Abbott to cut 700 jobs in state

Abbott Laboratories said Tuesday that it planned to cut 1,200 jobs in California and Ireland, trimming costs in the division that makes heart stents and other devices for blood vessels.

Abbott, based in Abbott Park, Ill., will cut about 700 jobs at a plant in Temecula and close a plant in Galway, Ireland, eliminating about 500 positions, spokesman Scott Stoffel said.

The company’s loss on vascular devices, including the stents, more than doubled during the third quarter even while revenue increased. Abbott is awaiting a decision by U.S. regulators on whether to approve the Xience, a new generation of drug-coated stent, a wire mesh tube used to hold arteries open after they’ve been unclogged.

“We’re right-sizing our vascular division,” Stoffel said. “The changes are a result of overcapacity due to significant improvements in manufacturing efficiency and current market conditions.”

The vascular division’s operating loss grew to $52 million in the third quarter from $22 million a year earlier, company filings show. Revenue increased 15% to $403 million. The division also makes stents used to clear blockages in the neck.

Abbott obtained Xience when it purchased Guidant Corp.’s stent business for $4.1 billion in April 2006.

Abbott shares rose 49 cents, or less than 1%, to $57.50.