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Invacare's Monaghan takes control

Invacare's Monaghan takes control New president and CEO has 90-100 day plan

ELYRIA, Ohio - New President and CEO Matthew Monaghan will personally head up Invacare's beleaguered North America HME business on an interim basis.

Monaghan, who came on board April 1, will also head up Invacare's Institutional Products Group business, he announced during a conference call on April 23 to discuss the company's first quarter earnings.

“The North American business needs specific attention to deliver improved financial results and my direct involvement in the business will be critical,” Monaghan said.

John Remmers, executive vice president of North America commercial operations & global product development, is no longer with Invacare, according to Lara Mahoney, director of investor relations & corporate communications.

Monaghan says his direct involvement in North America HME will give him “unfettered access” to the business, allowing him to speed up turnaround efforts.

“I've got an internal objective of a 90- to 100-day plan, which will not be a full, long-term strategy for the business, but that will be the plan to get the most important things going,” he said.

A consent decree with the Food and Drug Administration, which limits Invacare's ability to manufacture and sell custom power wheelchair and seating systems, continues to hamper the company's earnings for the North America HME business, though less for the first quarter of 2015 than for previous quarters. Net revenues for the business were $125.2 million for the first quarter of this year compared to $124.5 million for the same period last year, relatively stable. Net losses were $8.8 million instead of $17.9 million.

Invacare has been in the process of completing a third and final certification audit with a third-party expert for almost two years now. It completed and received FDA approval for its second audit in July 2013.

Monaghan says Invacare is making “good progress on key quality implementation plans.”

Overall, Invacare reported net sales of $289 million for the first quarter this year compared to $304.5 million for the same period last year. Net losses were $7.5 million vs. $18.9 million.

Monaghan says the way forward for Invacare is not necessarily the way of the past and he plans to make “key changes” to the company.

“Health care is a vital part of the economy and it is fundamentally growing in every area of the world,” he said. “More and more technologies are moving into the home and long-term care environments—this is Invacare's strength. And I think my advantage being new to the company is having a fresh perspective on how we can differentiate ourselves in both technology and services, so we can meet these market needs.”

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