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28 DEVICES & IMPLANTS 10 Things to Know About Zimmer Biomet By Adam Schrag Z immer and Biomet were two medical device giants operating in the same small Indiana town until their 2015 merger. Today, Zimmer Biomet is one of the largest medical device companies in the world. Here are 10 things to know about Zimmer Biomet: 1. Zimmer was founded in 1927 by Justin O. Zimmer in Warsaw, Ind., as an aluminum splint-manufacturing company. Mr. Zimmer's splints guaranteed stability while also allowing X-rays to pass through so that physicians could better asses their patients' healing process. 2. In 1929, Zimmer grew on an international scale when a Scottish sur- geon purchased $1,200 worth of splints. By 1930, as the company raked in $200,000 of annual sales, not even the Great Depression could hold Zimmer back. 3. Biomet was founded in 1977 by Dane A. Miller, PhD, Niles L. Noblitt, Jerry L. Ferguson and M. Ray Harroff in Warsaw, Ind. e company recorded net sales of only $17,000 in its first year of oper- ation with a net loss of $63,000. In 1978, Dr. Miller's grandmother became the first patient to receive a Biomet hip implant. By 1980, the company had reached $1.1 million in net sales and broke ground on a new facility. 4. In 1982, Biomet announced its presence on the international stage by acquiring Orthopedic Equipment Company. e move gave Biom- et a serious presence in Europe as well as in the United States. Biomet then went on to introduce PPS porous plasma spray coating in the same year. e spray enhanced biologic fixation between implant and bone and helped Biomet continue its ascent. 5. Zimmer purchased Biomet in 2015 for approximately $13.35 bil- lion. e combined company is headquartered in Warsaw, with re- gional offices around the world. 6. On January 31, 2017, Zimmer Biomet announced that their 2016 fourth quarter sales rose 4.1 percent over the prior year. In particular, knee product income increased by 20.9 percent, hip product income by 21.8 percent, and spine and CMF sales by 63.7 percent. Analysts predict that the company will see an increase in knee, spine, SET and reconstruc- tive markets. 7. David Dvorak has been the company's President and CEO since 2007. Previously, he had been group president of global businesses and chief legal officer. Other members of the leadership team include Vice Pres- ident, Corporate Controller and Chief Accounting Officer Tony Col- lins; Vice President of global integration Derek Davis; President of the Americas Robert D. Delp; and Senior Vice President of Global Human Resources William P. Fisher. 8. One of Zimmer Biomet's featured spine products is the Sequoia ora- columbar Pedicle Screw System with the TM Ardis Interbody System. e Sequoia offers the surgeon better surgical flow, speedier implementation, less head splay and added comfort during the spinal fusion operation. 9. Today, the company has over 8,500 employees with a goal to provide orthopedic surgeons and clinicians with effective solutions that will help restore patients' mobility and various injuries. 10. In 2016, Zimmer Biomet acquired LDR, putting it in position to be a leader in the $10 billion global spine market. e acquisition also helped advance Zimmer Biomet's cervical disc replacement segment. n Gap Between Knee Implant Selling Price and Insurance Payment Tops $225M; Hip Implants Top $199M: 5 Key Notes By Laura Dyrda A new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association examined the estimated dif- ference between the purchase price and insurance payment for knee and hip replacement implants. The study authors examined knee and hip replacements for patients under 65 years old who had private insurance. There were 40,372 total knee replacement patients and 23,570 total hip replacement patients who underwent surgery from 2011 to 2015 included in the study. The re- searchers found: 1. Average selling price based on data from the Orthopedic Network News was $5,023 for the knee implants. However, the average insurance payment was $10,604 for knee implants. 2. Average selling price for hip implants was $5,619.75 and the average insurance payment was $11,751 for the implants. 3. The cumulative difference between the average selling price and insurance payments for patients studied was $225.3 million for total knee replacement and $199.7 mil- lion for total hip replacement. 4. The study authors noted patient characteristics can ac- count for a small variance in implant cost. 5. Almost half of the patients who underwent total joint re- placements in 2014 were under 65 years old and younger patients are expected to account for the majority of total joint procedures over the next decade. The study authors suggested the cost of medical devices be made publicly available, insurance companies require hospitals to identify medical devices used and hospitals be more aggressive in negotiating prices with device manu- facturers in the future, according to a US News report. n