Weekly Vitals: 'Innovation' Wins Buzz Word of the Week, Medtronic CEO Painted as Savior of Devices, and MoreWeekly Vitals: 'Innovation' Wins Buzz Word of the Week, Medtronic CEO Painted as Savior of Devices, and More

September 10, 2011

1 Min Read
MDDI logo in a gray background | MDDI

While 'innovation' is a term that is used ad nauseum in the medical device industry (we're guilty at MPMN, too), it seemed to be unavoidable this week, plastered in seemingly every big headline. Among the top stories of the week was an article that examined the regulatory trials and tribulations of a handheld medical device designed for spotting melanoma. The regulatory woes of the device maker were used to illustrate a larger debate in the medical device industry that centers on whether FDA is stifling innovation by being what some claim is overly cautious and too time consuming. "We've seen a pretty steady and significant decline in early-stage investment in medical devices that really isn't there for the rest of the industry," Jessica Canning, global research director at Dow Jones VentureSource, told Fortune. "And what it essentially boils down to is that uncertainty strangles innovation." Also on the innovation front, industry advocacy group AdvaMed released a study predicting that the device tax could cost jobs and--you guessed it--stifle innovation. Read about these stories and more in our weekly roundup below.

Sign up for the QMED & MD+DI Daily newsletter.

You May Also Like