REGIONAL BUSINESS
Invacare discloses FDA decree
Health-care products maker Invacare Corp. (NYSE: IVC) of Elyria said it has been informed the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio has approved the terms of a “consent decree of injunction” with the Food and Drug Administration.
The company said the order is related to previously announced inspections of wheelchair manufacturing and corporate operations.
Invacare said the decree “limits production and design activities at the two Elyria facilities until they are certified to be in compliance with FDA regulations by an independent third-party expert and subsequently approved by the FDA.”
Invacare added that it can continue manufacturing under certain terms “in cases of existing orders, medical necessity and repair and replacement of products currently in use.” The company added that all other facilities are in full operation.
Chamber sponsors luncheon
A women’s luncheon program set for Jan. 16 by the Greater Akron Chamber will cover work and life balance issues.
The chamber’s “Know” group (Knowledgeable Network of Women) will feature JJ DiGeronimo at the 11:30 a.m. event at Portage Country Club at 240 N. Portage Path in Akron.
DiGeronimo has worked in technology fields for more than 20 years and is also an author, wife and mother. She has written The Working Woman’s GPS, and has a blog called Purposeful Woman (found online at www.purposefulwoman.com).
For reservations, call 330-376-5550 or register on-line at www.greaterakronchamber.org. Deadline is Friday, Jan. 11.
Training program scheduled
The new Ohio Incumbent Workforce Training Voucher Program provides $20 million to train people with new job skills or to help employers enhance workers’ existing skills.
The program provides direct financial assistance to Ohio workers and to employers. The program is designed to offset a portion of the employer or employee’s costs for training and will reimburse eligible employers for specific training costs. Applications will be available starting Jan. 7.
For more information, go to www.OhioMeansJobs.com.
Wayne bank declares dividend
Wooster-based Wayne Savings Bancshares Inc., the holding company of Wayne Savings Community Bank, declared a cash dividend of 7 cents per share for the quarter ending Dec. 31. The dividend will be paid Jan. 23 to stockholders of record Jan. 9. Wayne Savings Community Bank has 11 locations in Wooster, Ashland, Millersburg, Rittman, Lodi, North Canton and Creston.
Insurer offers fuel program
Richfield transportation specialty insurer National Interstate said it will begin accepting applications for a traditional insurance program starting Jan. 1 that will complement its fuel distribution business. The new fuel distribution program will focus on best-in-class residential propane and fuel dealers, National Interstate said. Marketing will be done through retail agents and brokers with experience in the fuel distribution industry.
HEALTH CARE
Hobby Lobby loses challenge
Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor denied a request to block part of the federal health-care law that requires employee health-care plans to provide insurance coverage for the morning-after pill and similar emergency contraception pills.
Hobby Lobby Stores and a sister company, Mardel Inc., sued the government, claiming the mandate violates the religious beliefs of its owners.
Sotomayor said the stores fail to satisfy the demanding legal standard for blocking the requirement on an emergency basis. She said the companies may continue their challenge to the regulations in the lower courts. Company officials say they face a daily $1.3 million fine beginning Jan. 1 if they ignore the law.
TELECOMMUNICATIONS
MagicJack expects higher sales
MagicJack VocalTec Ltd., the Israeli company whose founders invented the technology for Internet-based phone calls, said fourth-quarter sales will exceed analysts’ estimates.
The company that offers voice-over Internet telephone services will post sales of more than $39 million in the fourth quarter, Chief Executive Officer Daniel Borislow said, surpassing the $38.85 million average estimate of two analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. MagicJack’s YMax Communications subsidiary settled all disputes with Verizon Communications Inc., the company said in a filing Wednesday.
Following the agreement, there’s “definitely a better chance of a settlement” with AT&T Inc., he said.
Compiled from staff and wire reports