Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) plans to lay off nearly 300 workers in Pennsylvania as it winds down its Animas insulin pump business.
The layoffs for 297 are slated for Animas operations in West Chester and Wayne, Pa., effective Dec. 15, according to a notice filed with the Commonwealth’s Dept. of Labor & Industry. J&J announced the shutdown earlier this month for the 410-worker operation, offering to help some 90,000 Animas patients transfer to products made by rival Medtronic (NYSE:MDT).
Other competitors were quick to pounce. Insulet (NSDQ:PODD) and Dexcom (NSDQ:DXCM) last week floated a joint promotion aimed at luring Animas users.
“We will continue to operate certain functions of the business – including manufacturing, customer and safety support, as examples – for an indeterminate amount of time as we help our patients transition,” Animas spokeswoman Bridget Doherty told the the Philadelphia Inquirer. “Accordingly, we will provide support to impacted employees and their families through the transition.
“A decision and timing to exit markets outside of the U.S. and Canada is pending consultation with relevant works councils,” Doherty said, noting that the Keystone State plants will continue to operate for an “indeterminate amount of time to provide support for our current patients, help them transition, and to support the business outside the U.S. and Canada.”
The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation said the market withdrawal for the second-largest insulin pump maker pares the options for diabetes patients.
“It means fewer treatment options,” JDRF CEO Derek Rapp said, according to the newspaper. “Pump choice is critical, and people with type 1 diabetes need the ability to choose the devices that work best for them.”
J&J is also evaluating another of its diabetes businesses, LifeScan, which makes the OneTouch line of blood glucose monitoring products.
