Siemens Healthineers has cleared a key hurdle in its plans to purchase Varian for $16.4 billion.
Shareholders for the Palo Alto, California-based cancer care technology company gave their blessing to the deal on Thursday. Varian said it remains focused on closing the transaction in the first half of 2021, subject to regulatory approvals and other conditions.
"The overwhelming support our stockholders have expressed for this combination reflects the compelling value and important opportunity to shape the future of healthcare we see with Siemens Healthineers," Varian CEO Dow Wilson said in an Oct. 15 statement. "This vote brings us closer not only toward completing this transformative combination, but also toward realizing our vision of a world without fear of cancer.”
Varian shareholders on Thursday also rejected a proposal to grant certain compensation to its executive officers related to the merger, according to a filing with the SEC.
Germany-based imaging giant Siemens first announced the blockbuster all-cash deal back in August. At the time, company officials said the acquisition will create a “global healthcare leader with the most comprehensive cancer care portfolio in the industry.” Together they’ll offer the entire gamut of services from screening and diagnosis to post-treatment survivorship.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.