Invacare ends year with losses

ELYRIA, Ohio - Invacare reported a net loss of $9.39 million for the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, 2014, compared to a net loss of $5.77 million for the same period in 2013.

The company reported net sales of $318.2 million vs. $330.8 million.

Invacare reported a net loss of $56.1 million for the year compared to net earnings of $33.1 million for 2013. It reported net sales of $1.27 billion vs. $1.33 billion.

For North America HME, Invacare reported a net loss of $9.1 million for the fourth quarter compared to a net loss of $11.6 million for the same period in 2013. It reported net sales of $124.8 million vs. $140.7 million.

Invacare reported a net loss of $59.2 million for North America HME for 2014 compared to $44.4 million in 2013. Net sales were $507.9 million vs. $589.2 million.

Continuing to impact Invacare's earnings: A consent decree with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that has limited its ability to manufacture and sell custom power wheelchairs and seating system at its Taylor Street facility; a shift by providers to lower cost products due to competitive bidding; and the loss of a significant order for HomeFill oxygen systems by a national account.

Also impacting earnings: Invacare's decision to exit the scooter business in the U.S.

Interim President and CEO Rob Gudbranson said lifting the consent decree was still a work in progress.

“We still have work to do, including process improvements for addressing complaint data, before we can verify the effectiveness of our solutions and complete the third-party certification audit,” he stated in a press release.

Once Invacare completes the third-party audit, it must submit a report to the FDA for review and approval.

“The company cannot predict the timing and outcome of the third audit,” it stated in the release.