10-K
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 10-K
☒ ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the Fiscal Year Ended December 31, 2023
OR
☐TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the Transition Period From to
Commission file number: 001-36309
INOGEN, INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
Address of principal executive offices Zip Code
Registrant’s telephone number, including area code (805)562-0500
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
Title of each class Trading Symbol(s) Name of each exchange on which registered
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes☒ No ☐
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes ☐No☒
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the Registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes☒ No ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes☒ No ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
Large accelerated filer ☐ Accelerated filer ☒
Non-accelerated filer ☐ Smaller reporting company ☐
Emerging growth company ☐
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☒
If securities are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act, indicate by check mark whether the financial statements of the registrant included in the filing reflect the correction of an error to previously issued financial statements. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether any of those error corrections are restatements that required a recovery analysis of incentive-based compensation received by any of the registrant’s executive officers during the relevant recovery period pursuant to §240.10D-1(b). ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes ☐ No ☒
The aggregate market value of the voting and non-voting equity held by non-affiliates of the registrant, based on the closing price of the shares of common stock on the last business day of its most recently completed second fiscal quarter, as reported on the NASDAQ Stock Market, was approximately $267.9 million. Shares of common stock held by each executive officer and director and by each other person who may be deemed to be an affiliate of the Registrant, have been excluded from this computation. The determination of affiliate status for this purpose is not necessarily a conclusive determination for other purposes.
The number of shares of the registrant’s Common Stock outstanding as of February 23, 2024 was 23,326,783.
DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE
Portions of the registrant’s definitive Proxy Statement to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission in connection with the registrant’s 2024 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, which will be filed subsequent to the date hereof, are incorporated by reference into Part III of this Form 10-K. Such Proxy Statement will be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission not later than 120 days following the end of the registrant’s fiscal year ended December 31, 2023.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
Part I
Item 1. Business 3
Item 1A. Risk Factors 21
Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments 61
Item 1C. Cybersecurity 61
Item 2. Properties 62
Item 3. Legal Proceedings 62
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures 62
Part II
Item 6. [Reserved] 64
Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk 83
Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data 84
Item 9A. Controls and Procedures 85
Item 9B. Other Information 87
Item 9C. Disclosure Regarding Foreign Jurisdictions That Prevent Inspections 87
Part III
Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance 88
Item 11. Executive Compensation 88
Item 14. Principal Accounting Fees and Services 88
Part IV
Item 15. Exhibits, Financial Statement Schedules 89
i
INOGEN, INC.
PART I
Forward-Looking Statements
This Annual Report on Form 10-K contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Act, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act, that are based on our management’s beliefs and assumptions and on information currently available to our management. The forward-looking statements are contained principally in the sections entitled “Business,” “Risk Factors,” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.” Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements concerning the following:
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information concerning our possible or assumed future cash flows, revenue, sources of revenue, results of operations, and operating and other expenses;
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our ability to develop new products, improve our existing products, and increase the value of our products;
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the ability of our competitors to introduce products to the market that may be lower priced than ours, may have more product features than ours, or are otherwise more accepted by the market, including our home medical equipment partners;
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the impact of expense inflation on the components we use in our products, and the impact of inflation of the ability of our customers to afford our products;
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our assessment and expectations regarding reimbursement rates, future rounds of competitive bidding, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) changes to Home Use of Oxygen national coverage determination and how those changes are implemented, and future changes in rental revenue;
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our expectations regarding the timing of new products and product improvement launches as well as product features and specifications;
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our expectations with respect to our cost reduction initiatives;
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our expectations regarding regulatory approvals and government and third-party payor coverage and reimbursement;
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our ability to attract and keep key talent to the Company;
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our ability to efficiently integrate Physio-Assist SAS and our ability to obtain regulatory clearances in the U.S.;
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market share expectations, unit sales, business strategies, financing plans, expansion of our business, competitive position, industry environment, and potential growth opportunities;
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our expectations regarding the market size, market growth, and the growth potential for our business;
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our ability to grow our business and enter new markets;
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our expectations regarding the average selling prices and manufacturing costs of our products and our ongoing efforts to reduce average unit costs for our systems;
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the potential for future supply chain constraints;
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our expectations with respect to our European and U.S. facilities and our expectations with respect to our contract manufacturer in Europe;
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our expectations regarding tariffs being imposed by the U.S. on certain imported materials and products;
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our expectations regarding the impact and implementation of trade regulations on our supply chain;
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our expectations regarding excess tax benefits or deficiencies from stock-based compensation and our assessments and estimates of our effective tax rate;
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our expectations of future accounting pronouncements or changes in our accounting policies;
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our internal control environment;
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the effects of seasonal trends on our results of operations and estimated hiring plans; and
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our expectation that our existing capital resources and the cash to be generated from expected product sales and rentals will be sufficient to meet our projected operating and investing requirements for at least the next twelve months.
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Forward-looking statements include statements that are not historical facts and can be identified by terms such as “anticipates,” “believes,” “could,” “seeks,” “estimates,” “expects,” “intends,” “may,” “plans,” “potential,” “predicts,” “projects,” “should,” “will,” “would,” or similar expressions and the negatives of those terms.
Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that may cause our actual results, performance, or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. We discuss these risks in greater detail in Part I, Item 1A, “Risk Factors,” and elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC. Given these uncertainties, you should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Moreover, we operate in a very competitive and rapidly changing environment. New risks emerge from time-to-time. It is not possible for us to predict all risks, nor can we assess the impact of all factors on our business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements we may make. In light of these risks, uncertainties and assumptions, the future events and trends discussed in this Annual Report on Form 10-K may not occur and actual results could differ materially and adversely from those anticipated or implied in the forward-looking statements.
The forward-looking statements made in this Annual Report on Form 10-K relate only to events as of the date on which the statements are made. Except as required by law, we assume no obligation to update these forward-looking statements, or to update the reasons actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements, even if new information becomes available in the future.
This Annual Report on Form 10-K also contains estimates, projections and other information concerning our industry, our business, and the markets for certain diseases, including data regarding the estimated size of those markets, and the incidence and prevalence of certain medical conditions. Information that is based on estimates, forecasts, projections, market research or similar methodologies is inherently subject to uncertainties and actual events, or circumstances may differ materially from events and circumstances reflected in this information. Unless otherwise expressly stated, we obtained this industry, business, market and other data from reports, research surveys, studies and similar data prepared by market research firms and other third parties, industry, medical and general publications, government data and similar sources.
“Inogen,” “Inogen One,” “Inogen One G3,” “G4,” “G5,” “Oxygen.Anytime.Anywhere,” “Intelligent Delivery Technology,” “Inogen At Home,” the Inogen design, “TIDAL ASSIST,” “TAV,” and “SIDEKICK” are registered trademarks with the United States Patent and Trademark Office of Inogen, Inc. We own pending applications for the marks “Rove,” “Inogen Rove,” “Inogen Rove 4” and “Inogen Rove 6” with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. We own trademark registrations for the mark “Inogen” in Argentina, Australia, Canada, Chile, China, Columbia, Ecuador, South Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, Europe (European Union Registration), the United Kingdom, Iceland, India, Israel, Japan, Kuwait, New Zealand, Norway, Paraguay, Peru, Turkey, Singapore, South Africa, Switzerland, and Uruguay. We own a pending application for the mark “Inogen” in the Dominican Republic. We own a trademark registration for the mark “イノジェン” in Japan. We own trademark registrations for the marks “印诺真”and “艾诺根” in China. We own trademark registrations for the mark “Inogen One” in Australia, Canada, China, South Korea, Mexico, Europe (European Union Registration), and the United Kingdom. We own a trademark registration for the mark “Satellite Conserver” in Canada. We own a trademark registration for the mark “Inogen At Home” in Europe (European Union Registration) and the United Kingdom. We own trademark registrations for the mark “G4” in Europe (European Union Registration) and the United Kingdom. We own trademark registrations for the mark “G5” in Europe (European Union Registration) and the United Kingdom. We own trademark registrations for the marks “Inogen Rove 4” and “Inogen Rove 6” in Europe (European Union Registration) and the United Kingdom. We own pending applications for the marks “Inogen Rove” and “Rove” in Canada, Europe (the European Union), and the United Kingdom. We own pending applications for the marks “Inogen Rove 4” and “Inogen Rove 6” in Canada. We own a trademark registration for the Inogen design in Bolivia. We own a trademark registration for the Inogen design in China. We own a trademark registration for the mark “إنوجن” in Saudi Arabia. We own a pending application for the Inogen One G5 design in Brazil. Other service marks, trademarks, and trade names referred to in this Annual Report on Form 10-K are the property of their respective owners. “PHYSIO-ASSIST,” “PHYSIOASSIST,” the Physio-Assist logo, “SIMEOX,” “SIMEOX PRO,” “SIMESOFT,” “PHYSIOWEB,” “PHYSIODATA,” “PHYSIOSERVICES,” and the Pissenlit logo are registered trademarks of Inogen’s wholly-owned subsidiary Physio-Assist. Physio-Assist owns trademark registrations for the mark “PHYSIO-ASSIST” in European Union, France, Japan, United Kingdom, and USA. Physio-Assist owns trademark registrations for the Physio-Assist logo in China, European Union, France, Japan, South Korea, United Kingdom, and USA. Physio-Assist owns trademark registrations for the mark SIMEOX in European Union, France, Japan, Russia, United Kingdom, and USA. Physio-Assist owns trademark registrations in France for the mark “PHYSIOASSIST,” “SIMESOFT,” “SIMEOX PRO,” “PHYSIOWEB,” “PHYSIODATA,” “PHYSIOSERVICES,” and the Pissenlit logo.
In this Annual Report on Form 10-K, “we,” “us” and “our” refer to Inogen, Inc. and its subsidiaries.
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ITEM 1. BUSINESS
General
Inogen, Inc. is a medical technology business that primarily focuses on respiratory health. Inogen, Inc. develops, manufactures, and markets innovative portable oxygen concentrators (POCs) used to deliver supplemental long-term oxygen therapy to patients suffering from chronic respiratory conditions. Our proprietary Inogen One® and Inogen Rove systems concentrate the air around the patient to offer a source of supplemental oxygen 24 hours a day, 7 days a week with a battery and can be plugged into an outlet when at home, in a car, or in a public place with outlets available. While often used concomitantly with stationary oxygen concentrators and oxygen compressed gas tanks, our Inogen One systems reduce the patient’s reliance on stationary concentrators and scheduled deliveries of tanks with a finite supply of oxygen, thereby improving patient quality of life and fostering mobility.
Corporate history
We were incorporated in Delaware on November 27, 2001. On February 14, 2014, we completed an initial public offering of common stock and began trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market, trading under the ticker symbol "INGN".
We incorporated Inogen Europe Holding B.V., a Dutch limited liability company, on April 13, 2017. On May 4, 2017, Inogen Europe Holding B.V. acquired all issued and outstanding capital stock of MedSupport Systems B.V. (MedSupport) and began operating under the name Inogen Europe B.V. We merged Inogen Europe Holding B.V. and Inogen Europe B.V. on December 28, 2018. Inogen Europe B.V. is the remaining legal entity. We completed the acquisition of New Aera, Inc. (New Aera) on August 9, 2019. On September 14, 2023, we completed the acquisition of all of the issued and outstanding capital stock of Physio-Assist SAS (Physio-Assist) and its wholly-owned subsidiary PhysioAssist GmbH.
The market
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
We are focused on oxygen therapy and opportunities in the global respiratory care market. We believe that our portable oxygen therapy solutions can help patients with chronic respiratory conditions, including patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, (COPD).
COPD is a group of lung diseases including chronic bronchitis and emphysema. The main cause of COPD is smoking, but other factors like air pollution, secondhand smoke and dust, as well as fumes and chemicals can cause COPD. There is currently no cure for COPD, and it is a progressive and debilitating disease that is characterized by a gradual loss of lung function and airflow limitation that is not fully reversible. The symptoms of COPD can range from chronic cough and sputum production to insufficient levels of oxygen in the blood, and severe shortness of breath.
COPD has a huge impact on patients and also to the healthcare system. According to the Forum of International Respiratory Societies, an estimated 200 million people in the world have COPD. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention in the United States estimates that prevalence of COPD among adults 18 years or older was approximately 6.1% based on CDC data of age-adjusted prevalence of COPD from 2011 to 2021. COPD is a major cause of disability and the sixth leading cause of death according to the CDC. In terms of economic impact, the total economic cost from COPD in the United States was approximately $49 billion in 2020 with close to 925,000 COPD emergency department visits in 2020.
A peer-reviewed article in the New England Journal of Medicine has stated that long-term oxygen therapy has been shown help COPD patients who have severely low blood oxygen or hypoxemia. Hypoxemic patients are unable to convert oxygen found in the air into the bloodstream in an efficient manner. Over time it can lead to a lack of oxygen in organs and tissues (hypoxia) and acute respiratory failure. As COPD progresses into later stages, patients may need long-term oxygen therapy as part of their treatment. Other diseases including cystic fibrosis or congestive heart failure may lead to lower oxygen in the bloodstream and may also benefit from long-term oxygen therapy.
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Oxygen therapy
Inogen created its first portable oxygen concentrators with a goal of creating a product that allows patients the chance to remain ambulatory while managing the impact of their disease. Traditionally, oxygen patients have relied on stationary oxygen concentrator systems for use in the home and oxygen tanks or cylinders for mobile use, which we refer to as the delivery model. The tanks and cylinders must be delivered regularly and have a finite amount of oxygen, which requires patients to plan activities outside of their homes around delivery schedules and a finite oxygen supply. Additionally, patients must attach long, cumbersome tubing to their stationary concentrators simply to enable mobility within their homes.
We believe the following have hindered the market acceptance of portable oxygen concentrators:
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to obtain portable oxygen concentrators, patients are dependent on home medical equipment providers, which have made significant investments in the physical distribution infrastructure to support the distribution and delivery of stationary devices and therefore may be disincentivized to encourage adoption of portable oxygen concentrators;
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home medical equipment providers cannot easily convert their businesses to non-delivery models in oxygen due to low total reimbursement for oxygen therapy, capital expenditure constraints, investments that are spread across multiple product lines, and uncertainty around reimbursement rate changes;
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lack of access to switch from oxygen tank or liquid deliveries to a portable oxygen concentrator using their insurance benefits due to the nature of the capped reimbursement structure; and
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constrained manufacturing costs of conventional portable oxygen concentrators, driven by home medical equipment provider preference for products that have lower upfront equipment cost.
We believe we have the opportunity to grow and further develop the market for portable oxygen concentrator utilization, particularly for patients with chronic respiratory conditions.
Bronchiectasis
We expanded our addressable market opportunity into the bronchiectasis market with the acquisition of Physio-Assist in September 2023. Physio-Assist developed and manufactures Simeox, a technology-enabled airway clearance device with a proven efficacy and safety profile, currently approved for use outside of the United States, to treat a condition in the lungs known as bronchiectasis, where the lung’s bronchi become damaged and widened, that is often present in cystic fibrosis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Simeox is used in pulmonary rehabilitation centers, as well as at home. Simeox imminently expands our product offering in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), and potentially in the U.S. to serve COPD and other chronic disease patients who suffer from bronchiectasis with an innovative, non-invasive, and next generation airway clearance solution.
We believe that Inogen has an opportunity to potentially access a large growing bronchiectasis market opportunity in the U.S. upon regulatory clearance.
Business strategy
We believe there is an opportunity to grow portable oxygen therapy usage and develop the market further to help patients with chronic conditions breathe better and help providers improve patient outcomes. Our strategy for expanding our business and growing the market includes:
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Grow our core business. We believe we have an opportunity to drive penetration of POC-based oxygen therapy versus other oxygen therapy modalities.
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Enhance our business through innovation. We are committed to the ongoing innovation to meet the needs of patients, providers, and our business-to-business partners to manage lower blood oxygen and shortness-of-breath associated with COPD and other disease indications.
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Support adoption of Inogen products through clinical evidence and Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) advocacy. We believe that we can develop the market and expand growth opportunities by educating providers and generating clinical evidence. Our clinical approach involves investing in clinical studies and engaging with KOLs through our Scientific Advisory Board. The KOLs goals are focused on advocating for the right therapy for patients and changing the behavior of prescribers.
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Our products
Our Inogen One and Inogen Rove portable oxygen systems provide patients who require long-term oxygen therapy with a reliable, lightweight single solution product that we believe allows patients the chance to remain ambulatory while managing the impact of their disease and eliminates dependence on both oxygen tanks and cylinders as well as stationary concentrators. We have created a market leading portfolio of portable oxygen concentrators.
POC product features
We market our current portable product offerings, the Inogen Rove 6 system and the Inogen One G4 system as ambulatory solutions for long-term oxygen therapy. Our solutions can operate up to 96 months when used for up to 8 hours per day for the Inogen One G5, Rove 4 and Rove 6 and up to 60 months for the Inogen One G4, with servicing of sieve beds, filters, and accessories that can be performed by patients themselves. The technology in our Inogen One and Inogen Rove systems are effective for nocturnal use.
All of our portable oxygen systems are equipped with Intelligent Delivery Technology, a form of pulse-dose technology from which the patient receives a bolus of oxygen upon inhalation. Pulse-dose technology was developed to extend the number of hours an oxygen tank would last and is generally used on all ambulatory long-term oxygen therapy devices. Our proprietary conserver technology utilizes differentiated triggering sensitivity to quickly detect a breath and ensure oxygen delivery within the first 250 milliseconds of inspiration, the interval when oxygen has the most effect on lung gas exchange. During periods of sleep, respiratory rates typically decrease. Our systems actively respond to this changing physiology through the use of proprietary technology that increases bolus size. Our Intelligent Delivery Technology is designed to provide effective levels of blood oxygen saturation during sleep and all other periods of rest and activity.
We have also launched Inogen Connect, a wireless connectivity platform for the Inogen One G4, Inogen One G5and Rove 6 consisting of a front-end mobile application for use by long-term oxygen therapy users and a back-end database portal for use by homecare providers. The Inogen Connect app is compatible with Apple and Android platforms and includes patient features such as oxygen purity status, battery run time, product support functions, notification alerts, and remote software updates. We believe features of the back-end database portal such as remote troubleshooting, equipment health checks, and a location tracker will drive operational efficiencies for home oxygen providers and lower the total cost of servicing oxygen therapy patients.
We released our latest portable oxygen concentrator, Rove 6, in Europe in December 2022, and in the U.S. in July 2023. The Rove 6 was subsequently launched in the United States in August 2023. The Inogen One G5 portable oxygen concentrator was released to market in April 2019 and is among the lightest products on the market and has among the highest oxygen production capabilities of the other sub-5 pound portable oxygen concentrators on the market. The performance parameters around our systems allow us to serve ambulatory long-term oxygen patients based on their clinical needs. Our products enable us to address a patient’s particular clinical needs, as well as lifestyle and performance preferences.
Stationary oxygen concentrator
We market our own 5-liter stationary oxygen concentrator, the Inogen At Home, capable of delivering continuous flow of oxygen for the patients who require it. The Inogen At Home is one of the smaller, quieter and lower weight devices in this category. We also supply lower cost third-party manufactured stationary concentrators to our rental patients who require secondary sources of oxygen as a part of their CMS contract or to meet other clinical or payer requirements.
Airway clearance
We added Simeox, an airway clearance device, to our portfolio through the acquisition of Physio-Assist in September 2023. Simeox is commercialized in the European Union and several other countries and uses an innovative technology of oscillating negative pressure to liquify mucus in the bronchi and help patients evacuate it by coughing and or leveraging postural drainage. A particular advantage of this technology is that it can be used by patients capable of generating productive cough, regardless of the body size, chest wall abnormalities or back pains. The efficacy and safety of Simeox was demonstrated in 10 clinical trials. It is marketed in Europe under MDD regulations.
Domestic sales and marketing
In the United States, we market and distribute our products directly to consumers through a wide variety of direct-to-consumer sales and marketing strategies including consumer advertising, an inside sales staff, and a physician referral model. Of the $226.3 million of our 2023 revenue derived from the United States, approximately 42.4% represented direct-to-consumer sales, 29.3% represented sales to traditional home medical equipment providers, distributors (including our private label partner) and resellers, and 28.3% represented direct-to-consumer rentals.
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We believe we were the first oxygen therapy manufacturer to employ a direct-to-consumer marketing strategy, meaning we advertise directly to patients, process their physician paperwork, and provide clinical support as needed. While other manufacturers have also begun direct-to-consumer marketing campaigns to drive patient sales, we believe we are the only manufacturer of portable oxygen concentrators that employs a direct-to-consumer rental strategy in the United States, meaning we bill Medicare or insurance on their behalf. To pursue a direct-to-consumer rental strategy, our manufacturing competitors would need to meet national accreditation and state-by-state licensing requirements and secure Medicare billing privileges as well as compete with the home medical equipment providers who many of our manufacturing competitors sell to across their entire homecare business.
Our direct-to-consumer sales and marketing efforts are focused on generating awareness and demand for our Inogen One, Inogen Rove and Inogen At Home systems among patients, physicians and other clinicians, and third-party payors.
Our direct-to-consumer rental selling efforts are focused on selling to prescribers in order to serve patients earlier at the point of diagnosis and prescription while capturing a higher proportion of the life-time value of prescribed oxygen therapy. In March 2022, we embarked on an initiative to enhance and reorganize a prescriber sales team to accelerate our rental sales growth and build relationships with prescribers. We believe that these efforts are complementary with our focus on generating clinical evidence in the future and will increase our ability to further expand and develop the market.
Patients who choose to use their Medicare or private insurance benefits typically rent our systems. Those who purchase our product outright are typically patients who are not eligible to use their insurance benefits due to their capped rental status or their personal preferences. Our ability to rent to Medicare patients directly, bill Medicare and other third-party payors on their behalf, and service patients in their homes requires that we hold a valid Medicare supplier number, are accredited by an independent agency approved by Medicare, and comply with the differing licensure and process requirements in the 50 states in which we serve patients.
We use a variety of direct-to-consumer marketing strategies to generate interest in our solutions among current oxygen therapy patients. After a patient contacts us, we guide them through product selection and insurance eligibility, and, if they choose to move forward, process the necessary reimbursement and physician paperwork on their behalf as well as coordinate the shipping, instruction, and clinical setup process. In accordance with Medicare regulations, we do not initially contact patients directly and contact them only upon an inbound inquiry or upon receipt of a physician’s order.
We have been targeting private payors to become an in-network provider of oxygen therapy solutions, which we expect will reduce patient co-insurance amounts associated with using our solution. We believe this will result in both increased conversion of our initial leads, as well as direct referrals from insurance companies in some cases.
We also create demand for our products among other homecare equipment providers and business partners. In addition to generating consumer demand, we believe our products can create value for our business partners by either creating a retail sale opportunity for them or by reducing the need for costly home deliveries associated with oxygen tanks.
We also sell to resellers and traditional homecare providers in the United States, Canada, Europe, the Asia-Pacific region, Latin America, the Middle East and Africa that choose to deploy our products to long-term oxygen therapy patients either through insurance reimbursement or retail. These customers market the benefits of our products to oxygen therapy patients through consumer advertising and/or retail locations or to physicians through field-based prescriber sales representatives. We believe that in addition to the marketing efforts employed by our business customers, our own direct-to-consumer marketing efforts in the United States result in patient interest that our business customers field.
As of December 31, 2023, we employed 379 people in our Sales and Marketing organization.
Concentration of customers
We primarily sell our products to traditional home medical equipment providers, distributors, and resellers in the United States and in foreign countries on a credit basis. We also sell our products direct-to-consumers on a primarily prepayment basis. Medicare’s service reimbursement programs represented more than 10% of our total revenue for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021. Two customers each represented more than 10% of our net accounts receivable balance with net accounts receivable balances of $8.6 million and $5.0 million as of December 31, 2023 and $22.6 million and $9.9 million as of December 31, 2022.
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We rent products directly to consumers for insurance reimbursement, which resulted in a customer concentration relating to Medicare’s service reimbursement programs. Medicare’s service reimbursement programs accounted for 67.7%, 77.0% and 81.9% of rental revenue in 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively, and based on total revenue were 13.7%, 11.6% and 10.6% for 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively. Accounts receivable balances relating to Medicare’s service reimbursement programs (including held and unbilled receivables, net of allowances) amounted to $2.1 million or 4.9% of total net accounts receivable as of December 31, 2023 compared to $2.1 million or 3.4% of total accounts receivable as of December 31, 2022.
International
Approximately 28.3% of our total revenue was from outside the United States in 2023. We sell through distributors, resellers, and home medical equipment providers in certain markets within Canada, Europe, the Asia-Pacific region, Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa. To date, we have sold our products in a total of 62 countries outside the United States through distributors or directly to large “house” accounts, which include gas companies and home oxygen providers. In this case, we sell to and bill the distributor or house accounts directly, leaving the patient billing, support, and clinical setup to the local provider. As of December 31, 2023, we had 371 people located in the United States who focused on selling our products and providing service and support to distributors and house accounts worldwide and 8 in-house and contract employees and independent employees located in Europe who provided sales and customer support services to a portion of our international customers. No single international customer and no single foreign country represented more than 10% of our total revenue in 2023, 2022 or 2021.
Our wholly-owned subsidiary, Inogen Europe B.V. operates a European customer support site in the Netherlands. This site offers multi-lingual customer service and sales support to improve our European customer support at lower cost. Also, in support of our European operations, we produce our Inogen One G5 concentrators and perform related repair activities using a contract manufacturer, Foxconn, located in the Czech Republic to improve our ability to efficiently service our European customers. Physio-Assist sells their Simeox product throughout Europe, the Middle East, Canada, and Australia.
Customer support
We believe it is important to provide patients with quality customer support to achieve satisfaction with our products and optimal outcomes. As of December 31, 2023, we had a dedicated customer service team that was trained on our products, a clinical support team made up of licensed nurses or respiratory therapists, a patient intake team, an order intake team, and a dedicated billing services team. We provide our patients with a dedicated 24/7 hotline for which patients have direct access to our customer service representatives who can handle product-related questions. Additionally, clinical staff is on call 24/7 and available to patients whenever needed by the patient or the customer service representative. Our rental intake staff supports patients who wish to use their rental insurance benefits to receive our products and services. Our dedicated billing services team is available to answer patient questions regarding invoicing, reimbursement, and account status during normal business hours. We receive no additional reimbursement for patient support, but we provide high-quality customer service to enhance patient comfort, satisfaction, and safety with our products.
Third-party reimbursement
As a provider of home oxygen Inogen participates in the Medicare Part B, Supplementary Medical Insurance Program, which was established by the Social Security Act of 1965. For our rental revenue, we rely significantly on reimbursement from Medicare and private payors. Medicare reimbursement has historically been based on fixed fee schedules. In cases where we rent our long-term oxygen therapy solutions directly to patients, we bill third-party payors, such as Medicare or private insurance, for monthly rentals on behalf of our patients. We process and coordinate all physician paperwork necessary for reimbursement of our solutions. Our sales and rental intake teams are trained on how to verify benefits, review medical records and process physician paperwork. Additionally, an independent internal review is performed, and our products are not deployed until after physician paperwork is processed and reimbursement eligibility is verified and communicated to the patient.
We have contracts with Medicaid, Medicare Advantage, government and private payors that qualify us as an in-network provider for these payors. As a result, patients can rent or purchase our systems at the same patient obligation as other in-network oxygen suppliers. Private payors typically provide reimbursement at a rate similar to Medicare allowables for in-network plans. We anticipate that private payor reimbursement levels will generally be reset in accordance with Medicare payment amounts.
Medicare and private insurance rentals represented 20.3% of our total revenue in 2023, up from 15.0% of our total revenue in 2022. The increased rental revenue as a percentage of total revenue was primarily due to increased rental patients on service and increased reimbursement rates.
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We rely significantly on reimbursement from Medicare and private payors, including Medicare Advantage plans, Medicaid and patients for our rental revenue. For the year ended December 31, 2023, approximately 67.7% of our rental revenue was derived from Medicare’s traditional fee-for-service reimbursement programs.
Medicare revenue, including patient co-insurance and deductible obligations, represented 13.7% of our total revenue in the year ended December 31, 2023 and 11.6% in the year ended December 31, 2022.
For additional discussion of the impact of the recent Medicare reimbursement proposals, see “Risk Factors” herein.
Manufacturing and raw materials
We assemble the compressors, sieve beds, and concentrators in-house in order to improve quality control and reduce cost. In support of our European sales, we use a contract manufacturer located in the Czech Republic to manufacture low to medium volume products and perform product repairs to improve delivery to our European accounts. We typically enter into master service agreements with our major vendors for these components that specify supply requirements, quality and delivery terms. In certain cases, these agreements can be terminated by either party upon relatively short notice. We expect to maintain our assembly operations for our products at our facility in Texas. In 2023, we were focused on securing supply for components to make our products which included higher costs of semiconductor chips, reducing the cost of our Inogen One G5 product (excluding semiconductor chips), and increasing the robustness of our supply chain to reduce potential component constraints as we grow our business.
We also use lean manufacturing practices to maximize manufacturing efficiency. We rely on third-party manufacturers to supply several components of our products. We have elected to source certain key components from single sources of supply, including our batteries, motors, valves, stationary concentrators, columns, and some molded plastic components. In some cases, maintaining a single source of supply can allow us to control production costs and inventory levels and to manage component quality, but also may lead to supply availability risks and means our ability to maintain production is dependent on these single source suppliers, which may put us at an increased risk of supply disruption. In order to help mitigate against the risks related to a single source of supply, for certain components we qualify alternative suppliers and develop contingency plans for responding to disruptions. However, a continued reduction or halt in supply from one of these single-source suppliers, any dual-sourced suppliers or any other limited-source suppliers with similar sub-component suppliers could limit or prevent our ability to manufacture our products or devices until one or more sufficient replacement suppliers is found and qualified. For additional discussion of potential risks related to our manufacturing and raw materials, please see the risk factor entitled “We obtain some of the components, subassemblies and completed products included in our products from a single source or a limited group of manufacturers or suppliers, and in some cases those components are available in only limited supplies from limited manufacturers or suppliers, and the partial or complete loss of one or more of these manufacturers or suppliers could cause significant production delays or stoppages, an inability to meet customer demand, substantial loss in revenue, and an adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.”
We currently manufacture in a leased building in Plano, Texas and have a design facility at our Corporate Headquarters in Goleta, California, that we have registered with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and maintain a Quality Management system for which we have obtained International Standards Organization (ISO) 13485 certification.
Our entire organization is responsible for quality management. Our Quality Assurance and Regulatory Affairs departments oversee this by tracking component, device and organization performance and by training team members outside the Quality Assurance and Regulatory Affairs departments to become competent users of our Quality Management system. By measuring component performance, communicating daily with the production group and our suppliers, and reviewing customer complaints, our Quality Assurance department, through the use of our corrective action program, drives and documents continuous performance improvement of our suppliers and internal departments. Our Regulatory Affairs department also trains internal quality auditors to audit our adherence to the Quality Management system. Our Quality Management system has been certified to ISO 13485:2016 by BSI, a Notified Body.
As of December 31, 2023, we had 206 employees in operations, manufacturing, quality assurance, manufacturing engineering and repair in the United States.
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Research and development
We are committed to ongoing research and development to stay at the forefront of patient preference in the oxygen concentrator field. We use a combination of research and development staff along with third party resources to develop our products. As of December 31, 2023, our research and development staff included 25 engineers and scientists with expertise in air separation, compressors, pneumatics, electronics, embedded software, mechanical design, sensor, automation, connectivity, digital health, and manufacturing automation. The team is augmented with expertise and resources of our third-party partners specialized in medical device development. Our current research and development efforts are focused primarily on increasing functionality, improving design for ease-of-use, and reducing production costs of our existing products, as well as developing our next-generation oxygen concentrators. We have leveraged our eighty-seven issued patents while also have historically reduced our overall POC system cost and intend to continue to seek ways to reduce our cost of revenue through manufacturing and design improvements. Following the acquisition of Physio-Assist, the engineering team is also leveraging the legacy Physio-Assist team to advance the development of the Simeox product line.
We continue to focus our efforts on design and functionality improvements that enhance patient quality of life and reduce service costs.
Competition
The long-term oxygen therapy market is a highly competitive industry. We compete with a number of manufacturers and distributors of portable oxygen concentrators, as well as providers of other long-term oxygen therapy solutions such as home delivery of oxygen tanks or cylinders, stationary concentrators, transfilling concentrators, and liquid oxygen. Some of our competitors are large, well-capitalized companies with greater resources and other advantages than we have.
Our significant manufacturing competitors are Respironics (a subsidiary of Koninklijke Philips N.V.) Caire Medical (subsidiary of NGK Spark Plug), DeVilbiss Healthcare (a subsidiary of Drive Medical), O2 Concepts, Precision Medical, Gas Control Equipment (subsidiary of Colfax), Nidek Medical, 3B Medical, SysMed, and Belluscura. Respironics announced in early 2024 that it would be leaving the U.S. portable oxygen concentrator market until further regulatory assessments but continues to have product in the market. This is not an exhaustive list of competitors. Given the relatively straightforward regulatory path in the oxygen therapy device manufacturing market, we expect that the industry will become increasingly competitive in the future. For example, some major competitors have implemented direct-to-consumer sales models, which may increase their competitiveness and sales to patients, and we have recently seen the cost per generated lead trend higher than historical averages that may in part be due to increased competition. However, the strategies of these major competitors are currently limited to direct-to-consumer sales and do not include direct-to-consumer rentals where they would be responsible to meet national accreditation and state-by-state licensing requirements and secure Medicare billing privileges. Manufacturing companies compete for sales to providers primarily on the basis of price, quality/reliability, financing, bundling, product features, and service.
For many years, Lincare, Inc. (a subsidiary of the Linde Group), Apria Healthcare, Inc., AdaptHealth Corp., Rotech Healthcare, Inc., and Viemed Healthcare, Inc. have been among the market leaders in providing respiratory therapy products, while the remaining market is serviced by local providers. Because of reimbursement reductions, we expect more industry consolidation and volatility in ordering patterns based on how providers are restructuring their businesses and their access to capital. In addition, providers may reduce or eliminate purchases from us due to our increased focus on building out a prescriber sales team and pursuing rentals directly, which could be in competition with our providers in the United States. Respiratory therapy providers compete primarily on the basis of product features and service, rather than price, since reimbursement levels are established by Medicare and Medicaid, or by the individual determinations of private payors.
Government regulation
Inogen One systems, Inogen At Home systems, and related accessories are medical devices subject to extensive and ongoing regulation by the FDA, as well as other federal and state regulatory bodies in the United States and comparable authorities in other countries. The FDA regulations govern the following activities that we perform, or that are performed on our behalf, to ensure that medical products distributed domestically or exported internationally are safe and effective for their intended uses: product design and development, pre-clinical and clinical testing, manufacturing, labeling, storage, pre-market clearance or approval, record keeping, product marketing, advertising and promotion, sales and distribution, and post-marketing surveillance.
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FDA’s pre-market clearance and approval requirements
Unless an exemption applies, each medical device we seek to commercially distribute in the United States will require either a prior Section 510(k) of the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, or 510(k) clearance, a De Novo authorization, or a pre-market approval from the FDA. Medical devices are classified into one of three classes—Class I, Class II or Class III—depending on the degree of risk associated with each medical device and the extent of control needed to ensure safety and effectiveness. Devices deemed to pose lower risks are placed in either Class I or II, which requires the manufacturer to submit to the FDA a premarket notification requesting permission to commercially distribute the device. This process is generally known as 510(k) clearance. Some low-risk devices are exempted from this requirement. Devices deemed by the FDA to pose the greatest risk, such as life-sustaining, life-supporting or implantable devices, or devices deemed not substantially equivalent to a previously cleared 510(k) device, are placed in Class III, requiring premarket approval unless they may be marketed under a De Novo authorization from the FDA.
510(k) clearance pathway
When a 510(k) clearance is required, we must submit a premarket notification to the FDA demonstrating that our proposed device is substantially equivalent to a “predicate device” which can be a previously cleared and legally marketed 510(k) device or a device that was in commercial distribution before May 28, 1976 for which the FDA has not yet called for the submission of a pre-market approval application. The performance goal for the FDA to make a decision is within 90 FDA Days (calculated as the number of calendar days between the date the 510(k) was “accepted” by the FDA for substantive review and date of a decision, excluding the days the submission was on hold for an Additional Information request). As a practical matter, clearance often takes significantly longer. The FDA must “accept” the submission for substantive review and may require further information, including clinical data, to make a determination regarding substantial equivalence. If the FDA determines that the device, or its intended use, is not substantially equivalent to a previously cleared device or use, the FDA will either allow the submission of a De Novo application, or place the device, or the particular use, into Class III. We obtained 510(k) clearance for the original Inogen One system on May 13, 2004. We market the Inogen One G3, Inogen One G4, and Inogen One G5 systems pursuant to the original Inogen One 510(k) clearance. We obtained 510(k) clearance for the Inogen At Home system on June 20, 2014. We obtained 510(k) clearance for the Rove 4 system on December 9, 2022 and 510(k) clearance for the Rove 6 system on June 30, 2023.
De Novo authorization pathway
The De Novo authorization pathway is a request to the FDA to classify novel devices of low to moderate risk that had automatically been placed in Class III either by virtue of receiving a “not substantially equivalent” (NSE) determination in response to a 510(k) notification or because there is no available predicate to which to claim substantial equivalence. These types of applications are referred to as “Evaluation of Automatic Class III Designation” or “De Novo.” FDA review of a De Novo application may lead the FDA to authorize marketing of the device and classify it as either a Class I or II device, the latter of which can serve as a predicate device for other 510(k) premarket notification submissions.
Pre-market approval pathway
A pre-market approval application must be submitted to the FDA if the device cannot be cleared through the 510(k) or De Novo process. The pre-market approval application process is much more demanding than the 510(k) premarket notification process. A pre-market approval application must be supported by extensive data, including but not limited to technical, preclinical, clinical trials, manufacturing and labeling to demonstrate to the FDA’s satisfaction reasonable evidence of safety and effectiveness of the device.
After a pre-market approval application is submitted and the FDA determines that the application is sufficiently complete to permit a substantive review, the FDA will accept the application for review. The FDA has 180 days to review an “accepted” pre-market approval application, although the review of an application generally occurs over a significantly longer period of time and can take up to several years. During this review period, the FDA may request additional information or clarification of the information already provided. Also, an advisory panel of experts from outside the FDA may be convened to review and evaluate the application and provide recommendations to the FDA as to the approvability of the device. In addition, the FDA will conduct a preapproval inspection of the manufacturing facility to ensure compliance with quality system regulations.
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Clinical trials
Clinical trials are almost always required to support pre-market approval and are sometimes required for 510(k) clearance. In the United States, these trials generally require submission of an application for an Investigational Device Exemption, or IDE, to the FDA. The IDE application must be supported by appropriate data, such as animal and laboratory testing results, showing it is safe to test the device in humans and that the testing protocol is scientifically sound. The IDE must be approved in advance by the FDA for a specific number of patients unless the product is deemed a non-significant risk device eligible for more abbreviated IDE requirements. Clinical trials for significant risk devices may not begin until the IDE application is approved by the FDA and the appropriate institutional review boards, or IRBs, at the clinical trial sites. We, the FDA or the IRB at each site at which a clinical trial is being performed may suspend a clinical trial at any time for various reasons, including a belief that the risks to study subjects outweigh the benefits. Even if a trial is completed, the results of clinical testing may not demonstrate the safety and efficacy of the device, may be equivocal or may otherwise not be sufficient to obtain approval or clearance of the product.
We have sponsored clinical studies and real-world data analyses that recently resulted in several publications in the areas of the following: use of portable oxygen concentrators, impact of oxygen treatment modality and patient mobility on mortality and healthcare resource utilization, as well as the impact of ventilatory support in addition to oxygen therapy on exercise tolerance in patients with COPD. We continue to invest in clinical research activities to support new product development, as well as expansion of the uses of its products and services.
Pervasive and ongoing regulation by the FDA and foreign agencies
Even after a device receives clearance or approval and is placed on the market, numerous regulatory requirements apply. These include:
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establishment registration and device listing;
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quality system regulation, which requires manufacturers, including third-party manufacturers, to follow stringent design, testing, control, documentation and other quality assurance procedures during all aspects of the manufacturing process;
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labeling regulations and the FDA prohibitions against the promotion of products for un-cleared, unapproved or “off-label” uses, and other requirements related to promotional activities;
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medical device reporting regulations, which require that manufacturers report to the FDA if their device may have caused or contributed to a death or serious injury or malfunctioned in a way that would likely cause or contribute to a death or serious injury if the malfunction were to recur;
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corrections and removals reporting regulations, which require that manufacturers report to the FDA field corrections and product recalls or removals if undertaken to reduce a risk to health posed by the device or to remedy a violation of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act that may present a risk to health; and
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post-market surveillance regulations, which apply when necessary to protect the public health or to provide additional safety and effectiveness data for the device.
After a device receives 510(k) clearance, de novo clearance or a pre-market approval, any modification that could significantly affect its safety or effectiveness, or that would constitute a major change in its intended use, will require a new clearance or approval. The FDA requires each manufacturer to make this determination initially, but the FDA can review any such decision and can disagree with a manufacturer’s determination. We have modified various aspects of our Inogen One systems since receiving regulatory clearance, but we believe that new 510(k) clearances are not required for these modifications. If the FDA disagrees with our determination not to seek a new 510(k) clearance, the FDA may retroactively require us to seek 510(k) clearance or pre-market approval. The FDA could also require us to cease marketing and distribution and/or recall the modified device until 510(k) clearance or pre-market approval is obtained. Also, in these circumstances, we may be subject to significant regulatory fines and penalties.
Failure to comply with applicable regulatory requirements can result in enforcement action by the FDA, which may include any of the following sanctions: warning letters, fines, injunctions, civil or criminal penalties, recall or seizure of our products, operating restrictions, partial suspension or total shutdown of production, refusing our request for 510(k) clearance or pre-market approval of new products, rescinding previously granted 510(k) clearances or withdrawing previously granted pre-market approvals.
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As a medical device manufacturer, our manufacturing facilities are subject to periodic inspections and audits by the FDA, certain other regulatory agencies and authorities and our notified body. We have been periodically audited by these organizations and none have identified any major observations with our manufacturing facilities or Good Manufacturing Policies (GMP). International sales of medical devices are subject to foreign government regulations and registration, which may vary substantially from country to country. The time required to obtain approval by a foreign country may be longer or shorter than that required for FDA approval/clearance, and the requirements may differ. There is a trend towards harmonization of quality system standards among the European Union, United States, Canada and various other industrialized countries.
Licensure, registrations, and accreditation
In April 2009, we became an accredited Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics, Orthotics, and Supplies Medicare supplier by the Accreditation Commission for Health Care for our Goleta, California facility for Home/Durable Medical Equipment Services for oxygen equipment and supplies. Our Medicare accreditation must be renewed every three years by passing an on-site inspection. Our current accreditation with Medicare is due to expire in May 2024. Several states require that durable medical equipment providers be licensed in order to sell products to patients in that state. Certain of these states require that durable medical equipment providers maintain an in-state location. Most of our state licenses are renewed on an annual or bi-annual basis. If we were found not to be in compliance with applicable state regulations regarding licensure requirements, we could lose our licensure in that state, which could prohibit us from selling our current or future products to patients in that state. Loss of any state licensure or operating without a required state license may also impact our Medicare enrollment, which requires us to be properly licensed in every state where we bill for Medicare reimbursement. Loss or suspension of our Medicare enrollment may also affect any Medicare competitive bidding program contracts we may apply for in the future. In addition, we are subject to certain state laws regarding professional licensure. We believe that our certified clinicians are in compliance with all applicable state laws. If our clinicians were to be found non-compliant in a given state, we would need to modify our approach to providing education, clinical support and customer service in such state until compliance is achieved.
Federal anti-kickback and self-referral laws
The Federal Anti-Kickback Statute prohibits, among other things, the knowing and willful offer, payment, solicitation or receipt of any form of remuneration overtly or covertly, in cash or in kind, in return for, or to induce the:
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referral of an individual to a person for the furnishing or arranging for the furnishing of items or services reimbursable under Medicare, Medicaid or other federal healthcare programs; or
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purchase, lease, or order of, or the arrangement or recommendation of the purchasing, leasing, or ordering of any good, facility, item or service reimbursable under Medicare, Medicaid or other federal healthcare programs.
The Federal Anti-Kickback Statute applies to our arrangements with our United States sales representatives, customers and healthcare providers. Although we believe that we have structured such arrangements to comply with the Anti-Kickback Statute and other applicable laws, regulatory authorities may determine otherwise. Non-compliance with the Federal Anti-Kickback Statute can result in cancellation of our provider numbers and exclusion from Medicare, Medicaid or other federal healthcare programs, restrictions on our ability to operate in certain jurisdictions, as well as civil and criminal penalties, any of which could have an adverse effect on our business and results of operations.
Federal law also includes the Physician Self-Referral Law, commonly known as the “Stark Law,” which prohibits a physician from referring a patient to an entity with which the physician (or an immediate family member of the physician) has a financial relationship, for the furnishing of certain designated health services for which payment may be made by Medicare or Medicaid, unless an exception applies. Violation of the Stark Law could result in denial of payment, disgorgement of reimbursements received under a non-compliant arrangement, civil penalties and fees, and exclusion from Medicare, Medicaid or other federal healthcare programs. Although we believe that we have structured our provider arrangements to comply with current Stark Law requirements, regulatory authorities may determine otherwise.
Additionally, regulations issued for the Federal Anti-Kickback Statute and the Stark Law have undergone significant revisions, and it is reasonable to assume that revisions will occur in the future. While we have attempted to operate in compliance with these laws and regulations, our arrangements may ultimately be found to be not in compliance with applicable federal law.
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Federal False Claims Act
The Federal False Claims Act (as amended) provides that the federal government, and under certain circumstances a private party or whistleblower, may bring claims against a person who knowingly presents or causes to be presented a false or fraudulent request for payment to the federal government or uses a false statement or false record to get a claim approved. Violations of the False Claims Act can result in penalties up to $0.024 million for each claim, plus three times the amount of damages that the federal government sustained. The Company is not aware of any pending claims against it under the False Claims Act.
Civil monetary penalties law
The Federal Civil Monetary Penalties Law grants authority to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Office of Inspector General (OIG) to seek civil monetary penalties (CMPs) against an individual or entity based on a wide variety of conduct including violations of the Anti-Kickback Statute, Stark Law, and False Claims Act. An entity that offers to or transfers remuneration to any individual eligible for benefits under Medicare or Medicaid that such entity knows or should know is likely to influence such individual to order or receive from a particular provider, practitioner, or supplier any Medicare or Medicaid payable item or service may be liable for CMPs. We sometimes offer customers various discounts and other financial incentives in connection with the sales of our products. While we have processes in place to manage our discount and incentive programs, the federal government may find that our marketing activities violate the law. If we are found to be in non-compliance, we could be subject to CMPs of up to $0.121 million for each wrongful act, assessment of three times the amount claimed for each item or service and exclusion from Medicare, Medicaid and other federal healthcare programs. In addition, to the extent we are found to not be in compliance, we may be required to curtail or restructure our operations. Any penalties, damages, fines, exclusions, curtailment or restructuring of our operations could adversely affect our ability to operate our business and our financial results.
State fraud and abuse provisions
Many states have also adopted anti-kickback and self-referral laws similar and statutes similar to the False Claims Act that apply to DMEPOS suppliers regardless of the payor source, and violations of such laws could result in fines, penalties and restrictions on our ability to operate in these jurisdictions. The Company is not aware of any pending claims against it under such state laws.
HIPAA
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, or HIPAA, established uniform standards governing the conduct of certain electronic healthcare transactions and protecting the security and privacy of individually identifiable health information maintained or transmitted by healthcare providers, health plans and healthcare clearinghouses, which are referred to as “covered entities.” Three standards have been promulgated under HIPAA’s regulations: the Standards for Privacy of Individually Identifiable Health Information, which restrict the use and disclosure of certain individually identifiable health information, the Standards for Electronic Transactions, which establish standards for common healthcare transactions, such as claims information, plan eligibility, payment information and the use of electronic signatures, and the Security Standards, which require covered entities to implement and maintain certain security measures to safeguard certain electronic health information, including the adoption of administrative, physical and technical safeguards to protect such information.
In 2009, Congress passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, or ARRA, which included sweeping changes to HIPAA, including an expansion of HIPAA’s privacy and security standards. ARRA includes the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health, or HITECH, which, among other things, made HIPAA’s privacy and security standards directly applicable to business associates of covered entities effective February 17, 2010. A business associate is a person or entity that performs certain functions or activities on behalf of a covered entity that involve the use or disclosure of protected health information in connection with recognized healthcare operations activities. As a result, business associates are now subject to significant civil and criminal penalties for failure to comply with applicable standards. Moreover, HITECH created a requirement to report certain breaches of unsecured, individually identifiable health information and imposes penalties on entities that fail to do so. HITECH also increased the civil and criminal penalties that may be imposed against covered entities, business associates and possibly other persons and gave state attorneys general new authority to file civil actions for damages or injunctions in federal courts to enforce the federal HIPAA laws and seek attorney fees and costs associated with pursuing federal civil actions. The 2013 final HITECH omnibus rule modified the breach reporting standard in a manner that made more data security incidents qualify as reportable breaches.
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In addition to federal regulations issued under HIPAA, some states have enacted privacy and security statutes or regulations that, in some cases, are more stringent than those issued under HIPAA. In those cases, it may be necessary to modify our planned operations and procedures to comply with the more stringent state laws. If we fail to comply with applicable state laws and regulations, we could be subject to additional sanctions. Any liability from failure to comply with the requirements of HIPAA, HITECH or state privacy and security statutes or regulations could adversely affect our financial condition. The costs of complying with privacy and security related legal and regulatory requirements are burdensome and could have a material adverse effect on our results or operations.
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
In addition, there has been a recent trend of increased federal and state regulation of payments made to physicians and other healthcare providers. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, as amended by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act, among other things, imposed public reporting requirements on medical device manufacturers for payments or other transfers of value made by them to physicians and teaching hospitals, as well as ownership and investment interests held by physicians and their immediate family members. The Substance Use-Disorder Prevention that Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment for Patients and Communities Act enacted in 2018, extends the reporting and transparency requirements under the Physician Payments Sunshine Act to physician assistants, nurse practitioners and other mid-level practitioners, with reporting requirements going into effect in 2022 for payments made in 2021. Failure to submit required ownership and investment interest information may result in civil monetary penalties of up to an aggregate of $0.2 million per year (or up to an aggregate of $1.363 million per year for “knowing failures”), for all payments, transfers of value or ownership or investment interests that are not timely, accurately and completely reported in an annual submission. Certain states also mandate implementation of compliance programs, impose restrictions on device manufacturer marketing practices and/or require the tracking and reporting of gifts, compensation and other remuneration to physicians and other healthcare professionals.
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act also requires healthcare providers to voluntarily report and return an identified Medicare or Medicaid overpayment within 60 days after identifying the overpayment. Failure to repay the overpayment within 60 days will result in the claim being considered a “false claim” and the healthcare provider will be subject to False Claims Act liability, and additional CMPs of $0.024 million for each item or service that is not reported and returned.
International regulation
International sales of medical devices are subject to foreign governmental regulations, which vary substantially from country to country. The time required to obtain clearance or approval by a foreign country may be longer or shorter than that required for FDA clearance or approval, and the requirements may be different.
The primary regulatory body in Europe is the European Commission, which has adopted numerous directives and has promulgated standards regulating the design, manufacture, clinical trials, labeling and adverse event reporting for medical devices. Devices that comply with the requirements of a relevant directive will be entitled to bear the European Conformity Marking, or CE Mark, indicating that the device conforms to the essential requirements of the applicable directives and, accordingly, can be commercially distributed throughout the member states of the European Union, and other countries that comply with or mirror these directives. The method of assessing conformity varies depending on the type and class of the product, but normally involves a combination of self-assessment by the manufacturer and a third-party assessment by a notified body, an independent and neutral institution appointed by a country to conduct the conformity assessment. This third-party assessment may consist of an audit of the manufacturer’s quality system, review of technical documentation, and specific testing of the manufacturer’s device. Such an assessment may be required in order for a manufacturer to commercially distribute the product throughout these countries. ISO 13485 certification is a voluntary standard. Quality systems that implement relevant harmonized standards establish the presumption of conformity with the essential requirements for a CE Mark. We have the authorization to affix the CE Mark to our oxygen therapy products and to commercialize our devices in the European Union. Our ISO 13485 certification was issued on April 21, 2005, and our EC-Certificate was issued on March 16, 2007. We received European Medical Device Regulation on December 12, 2022.
Inogen has sold products in Canada since 2006 when we obtained our Medical Device License after obtaining appropriate licensure, accreditation, and meeting ISO Standard 13485. As of January 1, 2019, Health Canada implemented the Medical Device Single Audit Program (MDSAP) as the sole mechanism for manufacturers to demonstrate compliance with the quality management system requirements of the Medical Device Regulations, replacing the Canadian Medical Devices Conformity Assessment System (CMDCAS) program.
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In Australia, we must appoint an agent sponsor who will interact on our behalf with the Therapeutics Goods Administration (TGA). We must also prepare a technical file and declaration of conformity to essential requirements under Australian law, provide evidence of CE Marking of the device and submit this information via our agent sponsor to the TGA in a Medical Device Application. On June 4, 2007, we received our Certificate for Inclusion of a Medical Device in Australia.
U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act
Also, the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and similar worldwide anti-bribery laws generally prohibit companies and their intermediaries from making improper payments to foreign officials. We cannot assure you that our internal control policies and procedures will protect us from reckless or negligent acts committed by our employees, manufacturers, distributors, partners, collaborators or agents. Violations of these laws, or allegations of such violations, could result in legal fees, fines, penalties or prosecution and have a negative impact on our business, results of operations and reputation.
Intellectual property
We believe that to maintain a competitive advantage, we must develop and preserve the proprietary aspect of our technologies. We rely on a combination of patent, trademark, trade secret and other intellectual property laws, non-disclosure agreements and other measures to protect our proprietary rights. Currently, we require our employees, public accountants, consultants and advisors to execute non-disclosure agreements in connection with their employment, consulting or advisory relationships with us, where appropriate. We also require our employees, consultants and advisors with whom we expect to work on our current or future products to agree to disclose and assign to us all inventions conceived during the workday, developed using our property or related to our business. Despite any measures taken to protect our intellectual property, unauthorized parties may attempt to copy aspects of our Inogen One or Inogen At Home systems, sell counterfeit versions of our products, or obtain and use information that we regard as proprietary.
Patents
As of December 31, 2023, we had thirty-three pending patent applications and eighty-seven issued patents relating to the design and construction of our respiratory devices. We anticipate it could take several years for the most recent of these patent applications to result in issued patents, if successful.
The 2023 acquisition of Physio-Assist added a significant number of issued and pending patent applications to Inogen’s portfolio. The additional patents and patent filings include U.S. and international pending and issued patents. The combined portfolio of Inogen and Physio-Assist include several categories.
Our patent portfolio contains four principal categories of patents and patent applications. One such category includes patents and patent applications directed to system and component designs that may be incorporated into Inogen’s oxygen therapy product line which includes the Inogen One G3, Inogen One G4, Inogen One G5, and the Inogen At Home oxygen concentrators. For example, U.S. patents 9,592,360 and 10,786,644 are directed to the Inogen One G3 design, U.S. patent 10,695,520 is directed to the design of the Inogen One G4, and U.S. patents 9,283,346, 10,004,869 and 10,869,986 are directed towards the Inogen at Home stationary oxygen concentrator. This category of patents expires in 2031 or later and may serve to deter competitors from reverse engineering or copying our design elements.
The second category of patents and patent applications within our portfolio pertains to operating features and design techniques. For example, U.S. patents 8,702,841; 9,220,864; and 9,283,346 are directed towards design features of the Inogen One G3, Inogen One G4, and Inogen at Home products. This category of patents expires in 2031 or later (without taking into account any patent term adjustments). These features and designs are developed to facilitate the design, manufacturing, and usefulness of our products. These patents may prevent competitors from achieving the same levels of optimization as found in our products.
A third category of patents and patent applications relates to system designs that may be directed to products in both oxygen and ventilation product categories. One example of a patent in this category is U.S. patent 9,907,926, which is directed to an oxygen concentrator for mechanical ventilation. This category of patents expired in 2023 or later (without taking into account any patent term adjustments). Patents and patent applications in this category and others may facilitate the design and development of future respiratory products that can serve patients in need of supplemental oxygen and or mechanical ventilation therapies.
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Trademarks
“Inogen,” “Inogen One,” “Inogen One G3,” “G4,” “G5,” “Oxygen.Anytime.Anywhere,” “Intelligent Delivery Technology,” “Inogen At Home,” the Inogen design, “TIDAL ASSIST,” “TAV,” and “SIDEKICK” are registered trademarks with the United States Patent and Trademark Office of Inogen, Inc. We own pending applications for the marks “Rove,” “Inogen Rove,” “Inogen Rove 4” and “Inogen Rove 6” with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. We own trademark registrations for the mark “Inogen” in Argentina, Australia, Canada, Chile, China, Columbia, Ecuador, South Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, Europe (European Union Registration), the United Kingdom, Iceland, India, Israel, Japan, Kuwait, New Zealand, Norway, Paraguay, Peru, Turkey, Singapore, South Africa, Switzerland, and Uruguay. We own a pending application for the mark “Inogen” in the Dominican Republic. We own a trademark registration for the mark “イノジェン” in Japan. We own trademark registrations for the marks “印诺真”and “艾诺根” in China. We own trademark registrations for the mark “Inogen One” in Australia, Canada, China, South Korea, Mexico, Europe (European Union Registration), and the United Kingdom. We own a trademark registration for the mark “Satellite Conserver” in Canada. We own a trademark registration for the mark “Inogen At Home” in Europe (European Union Registration) and the United Kingdom. We own trademark registrations for the mark “G4” in Europe (European Union Registration) and the United Kingdom. We own trademark registrations for the marks “Inogen Rove 4” and “Inogen Rove 6” in Europe (European Union Registrations) and the United Kingdom. We own trademark registrations for the mark “G5” in Europe (European Union Registration) and the United Kingdom. We own pending applications for the marks “Inogen Rove 4,” and “Inogen Rove 6,” “Rove 4” in Canada, . We own pending applications for the mark “Rove 6” in Canada, Europe (the European Union), and the United Kingdom. We own a trademark application for the Inogen design in Bolivia. We own a trademark registration for the Inogen design in China. We own a trademark registration for the mark “إنوجن” in Saudi Arabia. We own a pending application for the Inogen One G5 design in Brazil. Other service marks, trademarks, and trade names referred to in this Annual Report on Form 10-K are the property of their respective owners. “PHYSIO-ASSIST,” “PHYSIOASSIST,” the Physio-Assist logo, “SIMEOX,” “SIMEOX PRO,” “SIMESOFT,” “PHYSIOWEB,” “PHYSIODATA,” “PHYSIOSERVICES,” and the Pissenlit logo are registered trademarks of Inogen’s wholly-owned subsidiary Physio-Assist. Physio-Assist owns trademark registrations for the mark “PHYSIO-ASSIST” in European Union, France, Japan, United Kingdom, and USA. Physio-Assist owns trademark registrations for the Physio-Assist logo in China, European Union, France, Japan, South Korea, United Kingdom, and USA. Physio-Assist owns trademark registrations for the mark SIMEOX in European Union, France, Japan, Russia, United Kingdom, and USA. Physio-Assist owns trademark registrations in France for the mark “PHYSIOASSIST,” “SIMESOFT,” “SIMEOX PRO,” “PHYSIOWEB,” “PHYSIODATA,” “PHYSIOSERVICES,” and the Pissenlit logo.
Human capital
At Inogen, we believe our employees are critical to our success and our ability to focus on product quality, continuous improvement, and outstanding customer satisfaction. The unique demands of our industry, together with the challenges of running an enterprise focused on the development, manufacture and commercialization of innovative products, require talent that is highly educated and/or has significant industry experience. Additionally, for certain key functions, we require specific expertise to oversee and conduct research and development activities and complex manufacturing requirements for our products. We seek the best people we can find and support them to be productive and engaged. We strive to ensure our measures of safety, remuneration and employee engagement are competitive with those of leading companies in our industry.
Employees
As of December 31, 2023, we had 834 full and part-time employees worldwide, consisting of 387 employees in sales, marketing, clinical and client services, 206 employees in operations, manufacturing, quality assurance, manufacturing engineering, and repair, 207 employees in general administration and 34 employees in research and development. None of our employees are represented by a collective bargaining agreement and we believe that our employee relations are good.
Employee culture
Inogen strives to instill a culture based on our foundational values of (1) We always do what is right, (2) Invest in people, and (3) Treat people right. This is activated through our five cultural pillars which are (1) Create Trust, (2) Inspire Initiative, (3) Achieve Together, (4) Invite Diversity, and (5) Make a Difference. Onboarding, leadership development and regular engagement surveys create a sustainable ecosystem for these values and culture pillars to thrive.
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Additionally, all of our directors, officers, and employees are guided by our Code of Ethics and Conduct, which is published on the Investor Relations section of Inogen's website at: http://investor.inogen.com/. The Code of Ethics and Conduct summarizes the compliance and ethical standards we expect of our employees and directors, the procedures for a suspected breach, and the consequences of any substantiated breach. The Code of Ethics and Conduct also constitutes Inogen’s Code of Ethics and Conduct under U.S. law and the NASDAQ exchange’s listing standards. It deals with conflicts of interest, confidential information, fair dealing with customers, suppliers, competitors, and healthcare professionals, and compliance with financial reporting, insider trading, and other financial market regulation.
Talent acquisition and development
As noted above we seek strong talent with subject matter expertise and provide competitive wages. We also promote from within and encourage Inogen employees to take advantage of learning opportunities and we provide financial support through a tuition reimbursement program to help employees complete their college education and be prepared for higher level positions. We have a strong leadership and manager program and standardized cultural onboarding for all associates.
Diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging and accessibility (DEIBA)
Diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging and accessibility are essential elements of Inogen’s business practices. We are committed to creating and maintaining a workplace in which all employees have an opportunity to participate and contribute to the success of the business and are valued for their skills, experience, and unique perspectives. The collective sum of the individual differences, life experiences, knowledge, inventiveness, innovation, self-expression, unique capabilities and talent that employees invest in their work represents a significant part of our culture as well as our reputation and achievements. We embrace employees’ diversity of background, experience, culture, and other characteristics that make employees unique. All employees are expected to exhibit conduct that reflects inclusion during work, at work functions on or off the work site, and at all other company-sponsored and participative events. Our DEIBA Taskforce and Inclusion Ambassador network help guide these efforts through programming and feedback to build a community of psychological safety and inclusion. Internal communications and celebration are further proof points for our efforts as we routinely measure employee engagement in these categories.
We maintain an equitable, market-based compensation architecture and proactively align our benefits, policies and practices with the philosophies, values, and culture pillars. Inclusive leadership programming and onboarding programs further support these efforts across the organization.
Inogen is committed to compliance with all applicable federal and state laws prohibiting discrimination in employment and, therefore, does not discriminate against its employees or applicants based on any legally recognized “protected class”. We perform an annual affirmative action review by job role, and we have a process which identifies pay or promotion discrepancies and ensures that we are equitable in our actions and decisions. Even in the case of reductions in force adverse impact analyses are completed to objectively test and inform our decisions. Consistent with the Americans with Disabilities Act and similar state and local laws, we work with qualified employees and applicants with disabilities in order to identify and provide reasonable accommodations that can enable them to perform their jobs. Inogen’s equal employment opportunity philosophy applies to all aspects of employment with Inogen including recruiting, hiring, job assignment, training, promotion, job benefits, compensation, discipline, and dismissal. Inogen has implemented policies, procedures, and trainings to ensure that any reports of potential discrimination or harassment are appropriately investigated and corrected.
Health and safety
Our approach to health and safety uses our management systems, preventative training, problem solving safety committees, and our quality culture to minimize workplace incidents and maximize the care taken for employees who suffer from a workplace incident, per our health and safety policy. Inogen also has a corporate wellness program to promote improved physical and emotional wellbeing.
Environmental matters
Our research and development and manufacturing processes involve the controlled use of hazardous materials, including flammables, toxics, and corrosives. Our research and manufacturing operations produce hazardous chemical waste products. We seek to comply with applicable laws regarding the handling and disposal of such materials. Given the small volume of such materials used or generated at our facilities, we do not expect our compliance efforts to have a material effect on our capital expenditures, earnings, and competitive position. However, we cannot eliminate the risk of accidental contamination or discharge and any resultant injury from these materials. We do not currently maintain separate environmental liability coverage and any such contamination or discharge could result in significant cost to us in penalties, damages, and suspension of our operations.
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Climate Change
As a global respiratory therapy and medical device company, Inogen recognizes that greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions affect our climate and pose a serious challenge to the environment—and ultimately to the global economy. We believe that everyone shares responsibility to improve energy efficiency and to reduce GHG emissions in the atmosphere. Inogen supports global and national efforts to mitigate the impact of climate change. Inogen is committed to complying with all applicable laws and regulations that help reduce GHG and encouraging market adoption of low GHG emission technologies. Our position on climate change policy is guided by five principles:
1.
We believe that any global or national strategy to address climate change must be environmentally sustainable and economically viable.
2.
We believe that any climate change policy should be technology-neutral and designed to encourage private sector innovation and investment so that emissions reductions can be achieved in the most efficient manner possible.
3.
We believe that any global or national strategy to address climate change must be developed with input from stakeholder communication, including the public and private sectors, non-governmental organizations, academia, and investors.
4.
We believe that any policy to regulate GHG emissions should provide a clear, stable framework that enables the private sector to invest accordingly, and that minimizes the market imbalances that can result from policies applied unequally within or among nations.
5.
We believe that any policy to regulate GHG emissions should fairly account for companies that have already taken voluntary steps to reduce their GHG emissions.
Inogen is a responsible corporate citizen that has done business in 62 countries and territories around the world. Our business success and our environmental stewardship both depend on the efficiency of our global distribution network. Our long-term GHG reduction strategy is to optimize the processes that consume non-renewable resources within this network. We also recognize that, as a critical component of our customers’ supply chains, Inogen plays an important role in helping them operate in a more environmentally sustainable way.
Backlog
We run our operations on a just-in-time basis; however, the volatility of order intake may result in periods when incoming orders exceed our capacity. We do not currently have a backlog of orders that could not be fulfilled in our ordinary course of business. Further, our customers can change or cancel orders with limited or no penalty and limited advance notice prior to shipment.
Geographic information
During the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022, and 2021, substantially all of our long-lived assets were located within the United States. See Note 2to our consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for additional information related to our U.S. and non-U.S. revenue.
Seasonality
We believe our sales may be impacted by seasonal factors. For example, we historically experienced higher sales revenue in the second and third quarters, as a result of consumers traveling and vacationing during warmer weather in the spring and summer months, but this may vary year-over-year. As more home medical equipment (HME) providers adopt portable oxygen concentrators in their businesses, we expect our historical seasonality in the domestic business-to-business channel could change as well, which was previously influenced mainly by consumer buying patterns. Direct-to-consumer sales seasonality may also be impacted by the number of sales representatives and the amount of marketing spend in each quarter.
Corporate and available information
We were incorporated in Delaware in November 2001. Our principal executive offices are located at 859 Ward Drive, Goleta, California 93111. Our telephone number is (805) 562-0500. Our website address is www.inogen.com. We make available on our website, free of charge, our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K, and any amendments to those reports, as soon as reasonably practicable after we electronically file such material with, or furnish it to, the Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC. Our SEC reports can be accessed through the investor relations page of our website located at http://investor.inogen.com. The SEC also maintains a website that contains our SEC filings. The address of the site is www.sec.gov.
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We webcast our earnings calls and certain events we participate in or host with members of the investment community on our investor relations page of our website. In addition, we use our website http://investor.inogen.comas a means of disclosing information about our company, our products, our planned financial and other announcements, our attendance at upcoming investor conferences, and other matters. It is possible that the information we post on our website could be deemed material information. We may use our website to comply with our disclosure obligations under Regulation FD. Therefore, investors should monitor our website in addition to following our press releases, SEC filings, public conference calls, and webcasts. Corporate governance information, including our board committee charters, code of ethics, and corporate governance principles, is also available on our investor relations page of our website located at http://investor.inogen.com. The contents of our website are not incorporated by reference into this Annual Report on Form 10-K or in any other report or document we file with the SEC, and any references to our website are intended to be inactive textual references only.
Information about our executive officers
The following table identifies certain information about our executive officers as of February 23, 2024.
Name Age Position
Kevin R. M. Smith 53 Chief Executive Officer, President, and Director
Dr. Stanislav Glezer 51 Executive Vice President, R&D and Chief Medical Officer
Jason Somer 56 Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary
Gregoire Ramade 54 Executive Vice President, Chief Commercial Officer
Kevin R. M. Smith has served as our President, Chief Executive Officer, and as a director since November 2023. Previously, Mr. Smith served as the CEO, President and Executive Director at Sirtex Medical US Holdings, Inc., a biotechnology company, from 2019 to 2023, after serving as Executive Vice President of Sales & Marketing, Americas from 2017 to 2019. From 2021 to 2022, Mr. Smith also served as interim President and Chief Executive Officer and Director at OncoSec Medical, Inc., a biotechnology company. In his previous roles Mr. Smith served as Executive Vice President of Business Development at Gel-e, Inc., as Chief Commercial Officer at Sensium Healthcare, as Global Vice President of Sales & Marketing at Teleflex, and served in various sales and marketing roles in medical device companies. Mr. Smith holds a Master of Business Administration in Global Management from University of Phoenix and a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from the University of Kentucky.
Michael K. Sergesketter has served as our Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, and Corporate Treasurer since September 2023. Previously, Mr. Sergesketter served as our interim Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer from December 2021 to March 2022. Mr. Sergesketter previously served as CFO of Kimball Electronics, Inc. and brings over forty years of finance experience in the manufacturing services industry. He also brings expertise working across business functions, including with the CEO and Board of Directors, Audit Committee and Compensation and Governance Committee. As part of his role as the CFO of Kimball Electronics, Inc. following its spin-off in 2014 and through June 2021, Mr. Sergesketter led the transformation of the finance and reporting functions to support the newly formed public company, helping to formulate and execute on the strategy that led to global expansion. During his tenure at Kimball Electronics and its predecessors, Mr. Sergesketter had the responsibility for a number of critical finance functions, including SEC reporting, Treasury, Investor Relations, Tax, Financial Planning & Analysis, Internal Audit while playing a leading role in various M&A transactions in the U.S. and abroad.
Dr. Stanislav Glezer has served as our Executive Vice President, R&D and Chief Medical Officer since January 2024, responsible for R&D and Engineering, Medical Affairs, Regulatory Affairs, and Quality. Dr. Glezer also served as our Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer from October 2021 to January 2024 and as our Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Officer from June 2021 to October 2021. Previously, Dr. Glezer was with Becton, Dickinson and Company, a global medical technology company where he served as the Worldwide Vice President of Medical Affairs for Diabetes Care since September 2018 with Business Development responsibilities added under him since January 2021. Prior to joining Becton Dickinson, Dr. Glezer served as the Chief Medical Officer at Adocia S.A. a biotechnology company from 2017 to 2018. From 2016 to 2017, Dr. Glezer served as Vice President of Global Medical Affairs at Novo Nordisk, Inc., a healthcare company. Earlier, Dr. Glezer served in a number of roles of progressively increasing seniority, including, Global Project Head for the largest late-stage pipeline asset, Vice President of Evidence and Value & Access, Vice President of Medical Affairs, and Senior Director of Medical Strategy & Operations, for Sanofi S.A., a multinational pharmaceutical company, from 2001 to 2015. Dr Glezer holds a doctor of medicine from Moscow State University of Medicine and Dentistry and an MBA from California Coast University.
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Jason Somer has served as our Executive Vice President and General Counsel and Secretary since July 2021. Previously, Mr. Somer served as head Legal Counsel at Invoca, Inc., a SaaS analytics company. Prior to his time at Invoca, Mr. Somer served as Associate General Counsel at Sunniva, Inc., and as General Counsel and Corporate Secretary for Innova Gaming Group, a gaming company. Prior to joining Innova, Mr. Somer served as the Senior Vice President of Business Development and General Counsel at Sunora Energy Solutions, a solar energy development company. Mr. Somer also previously served as the Vice President of Special Projects and the Senior Global Counsel at Suntech Power, a Shanghai-based solar energy technology company. Prior to joining Suntech Power, Mr. Somer served as Director of Legal Affairs & Business Development at Ironport Systems, Inc. and as Associate General Counsel and a Business Development Director of Neoforma, Inc. Mr. Somer joined Neoforma from Morrison & Foerster where he was a corporate/securities associate based in New York. Mr. Somer holds a L.L.M. from Boston University, a L.L.B from the University of British Columbia School of Law, and a B.Sc. from the University of Western Ontario in Biology/Pharmacology.
Gregoire Ramade has served as our Chief Commercial Officer since January 2024 and served as our Senior Vice President of International Sales from November 2023 to January 2024. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Ramade served as Senior Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer of Vapotherm, Inc. from October 2020 to October 2023 and as Vice President, International Sales and Worldwide Marketing of Vapotherm, Inc. since May 2016. Mr. Ramade worked at Becton Dickinson Medical-Pharmaceutical Systems as Vice President of Global Marketing and Business Development from January 2013 to May 2016. He also held the positions of Senior Marketing Director Home Healthcare Solution at Philips Healthcare from 2010 to 2012, Marketing Director EMEA at Philips Respironics from 2005 to 2009 and Product Manager of Consumable Masks and Accessories at Philips Respironics from 2004 to 2005. Mr. Ramade holds a bachelor’s degree in International Business with a minor in Economics from the American University of Paris and an MBA in International Business and Marketing from the Ecole Nationale des Ponts et Chausses School of International Management.
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ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS
We operate in a rapidly changing environment that involves numerous uncertainties and risks. In addition to the other information included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, the following risks and uncertainties may have a material and adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, or stock price. You should consider these risks and uncertainties carefully, together with all of the other information included or incorporated by reference in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. The risks and uncertainties described below may not be the only ones we face. If any of the risks or uncertainties we face were to occur, the trading price of our securities could decline, and you may lose all or part of your investment. This Annual Report on Form 10-K also contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Our actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements as a result of factors that are described below and elsewhere in this report.
Risk factors include, but are not limited to, statements concerning the following:
Risks related to our business and strategy:
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the intense international, national, regional and local competition we face in our industry;
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our dependence on a limited number of customers for a significant portion of our sales revenue;
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our reliance on a single source or a limited group of manufacturers or suppliers;
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the need to continue to enhance our existing products and develop and market new products;
•
potential acquisitions of, or investments in, other companies;
•
the complex and lengthy reimbursement process we depend upon for a significant portion of our revenue;
•
increases in our operating costs;
•
economic impacts that affect customer and consumer spending as well as demand for our products;
•
public health threats and epidemics;
•
the lack of long-term supply contracts with many of our third-party suppliers;
•
the competitive bidding process or other reimbursement policy changes under Medicare or other third-party payors, including recently enacted and potential future changes in the reimbursement rates or payment methodologies under Medicare, Medicaid and other government programs;
•
consolidation in the healthcare industry;
•
healthcare reform measures;
•
the possibility our manufacturing facilities could become unavailable or inoperable and other potential manufacturing problems or delays;
•
our reliance upon a third-party contract manufacturer for certain manufacturing and repair operations;
•
potential failure to maintain or obtain new private payor contracts and future reductions in reimbursement rates from private payors;
•
our ability to manage our anticipated growth effectively;
•
the possibility of non-payment of our HME providers, distributors, private label partners and resellers;
•
our international sales and manufacturing activities;
•
warranty or product liability claims or other litigation;
•
our dependence on the services of our senior executives and other key technical personnel;
•
variance in our financial condition and results of operations; and
•
the market opportunities for our products.
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Risks related to the regulatory environment:
•
extensive federal, state, and international regulations related to our business by numerous government agencies, including the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, or FDA and the European Medical Devices regulation;
•
the potential need to seek additional clearances or approvals for our products; and
•
potential FDA, state, or international regulatory enforcement action and other penalties.
Risks related to our intellectual property:
•
our ability to secure and maintain patent or other intellectual property protection for the intellectual property used in our products;
•
the possibility that any of our patents may be challenged, invalidated, circumvented or rendered unenforceable; and
•
patent and other intellectual property litigation if our products infringe or appear to infringe the intellectual property rights of others.
Risks related to being a public company:
•
increased costs as a result of operating as a public company and the substantial time our management will be required to devote to compliance initiatives and corporate governance practices; and
•
our ability to maintain effective internal controls.
Risks related to our common stock:
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the volatility of the trading price of our common stock;
•
the publication of research reports by securities or industry analysts;
•
potential sales of a large number of shares of our common stock;
•
anti-takeover provisions in our charter documents and under Delaware law; and
•
our intention not to pay dividends for the foreseeable future.
Risks related to our business and strategy
We face intense international, national, regional and local competition and if we are unable to compete successfully, it could have an adverse effect on our revenue, revenue growth rate, if any, and market share.
The long-term oxygen therapy market is a highly competitive industry. We compete with a number of manufacturers and distributors of portable oxygen concentrators (POCs), as well as providers of other long-term oxygen therapy solutions such as home delivery of oxygen tanks or cylinders, stationary concentrators, transfilling concentrators, and liquid oxygen.
Our significant manufacturing competitors are Respironics (a subsidiary of Koninklijke Philips N.V.), Caire Medical (subsidiary of NGK Spark Plug), DeVilbiss Healthcare (a subsidiary of Drive Medical), O2 Concepts, Precision Medical, Gas Control Equipment (subsidiary of Colfax), Nidek Medical, 3B Medical, SysMed, and Belluscura. Respironics, which announced in early 2024 that it would be leaving the U.S. portable oxygen concentrator market until further regulatory assessments but continues to have product in the market. Given the relatively straightforward regulatory path in the oxygen therapy device manufacturing market, we expect that the industry will become increasingly competitive in the future. For example, some major competitors have implemented direct-to-consumer sales models, which may increase their competitiveness and sales to patients, and we have recently seen the cost per generated lead trend higher than historical averages that may in part be due to increased competition. However, the strategies of these major competitors are currently limited to direct-to-consumer sales and do not include direct-to-consumer rentals where they would be responsible to meet national accreditation and state-by-state licensing requirements and secure Medicare billing privileges. Manufacturing companies compete for sales to providers primarily on the basis of price, quality/reliability, financing, bundling, product features, and service.
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For many years, Lincare, Inc. (a subsidiary of the Linde Group), Apria Healthcare, Inc., AdaptHealth Corp., Rotech Healthcare, Inc., and Viemed Healthcare, Inc. have been among the market leaders in providing respiratory therapy products, while the remaining market is serviced by local providers. Because of reimbursement reductions, we expect more industry consolidation and volatility in ordering patterns based on how providers are restructuring their businesses and their access to capital. In addition, providers may reduce or eliminate purchases from us due to our increased focus on building out a prescriber sales team and pursuing rentals directly, which could be in competition with our providers in the United States. Respiratory therapy providers compete primarily on the basis of product features and service, rather than price, since reimbursement levels are established by Medicare and Medicaid, or by the individual determinations of private payors.
Some of our competitors are large, well-capitalized companies with greater resources than we have. Consequently, they are able to spend more aggressively on product development, marketing, sales and other product initiatives than we can. Some of these competitors have:
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significantly greater name recognition;
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established relationships with healthcare professionals, customers and third-party payors;
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established distribution networks;
•
additional lines of products, and the ability to offer rebates or bundle products to offer higher discounts, lower pricing, longer warranties, financing or extended terms, other incentives to gain a competitive advantage;
•
greater history in conducting research and development, manufacturing, marketing and obtaining regulatory approval for respiratory device products; and
•
greater financial and human resources for product development, sales and marketing, and patent litigation.
As a result, our competitors may be able to respond more quickly and effectively than we can to new or changing opportunities, technologies, standard regulatory and reimbursement development and customer requirements or changing or uncertain business conditions or macroeconomic trends, including supply chain challenges. In light of these advantages that our competitors maintain, even if our technology and direct-to-consumer distribution strategy is more effective than the technology and distribution strategy of our competitors, including those who have adopted or may in the future adopt direct-to-consumer sales models, current or potential customers might accept competitor products and services in lieu of purchasing our products. We anticipate that we will face increased competition in the future as existing companies and competitors develop new or improved products and distribution strategies and as new companies enter the market with new technologies and distribution strategies. We may not be able to compete effectively against these organizations. Our ability to compete successfully and to increase our market share is dependent upon our reputation for providing responsive, professional and high-quality products and services and achieving strong customer satisfaction. Increased competition in the future could adversely affect our revenue, revenue growth rate, margins and market share.
We depend on a limited number of customers for a significant portion of our sales revenue and the loss of, or a significant shortfall in demand from, these customers could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and operating results.
We receive a significant amount of our sales revenue from a limited number of customers, including distributors, HME providers, our private label partner, resellers, and charitable organizations. For the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022, and 2021, sales revenue to our top 10 customers accounted for approximately 25.2%, 30.5% and 27.4%, respectively, of our total revenue. Medicare's service reimbursement programs represented more than 10% of our total revenue for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021. We expect that sales to relatively few customers will continue to account for a significant percentage of our total revenue in future periods. Our future success will significantly depend upon the timing and volume of business from our largest customers and the financial and operational success of these customers. However, we can provide no assurance that any of these customers or any of our other customers will continue to purchase our products at current levels, pricing, or at all, and our revenue could fluctuate significantly due to changes in customer order levels, economic conditions, the adoption of competitive products, or the loss of, reduction of business with, or less favorable terms with any of our largest customers. For example, we have previously experienced a decline in sales to one large national homecare provider who purchased through our private label partner. We have also experienced a decline in sales from other HME providers and these providers have communicated to us that they continue to be subject to capital constraints. If we were tolose one of our key customers or have a key customer significantly reduce its volume of business with us, such as we previously experienced with the large national homecare provider, our revenue may be materially reduced and there would be an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
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We obtain some of the components, subassemblies and completed products included in our products from a single source or a limited group of manufacturers or suppliers, and in some cases components required to manufacture and assemble our products are available in only limited supplies from limited manufacturers or suppliers, and the partial or complete loss of one or more of these manufacturers or suppliers or limitation on availability could cause significant production delays or stoppages, an inability to meet customer demand, substantial loss in revenue, and an adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.
We utilize single-source suppliers for some of the components and subassemblies we use in our Inogen One systems and our Inogen At Home systems. For example, we have elected to source certain key components from single sources of supply, including our batteries, motors, valves, and some molded plastic components. Many of our products also utilize components that are available from a limited number of suppliers. Our dependence on single-source or limited-source suppliers of components may expose us to several risks, including, among other things:
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our suppliers or their component sub-suppliers may be unable to meet demands due to global supply chain disruptions;
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we may experience delays in delivery by our suppliers due to customs clearing delays, shipping delays, scarcity of raw materials and components or changes in demand from us or their other customers;
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our suppliers may be unable to meet demands due to the effect of exposure to infectious diseases, epidemics or other public health emergencies, or due to acts of terrorism, hostilities, military conflict or war, including the conflict between Israel and Hamas and the war in Ukraine;
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we may not be able to find new or alternative components, even at elevated prices, or reconfigure our system and manufacturing processes in a timely manner if the necessary components become unavailable, which could lead to a production slowdown or temporary stoppage;
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our suppliers may encounter financial hardships as a result of unfavorable economic and market conditions unrelated to our demand for components, which could inhibit their ability to fulfill our orders and meet our requirements;
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suppliers may fail to comply with regulatory requirements, be subject to lengthy compliance, validation or qualification periods, or make errors in manufacturing components that could negatively affect the performance or safety of our products, cause delays in supplying of our products to our customers, or result in regulatory enforcement against us or our suppliers;
•
newly identified suppliers may not qualify under the stringent quality regulatory standards to which our business is subject, which could inhibit their ability to fulfill our orders and meet our requirements;
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we or our suppliers may not be able to respond to unanticipated changes in customer orders, and if orders do not match forecasts, we or our suppliers may have excess or inadequate inventory of materials and components;
•
we may be subject to price fluctuations due to a lack of long-term supply arrangements for key components or changes in import tariffs, trade restrictions or barriers or other government actions that impact our ability to obtain such components;
•
we or our suppliers may lose access to critical services, tools, moldings, and components, resulting in an interruption in the manufacture, assembly and shipment of our systems;
•
our suppliers may be subject to allegations by other parties of misappropriation of proprietary information in connection with their supply of products to us, which could inhibit their ability to fulfill our orders and meet our requirements;
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fluctuations in demand for products that our suppliers manufacture for others may affect their ability or willingness to deliver components to us in a timely manner; and
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our suppliers may wish to discontinue supplying components or services to us.
We have experienced supply problems with one or more of our suppliers and may again experience supply problems in the future. For example, we saw supply chain disruptions in the second half of 2021 as well as in 2022 and 2023, primarily associated with semiconductor chips used in our batteries and printed circuit boards. However, we recognize that there could be supply shortages for other components used in our products. While we have taken steps to attempt to mitigate the impact of potential supply shortages, the previously experience shortages have had and any future shortage may have a negative impact on our ability to manufacture products (including with respect to the production halt discussed below) as these chips are used across all of our portable oxygen concentrators in our batteries and printed circuit boards.
The inflated costs related to the supply shortage negatively impacted our cost of goods sold throughout 2022 and 2023 associated with these chips, most of these costs increased our prepaid expense and inventory given that these components were either not yet delivered or not yet sold in finished products during the period.
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In addition, we may be deemed to manufacture or contract to manufacture products that contain certain minerals that have been designated as “conflict minerals” under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. As a result, we may be required to perform due diligence to determine the origin of such minerals and disclose and report whether such minerals originated in the Democratic Republic of the Congo or adjoining countries. The implementation of these requirements could adversely affect the sourcing, availability, and pricing of minerals used in the manufacture of our products. In addition, we have incurred additional costs to comply with the disclosure requirements, including costs related to determining the source of any of the relevant minerals and metals used in our products. If any of these risks materialize, costs could significantly increase and our ability to meet demand for our products could be impacted. If we fail to comply with the applicable regulations, we could be required to pay civil penalties, face criminal prosecution and, in some cases, be prohibited from distributing our products in commerce until the products or component substances are brought into compliance. If we are unable to satisfy commercial demand for our products in a timely manner, our ability to generate revenue would be impaired, market acceptance of our products could be adversely affected, and customers may instead purchase or use alternative products. In addition, we could be forced to secure new or alternative components and subassemblies through a replacement supplier. Finding alternative sources for these components and subassemblies could be difficult in certain cases and may entail a significant amount of time and disruption. In some cases, we would need to change the components or subassemblies if we sourced them from an alternative supplier. This, in turn, could constitute a material modification or require a redesign of our products and, potentially, require additional FDA clearance or approval before we could use any materially modified or redesigned product with new components or subassemblies, thereby causing further costs and delays that could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
If we are unable to continue to enhance our existing products, develop or acquire and market our products that respond to customer needs and preferences and achieve market acceptance, we may experience a decrease in demand for our products and our business could suffer.
We may not be able to compete as effectively with our competitors and ultimately satisfy the needs and preferences of our customers unless we can continue to enhance existing products, acquire companies with new or different products, sell our existing products, and develop new innovative products ourselves. Product development requires significant financial, technological and other resources. While we expended $20.8 million, $21.9 million and $16.6 million for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022, and 2021, respectively, in research and development efforts, we cannot assure that this level of investment will be sufficient to maintain a competitive advantage in product innovation, which could cause our business to suffer.
Product improvements and new product introductions also require significant planning, design, development, patent protection, and testing at the technological, product, and manufacturing process levels and we may not be able to timely develop product improvements or new products or obtain necessary patent protection and regulatory clearances or approvals for such product improvements or new products in a timely manner, or at all. Our competitors’ new products may enter the market before our new products reach the market, be more effective with more features, obtain better market acceptance, or render our products obsolete. Any new products that we develop or acquire may not receive market acceptance or otherwise generate any meaningful sales or profits for us relative to our expectations based on, among other things, existing and anticipated investments in manufacturing capacity and commitments to fund advertising, marketing, promotional programs and research and development. In addition, if we are unable to seek and obtain regulatory approval or adequate coverage and reimbursement for any new products that we develop or introduce, in a timely manner or at all, we may realize lower revenue than expected or even no revenue at all from these products. As a result, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially harmed.
We may expand through acquisitions of, or investments in, other companies, each of which may divert our management’s attention, result in additional dilution to our stockholders, increase expenses, disrupt our operations, and harm our results of operations.
Our business strategy may, from time-to-time, include acquiring or investing in complementary services, technologies or businesses, such as our acquisition of Physio-Assist in 2023. We do not have an extensive history of acquiring other companies and cannot assure you that we will successfully identify suitable acquisition candidates, integrate or manage disparate technologies, lines of business, personnel and corporate cultures, realize our business strategy or the expected return on our investment, or manage a geographically dispersed company. Any such acquisition or investment could materially and adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations. We may issue equity securities which could dilute current stockholders’ ownership, incur debt, assume contingent or other liabilities and expend cash in acquisitions, which could negatively impact our financial condition, stockholder equity, and stock price. The acquisition and integration process is complex, expensive and time-consuming, and may cause an interruption of, or loss of momentum in, product development and sales activities and operations of both companies, and we may incur substantial cost and expense, as well as divert the attention of management.
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Acquisitions and other strategic investments involve significant risks and uncertainties, including:
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the potential failure to achieve the expected benefits of the combination or acquisition;
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the potential failure to successfully develop or commercialize the acquired products or technology;
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unanticipated costs and liabilities;
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difficulties in integrating new products, businesses, operations, and technology infrastructure in an efficient and effective manner;
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difficulties in maintaining customer relations;
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the potential loss of key employees of the acquired businesses;
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the diversion of the attention of our senior management from the operation of our daily business;
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the potential adverse effect on our cash position to the extent that we use cash for the purchase price;
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the potential incurrence of interest expense and debt service requirements if we incur debt to pay for an acquisition;
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the potential issuance of securities that would dilute our stockholders’ percentage ownership;
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the potential to incur large and immediate write-offs and restructuring and other related expenses;
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the potential of amortization expenses related to intangible assets;
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the potential failure to achieve anticipated reimbursement classifications for acquired products;
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the potential to become involved in intellectual property litigation related to such acquisitions or strategic investments; and
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the inability to maintain uniform standards, controls, policies, and procedures.
Any acquisition or investment could expose us to unknown liabilities. Moreover, we cannot assure you that we will realize the anticipated benefits of any acquisition or investment. In addition, our inability to successfully operate and integrate newly acquired businesses appropriately, effectively, and in a timely manner could impair our ability to take advantage of future growth opportunities and other advances in technology, as well as on our revenues, gross margins, and expenses.
For example, as part of our ongoing efforts to advance patient preference and maintain our technology leadership position, we acquired New Aera in 2019. We made certain assumptions relating to the New Aera acquisition, which assumptions have proven to be inaccurate, including the failure to realize the expected benefits of the acquisition, failure to realize expected revenue, higher than expected operating costs, and general economic and business conditions that adversely affected the combined company following the acquisition. On December 19, 2022, we determined to dispose of the technology intangible assets previously acquired from New Aera related to the Tidal Assist® Ventilator (TAV®) technology by ceasing development of such assets and abandoning the TAV program (the “Disposal Determination”). We made the Disposal Determination based on our assessment that continued development of the assets would not be economically feasible. The assessment considered many factors, including 1) the lack of compatibility and functionality of the technology intangible asset within our existing product portfolio, 2) the lack of commercial potential of such products that were not approved for ventilation Medicare reimbursement and a negative litigation outcome that occurred subsequent to the approved Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) code process, and 3) the substantial additional investment that would be required in order to attempt to achieve any commercial potential with substantial risk that no benefit would ever be achievable.
We depend upon reimbursement from Medicare, private payors, Medicaid and payments from patients for a significant portion of our revenue, and if we fail to manage the complex and lengthy reimbursement process, our business and operating results could be adversely affected.
A significant portion of our rental revenue is derived from reimbursement by third-party payors. We accept assignment of insurance benefits from customers and, in a majority of cases, invoice and collect payments directly from Medicare, private payors and Medicaid, as well as direct from patients under co-insurance provisions. For the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021, approximately 20.3%, 15.0% and 12.9%, respectively, of our total revenue was derived from Medicare, private payors, Medicaid, and individual patients who directly receive reimbursement from third-party payors and this percentage could increase as a percent of total revenue if we increase net patient additions faster than our sales revenue growth.
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Our financial condition and results of operations may be affected by the healthcare industry’s reimbursement process, which is complex and can involve lengthy delays between the time that a product is delivered to the consumer and the time that the reimbursement amounts are settled. Depending on the payor, we may be required to obtain certain payor-specific documentation from physicians and other healthcare providers before submitting claims for reimbursement. Certain payors have filing deadlines, and they will not pay claims submitted after such time. We are also subject to extensive pre-payment and post-payment audits by governmental and private payors that could result in material delays, refunds of monies received or denials of claims submitted for payment under such third-party payor programs and contracts. We cannot ensure that we will be able to continue to effectively manage the process which would adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Increases in our operating costs could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Reimbursement rates are established by fee schedules mandated by Medicare, private payors and Medicaid, and are likely to be set, in part, to federal and state government budgetary constraints. As a result, with respect to Medicare and Medicaid related revenue, we may not be able to offset the effects of general inflation on our operating costs through increases in prices for our products, as these inflation adjustments are subject to annual approval outside of our control. In particular, labor and related costs account for a significant portion of our operating costs, and we compete with other healthcare providers to attract and retain qualified or skilled personnel and with various industries for administrative and service employees. As a result, increases in our operating costs including personnel-related costs could adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.
An economic recession, downturn, period of inflation, or economic uncertainty in our key markets may adversely affect customer and consumer spending as well as demand for our products.
Our results of operations could be adversely affected by general conditions in the global economy and in the global financial markets. Our general business strategy may be adversely affected by any such economic downturn, volatile business environment, higher inflation, bank failures, or continued unpredictable and unstable market conditions. Unfavorable economic conditions may lead customers and consumers to delay or reduce purchases of our products and/or strain our suppliers. Consumer demand for our products may not reach our targets, or may decline, when there is an economic downturn or economic uncertainty in our key markets and our customers could be delayed in making payments for our products. Our sensitivity to economic cycles and any related fluctuation in customer and consumer demand could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.
We are subject to risks associated with public health threats and epidemics, including the COVID-19 pandemic and related public health emergency (PHE).
Public health outbreaks, epidemics, pandemics of contagious or infectious diseases, such as COVID-19, may significantly disrupt our business. Such outbreaks pose the risk that we or our employees, contractors, suppliers, or other partners may be prevented from conducting business activities for an indefinite period of time due to spread of the disease, or due to shutdowns that may be requested or mandated by federal, state and local governmental authorities. Business disruptions could include disruptions or restrictions on our ability to travel, as well as temporary closures of our facilities or the facilities of our contractors, suppliers, and other partners. For example, we previously experienced declines in total demand during portions of the COVID-19 pandemic and related PHE, which we believe were due to these factors and other factors related to the COVID-19 pandemic and related PHE.
In addition, while we and our contract manufacturer were able to keep our manufacturing facilities open during the COVID-19 pandemic and related PHE, there can be no assurance that we would be able to keep such facilities open indefinitely during a future public health emergency.
We do not have long-term supply contracts with many of our third-party suppliers.
We purchase components and subassemblies from third-party suppliers, including some of our single-source suppliers, through purchase orders and do not have long-term supply contracts with many of these third-party suppliers. Many of our third-party suppliers, therefore, are not obligated to perform services or supply products to us for any specific period, in any specific quantity or at any specific price, except as may be provided in a particular purchase order. We do not maintain large volumes of inventory from most of these suppliers. For example, our batteries and motherboards are sourced from a single source supplier, and sub-components of the battery are also sourced from single source suppliers. For additional discussion of potential risks related to our inability to source components of our products, please see the risk factor entitled “We obtain some of the components, subassemblies and completed products included in our products from a single source or a limited group of manufacturers or suppliers, and in some cases those components are available in only limited supplies from limited manufacturers or suppliers, and the partial or complete loss of one or more of these manufacturers or suppliers could cause significant production delays or stoppages, an inability to meet customer demand, substantial loss in revenue, and an adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.”
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A significant majority of our rental patients who use our product have health coverage under the Medicare program, and recently enacted and future changes in the reimbursement rates or payment methodologies under Medicare, Medicaid and other government programs have affected and could continue to materially and adversely affect our business and operating results.
As a provider of oxygen equipment rentals, we depend heavily on Medicare reimbursement as a result of the higher proportion of elderly persons suffering from chronic long-term respiratory conditions. Medicare Part B, or Supplementary Medical Insurance Benefits, provides coverage to eligible beneficiaries that include items of durable medical equipment for use in the home, such as oxygen equipment and other respiratory devices. There are increasing pressures on Medicare to control healthcare costs and to reduce or limit reimbursement rates for home medical products.
Legislation, including the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003, the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008, and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, as amended by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act, contain provisions that directly impact reimbursement for the durable medical equipment products provided by us:
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The Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 significantly reduced reimbursement for inhalation drug therapies beginning in 2005, reduced payment amounts for certain durable medical equipment, including oxygen, beginning in 2005, froze payment amounts for other covered HME items through 2008, established a competitive bidding program for home medical equipment and implemented quality standards and accreditation requirements for durable medical equipment suppliers.
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The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 limited the total number of continuous rental months for which Medicare will pay for oxygen equipment to 36 months, after which time there is generally no additional reimbursement to the supplier (other than for periodic, in-home maintenance and servicing). The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 also provided that title of the equipment would transfer to the beneficiary, which was later repealed by the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008. For purposes of the rental cap, the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 provided for a new 36-month rental period that began January 1, 2006 for all oxygen equipment. After the 36th continuous month during which payment is made for the oxygen equipment, the supplier is generally required to continue to furnish the equipment during the period of medical need for the remainder of the useful lifetime of the equipment, provided there are no breaks in service due to medical necessity that exceed 60 days. The reasonable useful lifetime for our portable oxygen equipment is 60 months. After 60 months, if the patient requests, and the patient meets Medicare coverage criteria, the rental cycle starts over and a new 36-month rental period begins. There are no limits on the number of 60-month cycles over which a Medicare patient may receive benefits and an oxygen therapy provider may receive reimbursement, so long as such equipment continues to be medically necessary for the patient. We anticipate that the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 oxygen payment rules will continue to negatively affect our net revenue on an ongoing basis, as each month additional customers reach the capped rental period in month thirty-seven, resulting in potentially two or more years without rental income from these customers while we continue to incur customer service and maintenance costs. Our capped patients as a percentage of total patients on service was approximately 13.1% as of December 31, 2023 and 9.2% as of December 31, 2022. The percentage of capped patients may fluctuate over time as new patients come on service, patients come off service before and during the capped rental period, and existing patients enter the capped rental period. We cannot predict the potential impact to rental revenues in future periods associated with patients in the capped rental period.
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The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, as amended by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act, included, among other things, face-to-face physician encounter requirements for certain durable medical equipment and home health services, and a requirement that by 2016, the competitive bidding process be nationalized or prices in non-competitive bidding areas be adjusted to match competitive bidding prices.
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There were significant U.S. reimbursement and policy changes associated with the COVID-19 PHE that impacted oxygen therapy and other durable medical equipment. The CARES Act allowed the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to waive certain Medicare telehealth payment requirements during the COVID-19 PHE declared by HHS on January 31, 2020 to allow beneficiaries in all areas to receive telehealth services, including at their home, starting March 6, 2020. The Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act (H.R. 6074) also granted HHS the authority to waive certain requirements with respect to telehealth services. Under this authority, CMS clarified that HHS would not conduct audits to determine whether there was a prior physician-patient relationship for telehealth claims submitted during the COVID-19 PHE. The CARES Act, passed on March 27, 2020, included the extension of the 50/50 blended rate for HME in rural and non-contiguous, non-competitively bid areas and established a new 75/25 blended rate for all other non-competitively bid areas through the duration of the COVID-19 PHE. The 75/25 blended rate was retroactive to March 6, 2020. The COVID-19 PHE expired on May 11, 2023. The Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act extended the 75/25 blended rates for all other non-competitively bid areas until December 31, 2023.
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In May 2020, Congress eliminated the 2% Medicare sequestration payment reduction that applies to all Medicare providers and suppliers, due to the COVID-19 PHE, and Congress extended it until March 31, 2022. The sequestration payment reduction resumed with a 1% reduction to rates from April 1, 2022 until June 30, 2022, and the full 2% Medicare sequestration resumed on July 1, 2022.
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The CARES Act established a provider relief fund of $100 billion for Medicare providers and suppliers to prevent, prepare for, and respond to the COVID-19 PHE, and as a Medicare supplier we also received funds of $6.2 million in the second quarter of 2020. The Paycheck Protection Program and Heath Care Enhancement Act was also signed into law on April 24, 2020 and provided additional funding of $484 billion to programs enacted under the CARES Act. Of the $484 billion, $75 billion was additional funding for healthcare providers to reimburse healthcare related expenses and lost revenues attributable to COVID-19 PHE, which was in addition to the $100 billion approved in the CARES Act.
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On April 6, 2020, CMS issued an Interim Final Rule (IFR) in the Federal Register for policy and regulatory revisions in response to the COVID-19 PHE. This IFR included that for the duration of the COVID-19 PHE, the face-to-face requirements and clinical indications of coverage for home oxygen, among other respiratory products, were waived.
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The Trump administration also issued a number of regulatory waivers to increase the flexibility in durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics and supplies (DMEPOS) suppliers’ ability to service patients quickly and without the normal requirements. For example, the patient signature for proof of delivery for DMEPOS was waived when signatures could not be collected during the COVID-19 PHE for dates of services within the PHE. In addition, CMS increased Medicare contractors’ ability to waive replacement product requirements, paused the national prior authorization program for certain DMEPOS items, automatically extended expiring accreditations, granted contractors the flexibility to grant appeals extensions, and suspended medical review of claims. Both the IFR and temporary regulatory changes show significant flexibility from CMS to improve access for oxygen and other DMEPOS items during this COVID-19 PHE. These changes were retroactive to early March 2020. In August 2020, CMS resumed medical review of claims and the prior authorization program for certain DMEPOS.
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CMS issued a final rule in December 2021 (CMS-1738-P) to establish payment amounts that were to be effective after the COVID-19 PHE for DMEPOS products and services covered under Medicare.
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CMS established three different fee schedule adjustment methodologies for non-CBAs after the termination of the COVID-19 PHE: (1) for non-contiguous non-CBAs; (2) for contiguous non-CBAs defined as rural areas; and (3) for non-rural non-CBAs within the contiguous United States. Payment methodologies (1) and (2) contemplate utilizing the 50/50 blended rates as a permanent construct, but payment methodology (3) contemplates setting the fee schedule amounts to 100% of the Medicare rates that are based upon (former) competitive bid rates. This will reduce Medicare rates after the PHE is over in the current areas that are considered non-rural but not covered by a former CBA, as those areas are currently receiving a 75/25 blended reimbursement rate.
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In January 2021, CMS announced, for informational purposes only, the payment amounts that would have been effective for the competitive bidding round 2021 as part of its effort to increase transparency into the DMEPOS Competitive Bidding Program. As a reminder, the bids for oxygen were based on the HCPCS code E1390, which is for stationary oxygen, and there were 130 regions bid. The simple average of the 2018 payment amounts for these regions for this code was $73.98. The simple average of the payment amounts for these regions for this code was $122.61, or an average increase of 65.7%. If CMS were to have implemented these rate changes, the simple average payment amounts in these regions for POCs (codes E1390 and E1392) would have been $157.60, which is significantly higher than the simple average payment amounts of $110.07 and $121.07 per month being paid as of January 1, 2021 and April 1, 2021 for these regions.
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In September 2021, CMS published a Decision Memo which revised the Home Use of Oxygen national coverage determination and removed the national coverage determination for Home Oxygen Use to Treat Cluster Headaches. This allows the Medicare Administrative Contractors to make coverage determinations regarding the use of home oxygen and oxygen equipment for cluster headaches. CMS also expanded patient access to oxygen and oxygen equipment in the home by allowing oxygen use for acute or short-term needs instead of limiting coverage to chronic hypoxemia, removed the requirements for alternative treatment measures before dispensing of oxygen therapy, and removed the limited list of conditions for which oxygen may be covered to respiratory-related diseases, to allow the physician flexibility to make that determination. In addition, CMS defined exercise more broadly to include functional performance of the patient and allow more flexibility on pulse oximetry readings to account for differences in skin pigmentation. Lastly, CMS reduced provider burden by removing the oxygen certificate of medical necessity requirement. We believe these changes will expand coverage for patients who would benefit from oxygen therapy, reduce administrative burdens, and give more decision-making authority on proper patient care to the physicians. CMS delayed the implementation date for the revised national coverage determination until January 3, 2023.
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On March 11, 2021, the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARP) became federal law. The ARP, among other things, increased spending without offsets to other federal programs. The Statutory Pay-as-You-Go (PAYGO) Act of 2010 requires deficit neutrality overall in the laws enacted by Congress and imposes automatic spending reductions at the end of the year if such laws increase the deficit when they are added together. Any legislation enacted after February 12, 2010, that affects direct spending and/or revenues is subject to Statutory PAYGO. The Congressional Budget Office previously estimated that a Statutory PAYGO sequester in fiscal year 2022 resulting from the ARP passage would cause a 4% reduction in Medicare spending.
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