February Distributor Newsletter - Hudson RCI respiratory update

On 1 February, Medline started the order-to-cash process for Hudson items. Although the Teleflex and Medline integration teams worked excellently together, we are facing supply challenges on Aquapak until March due to the following reasons:

• Significant global increase in demand due to Medtronic’s exit of the market with their comparable product Respiflo™
• Customer stockpiling in anticipation of the holiday season and increasing COVID cases in December and January
• Disruptions in supply chain, including limited production capacity, labour shortages and shipping constraints.

To mitigate the Aquapak supply situation and to ease the shortage, we are airfreighting a significant amount of inventory. We expect the first deliveries to arrive at the end of February. This will not eliminate the supply shortage, but will enable us to expedite deliveries. We recognise the impact this disruption will have on your customers’ clinical procedures and are committed to resolving the issues as quickly as possible. Medline has already undertaken major investments in new manufacturing capacity to meet future demand for Aquapak and other respiratory products.

We will keep you updated as the situation evolves over the coming weeks.