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Boston Scientific Corporation ("BSC"), incorporated in Delaware, is a biomedical/biotechnology engineering firm and multinational manufacturer of
medical device A medical device is any device intended to be used for medical purposes. Significant potential for hazards are inherent when using a device for medical purposes and thus medical devices must be proved safe and effective with reasonable assura ...
s used in interventional
medical specialties A medical specialty is a branch of medical practice that is focused on a defined group of patients, diseases, skills, or philosophy. Examples include those branches of medicine that deal exclusively with children (paediatrics), cancer (oncology), ...
, including interventional radiology,
interventional cardiology Interventional cardiology is a branch of cardiology that deals specifically with the catheter based treatment of structural heart diseases. Andreas Gruentzig is considered the father of interventional cardiology after the development of angioplast ...
, peripheral interventions,
neuromodulation Neuromodulation is the physiological process by which a given neuron uses one or more chemicals to regulate diverse populations of neurons. Neuromodulators typically bind to metabotropic, G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) to initiate a second ...
, neurovascular intervention,
electrophysiology Electrophysiology (from Ancient Greek, Greek , ''ēlektron'', "amber" ee the Electron#Etymology, etymology of "electron" , ''physis'', "nature, origin"; and , ''-logy, -logia'') is the branch of physiology that studies the electrical propertie ...
,
cardiac surgery Cardiac surgery, or cardiovascular surgery, is surgery on the heart or great vessels performed by cardiac surgeons. It is often used to treat complications of ischemic heart disease (for example, with coronary artery bypass grafting); to corr ...
, vascular surgery,
endoscopy An endoscopy is a procedure used in medicine to look inside the body. The endoscopy procedure uses an endoscope to examine the interior of a hollow organ or cavity of the body. Unlike many other medical imaging techniques, endoscopes are insert ...
,
oncology Oncology is a branch of medicine that deals with the study, treatment, diagnosis and prevention of cancer. A medical professional who practices oncology is an ''oncologist''. The name's etymological origin is the Greek word ὄγκος (''ó ...
,
urology Urology (from Greek οὖρον ''ouron'' "urine" and '' -logia'' "study of"), also known as genitourinary surgery, is the branch of medicine that focuses on surgical and medical diseases of the urinary-tract system and the reproductive org ...
and
gynecology Gynaecology or gynecology (see spelling differences) is the area of medicine that involves the treatment of women's diseases, especially those of the reproductive organs. It is often paired with the field of obstetrics, forming the combined are ...
. Boston Scientific is widely known for the development of the Taxus
Stent In medicine, a stent is a metal or plastic tube inserted into the lumen of an anatomic vessel or duct to keep the passageway open, and stenting is the placement of a stent. A wide variety of stents are used for different purposes, from expandab ...
, a
drug-eluting stent A drug-eluting stent (DES) is a peripheral or coronary stent (a scaffold) placed into narrowed, diseased peripheral or coronary arteries that slowly release a drug to block cell proliferation. This prevents fibrosis that, together with clots ( ...
which is used to open clogged
arteries An artery (plural arteries) () is a blood vessel in humans and most animals that takes blood away from the heart to one or more parts of the body (tissues, lungs, brain etc.). Most arteries carry oxygenated blood; the two exceptions are the pu ...
. With the full acquisition of
Cameron Health Cameron Health was a medical device developer based in San Clemente, California, USA. Cameron Health had its European office, Cameron Health BV, in Arnhem, The Netherlands. The privately held company's focus was on a new generation of minimally in ...
in June 2012, the company also became notable for offering a minimally invasive
implantable cardioverter-defibrillator An implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) or automated implantable cardioverter defibrillator (AICD) is a device implantable inside the body, able to perform defibrillation, and depending on the type, cardioversion and pacing of the h ...
(ICD) which they call the EMBLEM subcutaneous implantable defibrillator (S-ICD).


History

Boston Scientific was formed years ago, on June 29, 1979, in Watertown, Massachusetts, as a holding company for the medical products company, Medi-Tech, Inc., and to position the company for growth in interventional medicine. Medi-Tech was the brainchild of
Itzhak Bentov Itzhak "Ben" Bentov (also ''Ben-Tov''; he, יצחק בנטוב; August 9, 1923 – May 25, 1979) was an Israeli American scientist, inventor, mystic and author. His many inventions, including the steerable cardiac catheter, helped pioneer the ...
, a Czech-born emigre to Israel and then to the United States, who worked at the
Arthur D. Little Arthur D. Little is an international management consulting firm originally headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, founded in 1886 and formally incorporated in 1909 by Arthur Dehon Little, an MIT chemist who had discovered acetate. ...
think tank in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and ran a contract research company from his rented house in Belmont, Massachusetts, a venture he founded in 1965 with a business friend, Dan Singer. In 1967 he was asked by Boston Beth Israel Hospital radiologists to design a steerable, remotely controlled catheter; a series of engineering designs, polymer improvements and prototypes led to the release of a new steerable angiography catheter in 1969. That year John Abele joined the small company with an option to buy, and a year later he exercised his option with Cooper Labs as business partner, and the operation was moved – out of Bentov's lab in the basement of the rectory of a Catholic church in Belmont – to Watertown. After a decade of steady growth, by chance Abele met Pete Nicholas in their neighborhood in
Concord, Massachusetts Concord () is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, in the United States. At the 2020 census, the town population was 18,491. The United States Census Bureau considers Concord part of Greater Boston. The town center is near where the conflu ...
. Their partnership hinged on Nicholas' goal to build business enterprises and Abele's predilection for the vision and potential in noninvasive surgical instrumentation; they gathered backers in the Boston banking community to buy out the Cooper Labs interest and form the new corporation. Less than a year later Kimray Medical Associates (later Mansfield Scientific, Inc.) was acquired, adding vena cava filters and cardiac output computers to the product line. By 1982 a renovated mill building in Watertown was transformed into a manufacturing plant. Acquisitions continued, with Endo-Tech (Microvasive, Inc.: gastrointestinal and pulmonary) in 1981 and then Van-Tec (urology) in 1988, and an international presence was expanded. Mansfield Scientific, Microvasive, and Medi-Tech merged into Boston Scientific December 31, 1988.


Initial public offering (1992)

years ago – May 19, 1992 – Boston Scientific launched an
initial public offering An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investment ...
of 23.5 million shares, of which, 18.8 million were offered in the U.S. and 4.7 million were offered outside the U.S. The initial offering amounted to 23% of Boston Scientific's outstanding stock. The opening price was $17 per share. Goldman, Sachs & Co. (lead) and PaineWebber Inc. were the
underwriters Underwriting (UW) services are provided by some large financial institutions, such as banks, insurance companies and investment houses, whereby they guarantee payment in case of damage or financial loss and accept the financial risk for liabilit ...
and
Abbott Laboratories Abbott Laboratories is an American multinational medical devices and health care company with headquarters in Abbott Park, Illinois, United States. The company was founded by Chicago physician Wallace Calvin Abbott in 1888 to formulate known dr ...
held a 20% stake (23.5 million shares). The
market capitalization Market capitalization, sometimes referred to as market cap, is the total value of a publicly traded company's outstanding common shares owned by stockholders. Market capitalization is equal to the market price per common share multiplied by t ...
was about $1.6 billion (equivalent to about $ billion in ). The U.S. shares were listed on the
New York Stock Exchange The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed c ...
.


Post–IPO

From 1995 through 1997, Boston Scientific increased its technology R&D and product offerings following several substantial acquisitions that included Cardiovascular Imaging Systems (intravascular ultrasound), SCIMED (cardiovascular), Vesica Medical (urology), Meadox (textile vascular prostheses), EP Technologies (cardiac ablation controllers), MinTec (abdominal aortic aneurysm grafts), Symbiosis Corporation (specialty medical product manufacture), and Target Therapeutics (on neurology). Boston Scientific acquired Target Therapeutics in a tax-free stock swap for about $1.1 billion, more than 10 times Target's earnings, in contrast to the usual multiple of 10 times earnings. The Taxus Stent was approved in 2003 in Europe and other countries and, in the United States, by the FDA in March 2004. It was the second drug-eluting stent approved in the United States. In April 2004 the company announced that it had exercised an exclusive option to acquire Precision Vascular Systems, Inc., as part of a series of agreements between Boston Scientific and Precision Vascular in 2002 – for an undisclosed sum. In June Boston acquired Advanced Bionics Corporation for $740 million in cash, plus earn out payments. In December Boston completed its acquisition of Advanced Stent Technologies, Inc., for $120 million payable in Boston Scientific stock, plus the possibility of future contingent payments. AST had been developing stent and stent delivery systems specifically designed to address the anatomical needs of
coronary artery disease Coronary artery disease (CAD), also called coronary heart disease (CHD), ischemic heart disease (IHD), myocardial ischemia, or simply heart disease, involves the reduction of blood flow to the heart muscle due to build-up of atherosclerotic pla ...
in bifurcated vessels. In April 2005, Boston exercised an exclusive option to acquire TriVascular, Inc., for an undisclosed sum and renamed it as Boston Scientific Santa Rosa Corporation, or BSSR. TriVascular was founded in January 1998 to develop less-invasive medical devices and procedures for treating abdominal aortic aneurysms, but BSC discontinued its endovascular aortic repair (
EVAR Endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) is a type of minimally-invasive endovascular surgery used to treat pathology of the aorta, most commonly an abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA). When used to treat thoracic aortic disease, the procedure is then spe ...
) program in 2006. Also, in April 2005, BSC announced it had exercised its option to acquire CryoVascular Systems, Inc., and its proprietary
angioplasty Angioplasty, is also known as balloon angioplasty and percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA), is a minimally invasive endovascular procedure used to widen narrowed or obstructed arteries or veins, typically to treat arterial atheroscle ...
device to treat atherosclerotic disease of the legs and other peripheral arteries. In June Boston Scientific announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, Nemo I Acquisition, Inc., had successfully acquired
Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Utah, most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the county seat, seat of Salt Lake County, Utah, Sal ...
-based Rubicon Medical Corporation, with Rubicon became a wholly owned subsidiary of Boston Scientific. In March 2008, BSC sold BSSR to TV2 Holding Company of
Santa Rosa Santa Rosa is the Italian, Portuguese and Spanish name for Saint Rose. Santa Rosa may also refer to: Places Argentina *Santa Rosa, Mendoza, a city * Santa Rosa, Tinogasta, Catamarca * Santa Rosa, Valle Viejo, Catamarca * Santa Rosa, La Pampa * S ...
. Terms of the sale include $30 million in cash paid at the closing to BSC and a warrant allowing BSC to purchase a minority interest in TV2.


Guidant merger

In January 2006, the company announced an offer for its longtime competitor,
Guidant Guidant Corporation, part of Boston Scientific and Abbott Labs, designs and manufactures artificial cardiac pacemakers, implantable cardioverter-defibrillators, stents, and other cardiovascular medical products. Their company headquarters is lo ...
, for $72 per share or $25 billion. The offer, however, was rejected. On April 21, 2006, BSC acquired
Guidant Guidant Corporation, part of Boston Scientific and Abbott Labs, designs and manufactures artificial cardiac pacemakers, implantable cardioverter-defibrillators, stents, and other cardiovascular medical products. Their company headquarters is lo ...
for $27.2 billion. Guidant was split between BSC and
Abbott Laboratories Abbott Laboratories is an American multinational medical devices and health care company with headquarters in Abbott Park, Illinois, United States. The company was founded by Chicago physician Wallace Calvin Abbott in 1888 to formulate known dr ...
. Four years later, in 2010, when moving its heart-rhythm business from its acquisition of Guidant, Boston Scientific eliminated 1300 jobs.


Post-merger

In December 2007, Boston Scientific announced it would sell its Fluid Management and Venous Access businesses for $425 million to
Avista Capital Partners Avista Capital Partners is an American private equity firm headquartered in New York City focused on growth capital and leveraged buyout investments in middle-market companies in the domestic healthcare sector. History The firm was founded in 2 ...
. In April 2008, the company acquired CryoCor, Inc., for $1.35 per share, $17.6 million in total. Navilyst Medical was formed in February 2008 from Boston Scientific's Fluid Management and Vascular Access business units. In January 2009, Boston announced it would acquire Labcoat Limited, whose primary development was that of a development-stage drug-eluting stent – for an undisclosed sum. In October 2010, the company was fined $600,000 by the US Department of Justice for paying a US Army doctor to use their devices and recommend them to others. In the same month Boston Scientific acquired Asthmatx, Inc., for $193.5 million, with payments of up to $250 million being paid on the achievement of specified revenue-based criteria through 2019. In January 2011, Boston acquired Atritech, Inc., for $100 million plus additional potential payments of up to $275 million. Atritech developed a novel device called the Watchman® designed to close the left atrial appendage in patients with atrial fibrillation who are at risk for ischemic stroke. In the same month, Boston Scientific acquired Intelect Medical, Inc., for $78 million and the remaining 86% of Sadra Medical, Inc., not already owned for $193 million plus contingent payments. At the same time, the business divested its neurovascular business to
Stryker Corporation Stryker Corporation is an American multinational medical technologies corporation based in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Stryker's products include implants used in joint replacement and trauma surgeries; surgical equipment and surgical navigation system ...
for $1.5 billion. In June 2012, Boston Scientific officially acquired Cameron Health for a total sum of $1.3 billion, paid out incrementally as various revenue milestones were achieved. In September the company announced it would acquire BridgePoint Medical, Inc., developer of a catheter-based system to treat coronary chronic total occlusions. In October, the company acquired Rhythmia Medical, Inc., developer of mapping and navigation methods for use in cardiac catheter ablations and other electrophysiology procedures. A month later the business acquired catheter-based renal denervation system developer, Vessix Vascular, Inc. In November 2013, Boston announced it would acquire Bard EP, the
electrophysiology Electrophysiology (from Ancient Greek, Greek , ''ēlektron'', "amber" ee the Electron#Etymology, etymology of "electron" , ''physis'', "nature, origin"; and , ''-logy, -logia'') is the branch of physiology that studies the electrical propertie ...
business of C.R. Bard, Inc., for $275 million. In May 2014, Boston acquired hysteroscopic intrauterine tissue removal specialist, IoGyn, Inc. In September, the business announced it would acquire the Interventional business of
Bayer Bayer AG (, commonly pronounced ; ) is a German multinational corporation, multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company and one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. Headquartered in Leverkusen, Bayer's areas of busi ...
. In March 2015, the company announced it would acquire Endo International Plc's American Medical Systems urology business for at least $1.6 billion, expanding the company's health and prostate treatments. In April, Boston announced its intention to acquire Xlumena, Inc. In October Boston announced it had invested further in percutaneous
mitral valve replacement Mitral valve replacement is a procedure whereby the diseased mitral valve of a patient's heart is replaced by either a mechanical or tissue (bioprosthetic) valve. The mitral valve may need to be replaced because: * The valve is leaky ( mitral va ...
system developer, MValve Technologies, gaining a right to acquire the business in the future. As of 2016, it operates in more than 100 countries, employs more than 24,000 people, and manufactures around 13,000 diverse products. In July 2016 the business acquired the manufacturer of radiofrequency ablation systems, Cosman Medical, Inc. In September, Boston announced it had acquired EndoChoice Holdings, Inc., becoming part of the Boston Scientific Endoscopy business for $8.00 per share or $210 million in total. In November the company acquired the gynecology and urology portfolio of Distal Access, LLC, a company that designs minimally invasive medical devices. In December 2016, the business acquired a 15% stake in Neovasc, Inc., for $75 million. In May 2017, the company acquired Symetis SA, a developer of minimally invasive transcatheter aortic valve implantation devices. In October Boston acquired Apama Medical Inc. for up to $300 million. In April 2018, Boston Scientific announced the triple closure of its acquisitions of women's health company, nVision Medical Corporation, NxThera and Securus Medical Group, Inc., for up to $50 million. In July, Boston Scientific announced it would acquire Cryterion Medical, Inc, Veniti, Inc., in August Augmenix, Inc., and Claret Medical, Inc. and in October In late November Boston announce they would acquire UK medical device maker,
BTG plc BTG Limited is an international specialist healthcare company that is developing and commercialising products targeting critical care, cancer and other disorders. The current name was adopted when the British Technology Group changed its name on ...
, for $4.2 billion. BTG, before being acquired, was publicly traded and a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index. In late December, the company announced it would acquire Millipede, Inc for $325 million – after previously investing $90 million in the company. In May 2019, the company announced it would acquire Vertiflex, Inc., with the aim of increasing its interventional pain therapy offerings. Vertiflex principally developed treatment for
lumbar spinal stenosis Lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS) is a medical condition in which the spinal canal narrows and compresses the nerves and blood vessels at the level of the lumbar vertebrae. Spinal stenosis may also affect the cervical or thoracic region, in which case ...
. In January 2021, Boston announced it would acquire Minneapolis-based Preventice Solutions, Inc., and its portfolio of mobile cardiac health solutions for up to $1.2 billion. In March, the business announced it would acquire Lumenis Ltd. for $1 billion from an affiliate of
Baring Private Equity Asia BPEA EQT (formerly known as Baring Private Equity Asia and BPEA) is an Asian private equity firm. Previously it was an affiliate of Barings Bank before becoming an independent firm. In 2022 it was acquired by EQT Partners to act as its Asian inve ...
, who, in 2019, had acquired it from XIO Group. In June, the company announced it would acquire the 73% of Farapulse, Inc., it did not already own, for $295 million. Farapulse was a
University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is org ...
startup. The deal complimented Boston Scientific's existing electrophysiology portfolio. In September, the business announced it would acquire Devoro Medical, Inc., and its blood clot capturing technology. Boston Scientific had been a strategic investor in Devoro since 2019. In October, the company announced it would acquire Baylis Medical Company Inc. for $1.75 billion, expanding its electrophysiology and heart product portfolios (see
Frank Baylis Frank Baylis (born November 15, 1962) is a Canadian businessperson and politician, who was elected to represent the riding of Pierrefonds—Dollard in the House of Commons of Canada in the 2015 federal election. He did not run for reelecti ...
). In June 2022, the business announced it would acquire M.I.Tech Co., Ltd., of South Korea, for around $230 million. In August, Boston announced it would acquire Obsidio, Inc. *Boston Scientific **Precision Vascular Systems, Inc. (Acq 2004) **Advanced Bionics Corporation (Acq 2004) **Advanced Stent Technologies, Inc. (Acq 2004) **TriVascular, Inc. (Acq 2005) **CryoVascular Systems, Inc. (Acq 2005) **Nemo I Acquisition, Inc. ***Rubicon Medical Corporation (Acq 2005) **
Guidant Guidant Corporation, part of Boston Scientific and Abbott Labs, designs and manufactures artificial cardiac pacemakers, implantable cardioverter-defibrillators, stents, and other cardiovascular medical products. Their company headquarters is lo ...
(Acq 2006 and split between Boston and
Abbott Laboratories Abbott Laboratories is an American multinational medical devices and health care company with headquarters in Abbott Park, Illinois, United States. The company was founded by Chicago physician Wallace Calvin Abbott in 1888 to formulate known dr ...
)
**CryoCor, Inc. (Acq 2008) **Labcoat Limited (Acq 2009) **Asthmatx, Inc. (Acq 2010) **Atritech, Inc. (Acq 2011) **Intelect Medical, Inc. (Acq 2011) **Sadra Medical, Inc. (Acq 2011) **Cameron Health (Acq 2012) **BridgePoint Medical, Inc. (Acq 2012) **Rhythmia Medical, Inc. (Acq 2012) **Vessix Vascular, Inc. (Acq 2012) **Bard EP (Acq 2013) **IoGyn, Inc. (Acq 2014) **
Bayer Bayer AG (, commonly pronounced ; ) is a German multinational corporation, multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company and one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. Headquartered in Leverkusen, Bayer's areas of busi ...
(Interventional business, Acq 2014) ** Endo International (Urology business, Acq 2015) **Xlumena, Inc. (Acq 2015) **Cosman Medical, Inc. (Acq 2016) **EndoChoice Holdings, Inc. (Acq 2016) **Distal Access, LLC (Gynecology and Urology business, Acq 2016) **Symetis SA (Acq 2017) **Apama Medical Inc. (Acq 2017) **nVision Medical Corporation (Acq 2018) **NxThera (Acq 2018) **Securus Medical Group, Inc. (Acq 2018) **Cryterion Medical, Inc. (Acq 2018) **Veniti, Inc. (Acq 2018) **Augmenix, Inc. (Acq 2018) **Claret Medical, Inc. (Acq 2018) **
BTG plc BTG Limited is an international specialist healthcare company that is developing and commercialising products targeting critical care, cancer and other disorders. The current name was adopted when the British Technology Group changed its name on ...
(Acq 2018) ***British Technology Group (Merged 1981) ****
National Research Development Corporation The National Research Development Corporation (NRDC) was a non-departmental government body established by the British Government to transfer technology from the public sector to the private sector. History The NRDC was established by Attlee's La ...
(NRDC) (Est. 1948) ****
National Enterprise Board The National Enterprise Board (NEB) was a United Kingdom government body. It was set up in 1975 by the Labour government of Harold Wilson, to support the government's interventionist approach to industry. In 1981 the Conservative government of Ma ...
(NEB) (Est. 1975) ***Protherics Plc (Acq 2008) *** Biocompatibles (Acq 2011) ***Galil Medical (Acq 2016) ***Novate Medical (Acq 2018) **Millipede, Inc. (Acq 2018) **Vertiflex, Inc. (Acq 2019) **Preventice Solutions, Inc. (Acq 2021) **Lumenis Ltd (Acq 2021) **Farapulse, Inc (Acq 2021) **Devoro Medical, Inc. (Acq 2021) **Baylis Medical Company Inc (Acq 2021) **M.I.Tech Co., Ltd (Acq 2022) **Obsidio(Acq 2022)


Organizational culture

BSC has been assessed favorably by its employees. In ''
Glassdoor Glassdoor is an American website where current and former employees anonymously review companies. Headquartered in San Francisco, California, it has additional offices in Chicago, Dublin, London, and São Paulo. Glassdoor also allows its users to ...
'' annual ''Best Places to Work – Employee's Choice Survey'', BSC earned scores of: * 2018: #35 (of 100). 4.4 stars (of 5). * 2019: #56 (of 100). 4.3 stars (of 5). * 2022: #52 (of 100). 4.3 stars (of 5). The feedback for this survey is given by current and former employees. As of 2018, BSC had 43% women among its employees, 38% among management positions, and 23% among corporate top management positions (data for US workforce, as of 2018).


Social commitment

Boston Scientific has set a standard for implementing an integrative organizational culture and states that it actively strives to further improve this by, among other things, increasing diversity among its employees – and in particular, among its managers, executives, and directors. To this end, the company has set itself the following goals in 2018: * Leadership role by belonging to the top 10 companies in the integration of employees of the following groups:
women A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or Adolescence, adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female hum ...
,
people of color The term "person of color" ( : people of color or persons of color; abbreviated POC) is primarily used to describe any person who is not considered "white". In its current meaning, the term originated in, and is primarily associated with, the U ...
, disabled persons and members of the
LGBTQ ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is ...
community. * Increase the proportion of people of color with supervisor or managerial functions to 20% in the USA including Puerto Rico (end of 2018: 19.6%, +1.8% compared to 2017). * Increase the proportion of women in supervisor or managerial positions to 40% worldwide (end of 2018: 38.4%, +1.0% against 2017). Success for these objectives has been chronicled and ranked by publications and organizations, including: * ''
Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...
'' added the company in 2019 to its list of ''Best Employers For Diversity'' for its efforts to foster a corporate culture that welcomes and supports all employees. That year, BSC ranked 85th out of 500 companies. ''Forbes'' included BSC in its 2021 and 2022 lists as well – ranking it 6th in 2021 and 171st in 2022, out of 500 for both years. * ''
Bloomberg Bloomberg may refer to: People * Daniel J. Bloomberg (1905–1984), audio engineer * Georgina Bloomberg (born 1983), professional equestrian * Michael Bloomberg (born 1942), American businessman and founder of Bloomberg L.P.; politician and m ...
'' recognized BSC for its inclusion in the ''Gender-Equality Index'' in 2019, which includes companies that publicly demonstrate their commitment to equality and the advancement of women in the workplace. The index lists a total of 230 companies from ten economic sectors and 36 countries and regions. * The US magazine ''
Working Mother ''Working Mother'' was a magazine for working mothers launched in 1979 by Founding Publisher Milton Lieberman, who was succeeded by Carol Evans . The founding editor of the magazine was Vivian Cadden, who retired as editor in 1990. Subsequent edi ...
'', in 2017, listed BSC, for the first time, along with 9 other companies, as one of the "100 Best Companies for ''Working Mothers''." The publication, again, listed BSC in 2018, 2019, and 2020. The magazine ceased publication in 2021. * The
Human Rights Campaign The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) is an American LGBTQ advocacy group. It is the largest LGBTQ political lobbying organization within the United States. Based in Washington, D.C., the organization focuses on protecting and expanding rights for LGB ...
("HRC") named BSC as a ''Best Place to Work for LGBTQ Equality'' in its 2019 edition of the eponymous list. HRC has given BSC a ranking of 100 (of 100) every year from 2015 through 2022 in its annual CEI Index (Corporate Equality Index) rankings of
Fortune 1000 The Fortune 1000 are the 1,000 largest American companies ranked by revenues, as compiled by the American business magazine ''Fortune''. It only includes companies which are incorporated or authorized to do business in the United States, and for ...
companies. * The journal, ''US Black Engineer & Information Technology'' (''USBE & IT''), in its "2021 Top Supporters of HBCU Engineering," ranked BSC No. 6 among the "Top 20 Industry Supporters."


Litigation


Johnson & Johnson patent litigation

Beginning in 2003, Boston Scientific and
Johnson & Johnson Johnson & Johnson (J&J) is an American multinational corporation founded in 1886 that develops medical devices, pharmaceuticals, and consumer packaged goods. Its common stock is a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the company i ...
were involved in a series of litigations involving patents covering heart stent medical devices. Both parties claimed that the other had infringed upon their patents. The litigation was settled once Boston Scientific agreed to pay $716 million to Johnson & Johnson in September 2009 and an additional $1.73 billion in February 2010. It was announced in November 2014 that
Johnson & Johnson Johnson & Johnson (J&J) is an American multinational corporation founded in 1886 that develops medical devices, pharmaceuticals, and consumer packaged goods. Its common stock is a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the company i ...
would have another chance for payback after a multibillion-dollar trial was set for November 20, 2014. A New York federal court judge would hear the case without a jury to decide whether Boston Scientific should be held liable for the contract breach.


Transvaginal mesh

Boston Scientific is one of several manufacturers of a medical device called transvaginal mesh, a type of surgical mesh used to treat
pelvic organ prolapse Pelvic organ prolapse (POP) is characterized by descent of pelvic organs from their normal positions. In women, the condition usually occurs when the pelvic floor collapses after gynecological cancer treatment, childbirth or heavy lifting. In m ...
. Experts concluded that the medical company had used cheap, counterfeit resin, which was both toxic and degraded when exposed to oxygen. When this was announced on ''
60 Minutes ''60 Minutes'' is an American television news magazine broadcast on the CBS television network. Debuting in 1968, the program was created by Don Hewitt and Bill Leonard, who chose to set it apart from other news programs by using a unique styl ...
,'' Boston Scientific responded by saying the broadcast was "irresponsible and misleading," citing a 2017
Food and Drug Administration The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is respon ...
(FDA) report stating that although they found variability in the polypropylene resin, "these differences do not present new safety or effectiveness concerns." One woman, who sued in 2011, was awarded $100 million. Two operations had failed to remove all the parts of the mesh and she was still in pain. The company appealed the decision and had the amount reduced to $10M. In 2015, Boston Scientific announced it would pay $119 million to 2,970 lawsuit plaintiffs, who had been injured by the mesh. On March 23, 2021, the company agreed to pay $189 million to settle allegations that it had seriously misrepresented the risks related to the vaginal mesh. As of Jan. 27, 2021, around 54,000 lawsuits related to transvaginal meshes had been filed against Boston Scientific. In April 2019, the FDA ordered Boston Scientific and Coloplast to remove all of their vaginal mesh products from the United States market. In 2020, Johnson & Johnson was required to pay $344 million for failing to disclose the serious product risks of its transvaginal mesh product.


NIR stent

In 2005, Boston Scientific paid $74 million to settle allegations that it had continued to sell NIR stents (flexible stents) after learning that many of them were defective. Twenty-six injuries and one death may have been caused by malfunctioning stents.


Defective defibrillators

In 2011, Guidant, a subsidiary of Boston Scientific, was criminally convicted of a failure to report defibrillator safety problems to the FDA. The company was forced to pay more than $296 million in criminal fines and had to submit to the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for three years. Even though Guidant knew the devices were defective, they continued to sell the defibrillators anyway. Guidant LLC had also advised its sales representatives to tell physicians that nothing was wrong with the defibrillators, and told the FDA that the proposed corrections were not being done to correct life-threatening device flaws, but were rather to improve process throughout. Not until three deaths had occurred and ten months had passed did the company reveal the defects in 2005. The directives for these wrongdoings had been implemented prior to Boston Scientific’s acquisition of Guidant in 2006. In 2013, BSC and three of its subsidiaries – Guidant LLC, Guidant Sales LLC, and Cardiac Pacemakers, Inc. – agreed to pay $30 million to settle allegations that, according to the
Justice Department A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...
, between 2002 and 2005, Guidant knowingly sold defective heart devices to health care facilities that in turn implanted the devices into Medicare patients.


Bribery allegations

In 2009, Boston Scientific agreed to pay $22 million to settle allegations that its subsidiary Guidant LLC had used kickback schemes to boost sales for its pacemakers (cardiac rhythm management or CRM devices) and defibrillators ( implantable cardioverter-defibrillators or ICD devices). Allegedly, Guidant paid doctors between $1,000 and $1,500 each to participate in one of its four post-studies known as RaCE ($1,500), RaCE II ($1,000), RaCE III ($1,000), and MERITS ($1,000).


Financial restatement

On November 3, 1998, Boston Scientific restated its financial results for 1997, as well as its quarterly results for the first three quarters of 1998, due to the occurrence of business irregularities in the operations of its Japanese subsidiary.


Notable people

* * * * * * *


Locations


Headquarters and regional centers

* World headquarters:
Marlborough, Massachusetts Marlborough is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 41,793 at the 2020 census. Marlborough became a prosperous industrial town in the 19th century and made the transition to high technology industry in the ...
* Europe headquarters:
Voisins-le-Bretonneux Voisins-le-Bretonneux () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. It is located in the south-western suburbs of Paris from the centre in the new town of Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines. Population ...
, France * Asia Pacific headquarters: Boston Scientific Asia Pacific Pte Ltd.,
Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
* U.S. Government Affairs office:
Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
* Latin America headquarters:
Weston, Florida Weston is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States, just west of Fort Lauderdale. It is part of the Miami metropolitan area, which is anchored by Miami. The population was 68,107 at the 2020 census. Weston is 30 miles northwest of Miam ...


Manufacturing plants

*
California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
** San Jose **
Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, Valencia and the Municipalities of Spain, third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is ...
*
Spencer, Indiana Spencer is a town in Washington Township, Owen County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 2,217 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Owen County. Spencer is part of the Bloomington, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Are ...
*
Minneapolis–Saint Paul Minneapolis–Saint Paul is a metropolitan area in the Upper Midwestern United States centered around the confluence of the Mississippi, Minnesota and St. Croix rivers in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It is commonly known as the Twin Cities ...
area **
Arden Hills Arden Hills is a city in Ramsey County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 9,552 at the 2010 census. Bethel University and Seminary is located in the city of Arden Hills. Also, the campus of University of Northwestern – St. Paul s ...
** Maple Grove *
Penang, Malaysia Penang ( ms, Pulau Pinang, is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, by the Malacca Strait. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Mal ...
* Coyol,
Alajuela Alajuela () is a district in the Alajuela canton of the Alajuela Province of Costa Rica. As the seat of the Municipality of Alajuela canton, it is awarded the status of city. By virtue of being the city of the first canton of the province, it i ...
,
Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...
*
Heredia, Costa Rica Heredia () is a district in the Heredia canton of Heredia province, Costa Rica. As the seat of the municipality of Heredia canton, it is awarded the status of city, and by virtue of being the city of the first canton, it is the Province Capital ...
*
Dorado, Puerto Rico Dorado () is a town and municipality in the northern coast of Puerto Rico, west of San Juan and is located in the northern region of the island, bordering the Atlantic Ocean, north of Toa Alta, east of Vega Alta, and west of Toa Baja. Dorado ...
*
Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
**
Clonmel Clonmel () is the county town and largest settlement of County Tipperary, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The town is noted in Irish history for its resistance to the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland, Cromwellian army which sacked the towns of Dro ...
**
Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...
**
Galway Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a City status in Ireland, city in the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lo ...


Customer fulfillment centers

*
Quincy, Massachusetts Quincy ( ) is a coastal U.S. city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the largest city in the county and a part of Greater Boston, Metropolitan Boston as one of Boston's immediate southern suburbs. Its population in 2020 was 1 ...
*
Kerkrade Kerkrade ( Ripuarian: ; li, Kirkraoj; german: Kerkrade or ''Kirchrath'') is a town and a municipality in the southeast of Limburg; the southernmost province of the Netherlands. It forms part of the Parkstad Limburg agglomeration. Kerkrade is the ...
,
The Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
*
Tokyo, Japan Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...


Institutes for Advancing Science

*
Warsaw, Poland Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-cen ...
*
Minneapolis–Saint Paul Minneapolis–Saint Paul is a metropolitan area in the Upper Midwestern United States centered around the confluence of the Mississippi, Minnesota and St. Croix rivers in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It is commonly known as the Twin Cities ...
area **
Arden Hills Arden Hills is a city in Ramsey County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 9,552 at the 2010 census. Bethel University and Seminary is located in the city of Arden Hills. Also, the campus of University of Northwestern – St. Paul s ...
** Maple Grove *
Huangpu District, Shanghai Huangpu District (), makes up the eastern part of Shanghai's traditional urban core and is today the most central of Shanghai's 16 districts. Huangpu district is the seat of municipal government, includes key attractions such as The Bund and the ...
*
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
** Miyazaki **
Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
*
Paris, France Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
*
Gurgaon, India Gurgaon (pronunciation: ʊɽɡãːw, officially named Gurugram (pronunciation: ʊɾʊɡɾaːm, is a city located in the northern Indian state of Haryana. It is situated near the Delhi–Haryana border, about southwest of the nationa ...
*
Istanbul, Turkey ) , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = 34000 to 34990 , area_code = +90 212 (European side) +90 216 (Asian side) , registration_plate = 34 , blank_name_sec2 = GeoTLD , blank_in ...
*
Bryanston Bryanston is a village and civil parish in north Dorset, England, situated on the River Stour west of Blandford Forum. In the 2011 census the parish had a population of 925. The village is adjacent to the grounds of Bryanston School, an inde ...
,
Johannesburg, South Africa Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a Megacity#List of megacities, megacity, and is List of urban areas by p ...
In June 2022, Boston Scientific announced that it would invest $62.5 million in a manufacturing and supply chain facility in
Johns Creek, Georgia Johns Creek is a city in Fulton County, Georgia, United States. According to the 2020 census, the population was 82,453. The city is a northeastern suburb of Atlanta. History In the early 19th century, the Johns Creek area was dotted with t ...
, a suburb of
Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
. In 2016, Boston Scientific had acquired EndoChoice, located in
Alpharetta Alpharetta is a city in northern Fulton County, Georgia, United States, and is a part of the Atlanta metropolitan area. As of the 2020 US Census, Alpharetta's population was 65,818 The population in 2010 was 57,551. History In the 1830s, the Che ...
, from its proposed Johns Creek facility.


Subsidiaries

BSC, as of December 31, 2019, wholly owns or has a majority interest in all of the below mentioned entities. * Acurate Industria e Comercio Ltda. (Brazil) * American Medical Systems Europe B.V. (The Netherlands) * Apama Medical, Inc. (Delaware) * Augmenix K.K. (Japan) * Augmenix, Inc. (Delaware) * Biocompatibles International Limited (England) * Biocompatibles UK Limited (England) * Biocompatibles, Inc. (Delaware) * * * Boston Scientific (Thailand) Ltd. (Thailand) * Boston Scientific (UK) Limited (England) * Boston Scientific AG (Switzerland) * Boston Scientific Argentina S.A. (Argentina) * * Boston Scientific Benelux NV (Belgium) * Boston Scientific Canada Limited (Canada) * Boston Scientific Ceska republika s.r.o. (Czech Republic) * Boston Scientific Chile SpA (Chile) * Boston Scientific Clonmel Limited, in liquidation (Ireland) * Boston Scientific Colombia Limitada (Colombia) * * Boston Scientific Cork Limited, in liquidation (Ireland) * Boston Scientific de Costa Rica S.R.L. (Costa Rica) * Boston Scientific de Mexico, S.A. de C.V. (Mexico) * Boston Scientific del Caribe, Inc. (Puerto Rico) * Boston Scientific do Brasil Ltda. (Brazil) * Boston Scientific Far East B.V. (The Netherlands) * Boston Scientific Gesellschaft m.b.H. (Austria) * Boston Scientific Group plc (Ireland) * Boston Scientific Hellas S.A. (Greece) * Boston Scientific Hong Kong Limited (Hong Kong) * Boston Scientific Iberica, S.A. (Spain) * Boston Scientific India Private Limited (India) * Boston Scientific International B.V. (The Netherlands) * Boston Scientific International Finance Limited (Ireland) * Boston Scientific International S.A. (France) * Boston Scientific Ireland Limited, in liquidation (Ireland) * Boston Scientific Israel Ltd. (Israel) * * Boston Scientific Korea Co., Ltd. (Korea) * Boston Scientific Lebanon SAL (Lebanon) * Boston Scientific Limited (England) * Boston Scientific Limited (Ireland) * Boston Scientific Ltd./Boston Scientifique Ltee. (Canada) * * Boston Scientific Medical Device Limited (Ireland) * Boston Scientific Medizintechnik GmbH (Germany) * Boston Scientific Middle East FZ-LLC (UAE) * Boston Scientific Middle East SAL (Offshore) (Lebanon) * Boston Scientific Nederland B.V. (The Netherlands) * * Boston Scientific New Zealand Limited (New Zealand) * Boston Scientific Nordic AB (Sweden) * Boston Scientific Peru S.A.C. (Peru) * Boston Scientific Philippines, Inc. (Philippines) * Boston Scientific Polska Sp. z o.o. (Poland) * * Boston Scientific Pty Ltd (Australia) * Boston Scientific Romania S.R.L. (Romania) * Boston Scientific S.A.S.(France) * Boston Scientific S.p.A. (Italy) * * Boston Scientific Services Private Limited (India) * * * Boston Scientific Uruguay S.A. (Uruguay) * * Bravo Bidco Limited (England) * * * BTG Australasia Pty Ltd (Australia) * BTG Europe B.V. (The Netherlands) * BTG IM Holdings Ltd. (Israel) * BTG International (Holdings) Limited (England) * BTG International Asia Limited (Hong Kong) * BTG International Canada Inc. (Canada) * BTG International Germany GmbH (Germany) * BTG International Healthcare Inc. (Delaware) * BTG International Healthcare Limited (Delaware) * BTG International Healthcare LLC (Delaware) * BTG International Inc. (Delaware) * BTG International Limited (England) * BTG Limited (England) * BTG Management Services Limited (England) * BTG Medikal Limited Sirketi (Turkey) * * * Claret Medical, Inc. (Delaware) * * Cryterion Medical, Inc. (Delaware) * Cryterion Medical Ireland, Limited (Ireland) * EKOS LLC (Delaware) * Electron Acquisition Corporation (Delaware) * EMcision International Inc. (Canada) * EndoChoice GmbH, in liquidation (Germany) * EndoChoice Holdings, Inc. (Delaware) * * EndoChoice Innovation Center Ltd. (Israel) * EndoChoice Israel Ltd. (Israel) * * Galil Medical Inc. (Delaware) * Galil Medical Ltd. (Israel) * Galil Medical UK Limited (England) * * Guidant Europe NV (Belgium) * Guidant Puerto Rico B.V. (The Netherlands) * Hong Kong Medtech Trading Limited (Hong Kong) * Millipede, Inc. (Delaware) * Notebook Merger Sub, Ltd. (Delaware) * Novate Medical Limited (Ireland) * nVision Medical Corporation (Delaware) * NXT Merger Corp. (Delaware) * NxThera, Inc. (Delaware) * PneumRx GmbH (Germany) * PneumRx Liimited (England) * PneumRx LLC (Delaware) * Protherics Medicines Development B.V. (Netherlands) * Protherics Medicines Development Limited (England) * Protherics UK Limited (England) * Provensis Limited (England) * PT Boston Scientific Indonesia (Indonesia) * RMI Acquisition Corp. (California) * * Roxwood Medical, Inc. (Delaware) * * Securus Medical Group, Inc. (Delaware) * SNS Merger Corp (Delaware) * Special K Merger Corp. (Delaware) * StarMedTec GmbH, in liquidation (Germany) * Stream Enterprises LLC (Delaware) * Symetis SA (Switzerland) * * Veniti, Inc. (Delaware) * Vertiflex, Inc. (Delaware) * Zuma Investment Pty Ltd (Australia) * 34 Biomedical Merger Corp. (Delaware) * 9357-1867 Quebec Inc. (Canada)


Bibliography


Notes


References

* * * * * * * Originally retrieved April 19, 2019.
* Retrieved July 6, 2022.
*
* (publication); , or (article); (article). * , ; . * * * * * * (article).
    1. (article).
* * * ; ; . * * (publication); (article); (article) (alternate access → via ) * * * * ; , , , , and .
* * (print ed.). * . * *
A common surgical implant has generated the largest multi-district litigation since asbestos. 60 Minutes reports on one of the device's manufacturers, Boston Scientific, now facing 48,000 lawsuits.
* ; (print); .
()
* (US Newsstream database). * . * * (alternate access → , , (US Newsstream database). * * * * * * * . * * * * * * * * * * *
* * * (alternate access → US Newsstream database). * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
*


External links

* * {{Authority control Companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange Manufacturing companies based in Massachusetts American companies established in 1979 Technology companies established in 1979 Health care companies based in Massachusetts Companies based in Middlesex County, Massachusetts Marlborough, Massachusetts Life science companies based in Massachusetts Implants (medicine) Medical technology companies of the United States Health care companies established in 1979 Technology companies based in Massachusetts 1979 establishments in Massachusetts 1992 initial public offerings American brands