Covidien & covid-19: The Tipline for 31 March 2020

As the US faces a shortage of ventilators amidst the covid-19 pandemic, a New York Times report has spotlighted Covidien’s 2012 acquisition of an innovative competitor. The US government had reportedly contracted Newport Medical Instruments to manufacture tens-of-thousands of ventilators for its emergency stockpiles, but those plans collapsed following its acquisition by Covidien, leaving some competition practitioners to question if the Federal Trade Commission missed a “killer acquisition”.