This week, Abiomed announced a class I recall of Impella heart pumps; the FDA released new device sterilization standards; and Boston Scientific planned a $140m new campus in Minnesota.

Strategics pursuing high growth M&A plays are often ready to pay a premium price for a target. But with medtech valuations at historic highs, they cannot afford to do that every time. One solution is to take a strategic stake and build early, according to an AdvaMed panel hosted by EY’s John Babitt.

Medline will pay $286m in cash for Teleflex's oxygen and aerosol therapy, active humidification, and non-invasive ventilation devices as well as incentive spirometers. Those businesses yielded $139m in 2020 revenues, but do not fit into Teleflex's plan for the future.

2019 saw fewer revenues-boosting major acquisitions by top-tier medtechs. Companies that reported after the calendar year-end were the first to see the consequences of the pandemic on their annual figures.