Stryker, a medical device manufacturer based in Kalamazoo, Michigan, is the subject of a Polish criminal investigation over alleged bribery. According to a report from the Washington Post, the company is accused of bribing an estimated 100 individuals and more than 50 hospitals to receive contracts.

The Polish arm of Stryker is currently undergoing investigation over these allegations. The investigation includes a search of apartments and offices that may hold evidence related to the case. Investigators state that the alleged bribery is related to contracts signed from 2003 to 2006. A company representative at Stryker declined to comment on the case.

The recent criminal investigation follows a series of negative developments at the company. In December, a federal court in Missouri unsealed a lawsuit against the company over its off-label marketing practices. According the lawsuit, Stryker and several other companies marketed medication pumps for use in articulated joints. However, the FDA had rejected the use of pain pumps for orthopedic purposes.

In November of last year, a federal court blocked Stryker’s attempt to end a liability suit over the company’s metal-on-metal Trident hip implant. A few weeks earlier, the United States Security & Exchange Commission charged Mark Foldy, a marketing executive at the company, with insider trading that generated $1.7 million in illegal kickbacks and profits.

References

www.washingtonpost.com/business/polands-prosecutors-investigate-allegati...