high-risk heart failure patients,” Dr. Jawwad Yusuf of The Stern Cardiovascular Foundation said in a prepared statement.

Care managers from Fridley, Minn.-based Medtronic will evaluate incoming data and monitor for increasing risks of heart failure to alert providers appropriately, and will provide monthly reports to physicians summarizing the patient’s health information.

“Healthcare systems are under increasing pressure to improve patient care while also driving down associated cost. MCMS is committed to helping our customers deliver better patient outcomes while addressing these challenges. Our technologies – and the data and insights they generate – put us in a unique position to help our customers enhance their patient care. With its combination of implanted device diagnostics, daily monitoring, and qualified expertise, Beacon is just one way Medtronic is innovating to provide clinically-meaningful services to hospitals, physicians, patients, and payers,” Medtronic care management services GM Sheri Dodd

Yesterday, Medtronic said it agreed to put up $1.1 billion for implantable cardiac pump maker HeartWare International(NSDQ:HTWR).

The $58-per-share deal, which represents a 93.4% premium over HeartWare’s $29.98 closing price June 24, is slated to close by Oct. 28 (the end of Medtronic’s fiscal 2nd quarter). HeartWare’s 30-day closing average as of June 24 was $30.20 per share.

The deal clears the field of the 2 major cardiac assist device makers, after Medtronic’s cross-town rival, St. Jude Medical (NYSE:STJ), paid $3 billion for Thoratec in October 2015.

HeartWare’s implantable left ventricular assist devices are designed for end-stage heart failure patients, either as a destination therapy until death or as a bridge to heart transplantation.

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