The gig is up for Baxter. The company line of "we will sell to anybody that wants to buy our product" is up. The govt investigators will look into the pricing schemes and see that Baxter is only selling saline product to those customers that commit to buying other Baxter products. Let's see how many hospitals or health systems Baxter can show that received a committed supply of saline over multiple years that did not buy infusion pumps, Clinimix or other drugs, or Clearlink. Is there a contract for a small hospital that doesn't buy the full Baxter portfolio and just wants to purchase saline at a decent price? No there isn't. Somehow the GPOs are complicit in this and it will be interesting to see if they are part of the investigation as well. Saline shouldn't be a loss leader to bring on the purchase of other products. Sell it at a price that a hospital will purchase if they buy just saline, or other Baxter products as well. Baxter will only sell it at a reasonable price if other products are purchased. Will be interesting to see what happens to Braun and Hospira Pfizer/ICU).
So many reps were aware of this and forced to refuse product to small customers. Baxter will get away with this as they have every other time. Remember awp and pumps catching on fire? Payoff is all it takes when you have big pockets and connections.
Baxter said no product except to customers willing to sign contract for all. Other companies had product and jacked up the price to small customers. Everyone knew this was going on.
How many times did a scenario like this happen? This needs to be heard by the Feds... Baxter rep: "You can have our saline if you commit to buying all of our portfolio, including pumps." Hospital customer: "My Carefusion pumps are perfectly good and have many years of life left" Baxter rep: "I guess you should have purchased Sigma pumps" Hospital customer: "I did purchase Sigma, but they were recalled and Baxter wouldn't sell me any more pumps so I had to switch pump manufacturers." Baxter rep: "TS"
This DOJ corruption probe into price-fixing/gouging for IV solutions needs to go all the way up to the top levels of Baxter management. This was a top-down orchestrated activity. You know who you are.
Almost every sales rep was involved in this. Customers previously buying solutions and suddenly denied product due to shortage. BTW can have product if sign long-term contract for all products.
Baxter history. Nothing will happen except another payoff. Happened before with pump price contract manipulation, colleague pump malfunction coverup, and other such profit enhancements. Holding customers hostage for fluids to gain full product line contract was standard. Customers begged and complained bitterly.
Hostage holding money suckers. That is why the illegal activity will continue with Baxter squeezing $ from smaller customers to gain market share and $.
Will be interesting to see what ICU Medical does with their IV Solution pricing now that they've fired the whole Hospira salesforce and said that Hospira's price increase strategy was not working