Exactech, a Gainesville-based orthopedic manufacturer, laid off 63 employees due to surgery cancellations caused by COVID-19.
Exactech, a developer and producer of implants and instruments for joint-replacement surgery founded and headquartered in Gainesville at 2320 NW 66 Court, on Monday laid off 54 employees in Gainesville and nine at its Sarasota operation.
The announcement comes a few days after Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday signed an executive order prohibiting elective surgeries. Exceptions to DeSantis’ order will be made for procedures that, if delayed, would place a patient’s immediate health at risk or seriously worsen a medical condition.
Despite years of consistent company growth, the devices Exactech designs and manufactures for surgeries at medical centers worldwide including knee, hip and ankle replacement are suddenly irrelevant — at least temporarily.
Spokeswoman Priscilla Bennett said the company had been cutting costs since the beginning of the month to account for the postponement of surgeries around the world that use its devices, as hospitals rapidly transitioned their focus to treating COVID-19.
These cost-cutting measures included canceling travel, a hiring freeze and a halt on overtime work. However, even paring down to its “most critical operations” was not enough to account for global sale losses, Bennett said.
“With surgeries being canceled, so is our cash flow,” she said. “For weeks, we’ve been doing everything we can to avoid getting to this.”
The 63 total laid off employees come from all departments of the company, she said. All remaining employees face tiered salary cuts, with senior management taking the greatest hits, she said.
By Emily Mavrakis | Gainesville Sun
Image Credit: Exactech
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