Roche considering exit from blood glucose meter market

Swiss global healthcare company Roche is reportedly considering offloading its blood glucose meter business.
According to Reuters, the drugmaker is exploring the sale of its diabetes device unit due to increased competition in the market and reimbursement pressure.
Sources close to the company told the news agency that talks about a potential sale of the business are still in their early stages. They did not disclose how much the Roche blood glucose meter unit was worth but stressed that a deal for business may not materialise.
In 2012, Germany’s biggest drugmaker Bayer AG tried to sell its blood glucose meter business for around $1.5 billio, but was forced to pull the plug on the sale early this year after failing to generate sufficient buyer interest.
All Roche diabetes care products are sold under the brand Accu-Chek . The company’s portfolio includes a range of blood sugar testing devices (glucose meters), which measure levels of sugar in the blood, and insulin pumps.