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Business & Tech

Lap Band Manufacturer Discontinuing Sales to Beverly Hills Surgery Center

Makers of the Lap Band have began to question the safety record of some companies that sell its product.

A Beverly Hills center that offers Lap Band surgery is being cut off by the product’s manufacturer amidst state and federal investigations of the center’s safety record.

The Los Angeles Times reported that Allergan Inc., the Irvine-based company that manufactures the Lap Band, decided to discontinue sales “to all entities affiliated with 1-800-GET-THIN.” Five Southern California patients have died since 2009 after undergoing Lap Band surgeries at the Beverly Hills and West Hills centers affiliated with 1-800-GET-THIN.

U.S. Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Beverly Hills) said in a statement Thursday that he was pleased with Allergan’s decision and that he wants Congress to examine whether the federal government is properly monitoring devices such as the Lap Band, according to the Times.

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