In this episode of Medtech Matters, a podcast focused on the medical device manufacturing industry and the factors impacting it, we speak with Chris Hagen, vice president of the global COVID-19 task force and marketing for Beckman Coulter. He addresses a number of issues around the COVID-19 pandemic, from challenges with the ramp-up of production to securing needed supplies from a supply chain under stress. Hagen also speaks to the federal government’s response and how it affected diagnostic manufacturers. Specifically, the following questions are addressed.

• For those who don’t know what Beckman Coulter is, can you give a brief introduction?
• How has Beckman Coulter contributed to the fight against COVID-19?
• What was it like for a firm like Beckman Coulter to scale up manufacturing to meet the incredible demand for COVID-19 diagnostics?
• What was the impact of all those tests on the diagnostic infrastructure, such as the processing labs, and were the manufacturers able to aid with this portion in any way?
• How is the federal government trying to increase testing capability and what’s the impact on manufacturers?
• For Beckman Coulter, what are the lessons learned from the pandemic that you can carry forward?

Listen to this episode and see what you think of the industry’s response to the need for COVID diagnostics. If you’d like to share thoughts, ask questions, or suggest a future participant for Medtech Matters, please reach out to me at sfenske@rodmanmedia.com.

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