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BOSTON SCIENTIFIC CORP (BSX) Business

Verbatim Item 1 Business section from BOSTON SCIENTIFIC CORP's latest 10-K. Filing date: 2026-02-17. Accession: 0000885725-26-000010.

This page reproduces the company's own Item 1 Business text from the linked SEC filing. It is filer text, not grepcent analysis, scoring, or investment advice.

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ITEM 1. BUSINESS

Our Company

Boston Scientific Corporation is a global developer, manufacturer and marketer of medical devices that are used in a broad range of interventional medical specialties. Our mission is to transform lives through innovative medical solutions that improve the health of patients around the world. As a medical technology leader for more than 45 years, we have advanced the practice of less-invasive medicine by helping physicians and other medical professionals diagnose and treat a wide range of diseases and medical conditions and improve patients’ quality of life by providing alternatives to surgery and other medical procedures that are typically traumatic to the body. We advance science for life by providing a broad range of high-performance solutions to address unmet patient needs and reduce the cost of health care. When used in this report, the terms "we," "us," "our" and "the Company" mean Boston Scientific Corporation and its divisions and subsidiaries.

Business Strategy

We operate pursuant to five strategic imperatives. We aim to: Strengthen Category Leadership, Expand into High Growth Adjacencies, Drive Global Expansion, Fund the Journey to Fuel Growth and Develop Key Capabilities. We believe that our

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execution of these strategic imperatives will help us deliver on our mission, drive innovation and increase value for our customers and employees, while strengthening our leadership position in the medical device industry and delivering profitable revenue growth.

We expect to continue to invest in our core businesses and pursue opportunities to diversify and further expand our presence in strategic, high-growth adjacencies and new global markets, including growth within the countries we define as emerging markets. Maintaining and expanding our international presence is an important component of our long-term growth strategy. Through our international presence, we seek to increase net sales and market share, leverage our relationships with leading physicians and their clinical research programs, accelerate the time to bring new products to market and gain access to worldwide technological developments that we can implement across our product lines. Our research and development efforts are focused largely on the development of next-generation and novel technology offerings across multiple programs and all divisions. In the past several years, we have completed numerous acquisitions in support of our growth strategy, both strengthening our core businesses and expanding into high growth adjacent markets. We continue to develop digital tools and technologies that enable us to compete more effectively and deliver first class remote physician education, drive deeper patient engagement and increase digitally-enabled sales force productivity.

We have a firm commitment to corporate social responsibility and living our values as a global business and global corporate citizen. This includes taking actions to drive innovative care, contribute to the communities where we live and work, protect the environment, invest in our employees' health and well-being, and many other initiatives that we believe ultimately help us create value responsibly. Refer to Corporate Responsibility below for additional information regarding measures we are undertaking.

Product Offerings

Our portfolio of devices and therapies helps physicians diagnose and treat complex cardiovascular, respiratory, digestive, oncological, neurological and urological diseases and conditions. Our core businesses are organized into two reportable segments: MedSurg and Cardiovascular. In the fourth quarter of 2025, an organizational change combined our legacy Cardiology and Peripheral Interventions businesses into a single Cardiovascular business. The change had no impact on our reportable segments. The following describes our key product offerings and new product innovations by reportable segment and business unit.

MedSurg

Endoscopy

Our Endoscopy business unit develops and manufactures minimally invasive devices for diagnosing and treating gastrointestinal and pancreaticobiliary conditions and for supporting weight loss in patients with obesity. Our product offerings include hemostatic clips designed to stop and help prevent bleeding during endoscopic procedures (Resolution 360™ and MANTIS™ Clips), stent systems used for relieving biliary obstructions (WallFlex™ Biliary Stent Systems) and for endoscopic drainage of pancreatic pseudocysts (AXIOS™ Stents and Electrocautery Enhanced Delivery Systems), single-use scopes used for diagnostic and therapeutic procedures in the pancreaticobiliary system (SpyGlass™), and in endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) procedures (EXALT™ Model D Single-Use Duodenoscopes), our portfolio of endoluminal surgery products (OverStitch™ Endoscopic Suturing System and Orbera™ Intragastric Balloon System) and our portfolio of infection prevention products.

Urology

Our Urology business unit develops and manufactures devices to treat various urological conditions for both male and female anatomies, including kidney stones, benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), prostate cancer, erectile dysfunction and male incontinence, over active bladder and pelvic floor disorders. Our product offerings include a comprehensive line of stone management products, including ureteral stents, catheters, baskets, guidewires, sheaths and balloons, single-use digital flexible ureteroscopes (LithoVue™), laser systems used in urology procedures (Lumenis Pulse™ Holmium Laser Systems with MOSES™ Technology), and for the treatment of BPH (GreenLight XPS™ Laser System and Rezūm™ Systems), our portfolio of prosthetic urology products (including AMS 700™ Penile Implant with the TENACIO™ Pump to treat erectile dysfunction and our AMS 800™ Artificial Urinary Sphincter to treat male urinary incontinence), hydrogel systems which help reduce side effects that men may experience after receiving radiotherapy to treat prostate cancer (SpaceOAR™), and our portfolio of products to treat pelvic floor disorders, including our Axonics™ Sacral Neuromodulation System (Axonics™) and our Bulkamid™ Uretheral Bulking System.

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Neuromodulation

Our Neuromodulation business unit develops and manufactures devices to treat various neurological movement disorders and manage chronic pain. Our product offerings include our WaveWriter Alpha™ Spinal Cord Stimulator (SCS) System, designed to provide improved pain relief to a wide range of patients who suffer from chronic pain, our Intracept™ Intraosseous Nerve Ablation System, the only U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-cleared system to treat vertebrogenic pain, a form of chronic low back pain, our G4™ Generator and consumable portfolio in Radiofrequency Ablation (RFA) for pain management and our Vercise Genus™ Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) System for the treatment of Parkinson's disease, tremor and intractable primary and secondary dystonia.

Cardiovascular

Interventional Cardiology and Vascular Therapies (ICVT)

Our Interventional Cardiology and Vascular Therapies business unit develops and manufactures technologies to diagnose and treat complex coronary, peripheral and venous diseases, including calcific and obstructive arterial disease, thromboembolic conditions and venous insufficiency. Our portfolio includes intravascular imaging and multi-modality guidance systems that enhance procedural visualization and decision-making (OptiCross™ IVUS Imaging Catheters and AVVIGO™+ Multi-Modality Guidance System), vessel preparation and plaque modification technologies for heavily calcified and resistant coronary lesions (ROTAPRO™ Rotational Atherectomy Systems and WOLVERINE™ Coronary Cutting Balloon), coronary drug-eluting and drug-coated therapies designed to treat coronary arterial disease and in-stent restenosis (SYNERGY™ Everolimus-Eluting Stent Systems and AGENT™ Drug-Coated Balloon) and peripheral vascular therapies for the treatment of peripheral artery disease (Eluvia™ Drug-Eluting Vascular Stent Systems and Ranger™ Drug-Coated Balloons). In addition, the portfolio comprises minimally invasive therapies to remove or dissolve blood clots in deep veins and pulmonary arteries (AngioJet™ Thrombectomy Systems and EKOS™ Ultrasound Assisted Thrombolysis) and injectable treatments that improve symptoms associated with superficial venous reflux and varicose veins (Varithena™ Polidocanol Injectable Foam).

In the second quarter of 2025, we completed our acquisition of the remaining shares of Bolt Medical, Inc. (Bolt Medical), the developer of an intravascular lithotripsy advanced laser-based platform for the treatment of coronary and peripheral artery disease. In addition, we completed the acquisition of the remaining shares of SoniVie Ltd. (SoniVie), a privately held medical device company that has developed the TIVUS™ Intravascular Ultrasound System. An investigational technology, the TIVUS System is designed to denervate nerves surrounding blood vessels to treat a variety of hypertensive disorders, including renal artery denervation for hypertension.

On January 15, 2026, we announced our entry into a definitive agreement to acquire 100 percent of Penumbra, Inc. (Penumbra), a publicly traded medical technology company primarily focused on innovative medical thrombectomy products for use in peripheral vascular procedures in the removal of blood clots and blockages. The Penumbra portfolio includes the Lightning Bolt™ and Lightning Flash™ Computer Assisted Vacuum Thrombectomy (CAVT™) Systems. The purchase price is valued at $374 per share, or approximately $14.500 billion. The transaction is expected to close during 2026, subject to customary closing conditions. We plan to fund the transaction consideration through a combination of cash on hand and newly issued debt in an aggregate amount equal to approximately $11.000 billion, and the remaining portion of the transaction consideration will be paid in shares of our common stock.

Watchman

Our WATCHMAN™ Left Atrial Appendage Closure (LAAC) Devices are designed to close the left atrial appendage in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (AF) who are at risk for ischemic stroke and eligible for anticoagulation therapy. WATCHMAN™ is the first device to offer a non-pharmacologic alternative to oral anti-coagulants that has been studied in a randomized clinical trial and is the leading device in percutaneous LAAC globally.

In the second quarter of 2025, we received CE mark for the WATCHMAN FLX™ Pro Left Atrial Appendage Closure Device, which is optimized for healing and designed to improve visualization during device placement and treat a broader range of patient anatomies.

Electrophysiology

Our Electrophysiology business unit develops and manufactures less-invasive medical technologies used in the diagnosis and treatment of rate and rhythm disorders of the heart, including a broad portfolio of therapeutic and diagnostic catheters and a variety of equipment used in the Electrophysiology lab. Our product offerings include our FARAPULSE™ Pulsed Field

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Ablation (PFA) System for the treatment of AF, our OPAL HDx™ Mapping System, offering catheter-based, 3-D cardiac mapping and navigation solutions, our VersaCross Connect™ Access Solutions portfolio, Polarsheath™ and Faradrive™ Steerable Sheath providing safe and efficient access to the left side of the heart, and our portfolio of cyroablation and radiofrequency cardiac ablation systems for the treatment of AF.

We received FDA approval in the United States, and Pharmaceuticals and Medical Device Agency (PMDA) approval in Japan, in the second and third quarters of 2025, respectively, to expand instructions for use labeling to include the treatment of drug refractory, symptomatic persistent AF with the FARAPULSE™ PFA System.

Since the launch of the FARAPULSE™ PFA System in 2024, we have observed rapid conversion from legacy treatment modalities to PFA. It is now the predominant component of our Electrophysiology business unit and revenue.

Cardiac Rhythm Management

Our Cardiac Rhythm Management (CRM) business unit develops and manufactures a variety of implantable devices that monitor the heart and deliver electricity to treat cardiac abnormalities. Our product offerings include implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICD) (RESONATE™) and implantable cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillators (CRT-D) (HeartLogic™ Heart Failure (HF) Diagnostic and SmartCRT™ Technology), subcutaneous implantable cardiac defibrillators (S-ICD) (EMBLEM™ MRI S-ICD System), which provide physicians the ability to treat patients who are at risk for sudden cardiac arrest without touching the heart, pacemakers and implantable cardiac resynchronization therapy pacemakers (CRT-P) (ACCOLADE™), remote patient management systems (LATITUDE™) and cardiac monitoring systems (BodyGuardian™ Remote Cardiac Monitoring Systems provide a full range of mobile health solutions and remote monitoring services), and our LUX-Dx II+™ Insertable Cardiac Monitor System, a long-term diagnostic device implanted in patients to detect arrhythmias associated with conditions such as AF, cryptogenic stroke and syncope.

Interventional Oncology and Embolization

Our Interventional Oncology and Embolization business unit develops and manufactures products to treat various forms of cancer. Our portfolio includes technologies used to treat liver cancer, including radioactive glass microsphere therapy for primary liver cancer (TheraSphere™ Y-90) and hepatic arterial infusion systems for secondary liver and bile duct cancers, as well as cryoblation systems for the treatment of kidney, bone and lung cancers. The portfolio also comprises embolization devices used in arterial and venous procedures across the peripheral vasculature (EMBOLD™ Detachable Coil System).

Markets

Competition

We encounter significant competition across our business segments, product lines and markets, from global and local competitors. Our primary competitors include large manufacturers with multiple lines of business and competing products, as well as a wide range of medical device companies that sell a single or limited number of competitive products or participate in only a specific market segment. We also encounter competition from the entry of low-cost manufacturers, which may lead to increased pricing pressure. In certain countries, and particularly in China, we face competition from domestic medical device companies that may benefit from their status as local suppliers. We also face competition from non-medical device companies, which may offer alternative therapies for disease states that could also be treated using our products, or from companies offering technologies that could augment or replace procedures using our products.

We believe that our products and solutions compete primarily on their ability to deliver both differentiated clinical and economic outcomes for our customers by enabling physicians to perform diagnostic and therapeutic procedures safely and effectively often in a less-invasive and cost effective manner. We also compete on ease of use, comparative effectiveness, reliability and physician familiarity. In the current environment of managed care, with economically motivated buyers, consolidation among health care providers, increasing prevalence and importance of regional and national tenders, increased competition and declining reimbursement rates, we are also required to compete on the basis of price, value, reliability and efficiency.

Our competitive success depends upon our ability to continue to offer products and solutions that provide differentiated clinical and economic outcomes, including developing or acquiring innovative, scientifically advanced technologies, attract and retain qualified personnel, protect the intellectual property of our products, obtain required regulatory and reimbursement approvals, maintain our quality systems and provide quality products, and successfully market our products and meet customer demand.

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Research and Development

Our investment in research and development is critical to driving our future growth. Our investment in research and development supports internal research and development programs, regulatory design and clinical science, and other programs obtained through our strategic acquisitions and alliances, as well as engineering efforts that incorporate customer feedback into continuous improvement efforts for currently marketed and next-generation products.

We have directed our development efforts toward innovative technologies designed to expand current markets or enter adjacent markets. We continue to transform how we conduct research and development by identifying best practices, driving efficiencies and optimizing our cost structure, which we believe will enable increased development activity and faster concept-to-market timelines. We conduct our internal research and development activities at our facilities and centers of excellence located around the world. Focused, global cross-functional teams take a formal approach to new product design and development, helping us to manufacture and offer innovative products consistently and efficiently. Involving cross-functional teams early in the process is the cornerstone of our product development cycle. We believe this collaboration allows our teams to concentrate resources on the most viable and clinically relevant new products and technologies and to maximize cost and time savings as we bring them to market.

In addition to internal development, we work with leading research institutions, universities and clinicians around the world to develop, evaluate and clinically test our products. We continue to expand our collaborations to include research and development teams in our emerging market countries; these teams will focus on both global and local market requirements at a lower cost of development. We believe that these efforts will play a significant role in our future success.

Marketing and Sales

We market our products and solutions to hospitals, clinics, outpatient facilities and medical offices in 127 countries worldwide. In addition, large group purchasing organizations, hospital networks and other buying groups are important to our business and represent a substantial portion of our net sales. Each of our businesses maintains dedicated sales forces and marketing teams focused on physicians who specialize in the diagnosis and treatment of different medical conditions, as well as on key hospital service line administrators.

The majority of our net sales are derived from countries in which we have direct sales organizations. We also have a network of distributors and dealers who offer our products in certain countries and markets. We expect to continue to leverage our infrastructure in markets where commercially appropriate and use third party distributors in those markets where it is not economical or strategic to establish or maintain a direct presence.

Seasonality

Our net sales are influenced by many factors, including product launches, acquisitions, regulatory and reimbursement approvals, patient, physician and employee holiday schedules and other macro-economic conditions. While our consolidated net sales do not reflect any significant degree of seasonality, customer purchases of our medical devices have historically been lower in the first and third quarters of the year.

Resources

Manufacturing and Raw Materials

We are focused on continuously improving our supply chain effectiveness, strengthening our manufacturing processes and increasing operational efficiencies within our organization worldwide. In doing so, we seek to focus our internal resources on the development and commercial launch of new products and the enhancement of existing products. We also drive continuous improvement in product quality through process controls and validations, supplier and distribution controls and training and tools for our operations team. In addition, we remain focused on examining our operations and general business activities to enhance our operational effectiveness by identifying cost-improvement opportunities.

We remain committed to maintaining appropriate investments to ensure supply chain stability. We have an ongoing supplier resiliency program which identifies and mitigates risk and have taken measures to mitigate the impact of challenges within the global supply chain in recent years. We consistently monitor our inventory levels, manufacturing, sterilization and distribution capabilities and partnerships and maintain recovery plans to address potential disruptions or material shortages. Many components used in the manufacturing of our products are readily fabricated from commonly available raw materials or off-the-

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shelf items available from multiple supply sources; however, certain items are custom made to meet our specifications, and certain materials and components are purchased from single sources due to quality considerations, expertise, costs or constraints resulting from regulatory requirements.

Supply of certain raw materials and components used in the manufacturing of our products has been stable, but there continues to be risk for certain materials and vendors. While we continue to believe we will have access to the raw materials and components that we need, these supply chain dynamics could result in increased costs to us or an inability to fully meet customer demand for certain of our products.

Proprietary Rights and Patent Litigation

We rely on a combination of patents, trademarks, trade secrets and other forms of intellectual property to protect our proprietary rights. We generally file patent applications in the U.S. and other countries where patent protection for our technology is appropriate and available. We hold patents worldwide that cover various aspects of our technology. In addition, we hold exclusive and non-exclusive licenses to a variety of third-party technologies covered by patents and patent applications. In the aggregate, these intellectual property assets and licenses are of material importance to our business; however, we believe that no single patent, trade secret, trademark, intellectual property asset or license is material in relation to our business as a whole.

We rely on non-disclosure and non-competition agreements with employees, consultants and other parties to protect, in part, trade secrets and other proprietary technology. There has been substantial litigation regarding patent and other intellectual property rights in the medical device industry, particularly in the areas in which we compete. We continue to defend ourselves against claims and legal actions alleging infringement of the patent rights of others. Additionally, we may find it necessary to initiate litigation to enforce our patent rights, to protect our trade secrets or know-how and to determine the scope and validity of the proprietary rights of others. Accordingly, we may seek to settle some or all of our pending litigation, particularly to manage risk over time. Settlement may include cross licensing of the patents that are the subject of the litigation as well as our other intellectual property and may involve monetary payments to or from third parties.

We maintain insurance policies providing limited coverage against securities claims. We are substantially self-insured with respect to product liability claims and fully self-insured with respect to intellectual property infringement claims. The absence of significant third-party insurance coverage increases our potential exposure to unanticipated claims or adverse decisions. See Note I – Commitments and Contingencies to our 2025 consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data of this Annual Report for a discussion of intellectual property, product liability and other litigation and proceedings in which we are involved.

Regulatory Environment

As a global company, we are governed by federal, state, local and international laws of general applicability relating to, among other things, employment, labor, privacy and data protection, governance and securities, anti-corruption, fraud and abuse (including anti-kickback and false claims laws), competition, trade and export controls. In general, the scope and complexity of regulations applicable to our business has increased over time. We anticipate that governmental authorities will continue to scrutinize our industry closely and that additional regulation may increase compliance and legal costs. Any adverse regulatory actions or exposure to litigation could have an adverse effect on our business, results of operations or financial condition.

Medical Device Regulations

The medical devices that we manufacture, market and commercialize are subject to regulation by numerous worldwide regulatory bodies, including the FDA in the United States, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) in Europe and other comparable international regulatory agencies. These agencies require manufacturers of medical devices to comply with applicable laws and regulations governing development, testing, manufacturing, labeling, marketing and distribution. Medical devices are also generally subject to varying levels of regulatory control based on risk level of the device.

In the United States, we must receive authorization from the FDA to distribute our products, which is typically obtained through either a premarket notification (510(k)) to demonstrate that the device is as safe and effective as, or substantially equivalent to, a legally marketed device, or a premarket approval (PMA) application to demonstrate that the device is safe and effective for its intended use. The PMA approval process generally requires clinical data to support the safety and effectiveness of the device, and is generally more detailed, lengthier and more expensive than the 510(k) process. After a device has received marketing authorization for a specific intended use, certain changes including in the design, materials, method of manufacture or intended use, may require a new marketing authorization. The determination as to whether or not a modification or series of

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modifications require a new marketing authorization is initially left to the manufacturer to assess using available guidance; however, regulators may review this determination to evaluate the regulatory status of the modified product at any time and may require the manufacturer to cease marketing and recall the modified device until a new marketing authorization is obtained.

In the European Union (EU), a CE Mark is required to sell medical devices, which represents that products meet required standards of performance, safety, and quality. A CE Mark is affixed following a conformity assessment and either approval from an appointed independent notified body or through self-certification by the manufacturer. In 2017, the EU enacted the Medical Device Regulation (MDR or EU MDR), which became effective in May 2021, and changed multiple aspects of the regulatory framework for CE marking, including increased compliance requirements for the medical device industry. Medical devices that have a valid CE Certificate issued before May 2021 can continue to be sold during the applicable transition period or until the CE Certificate expires, whichever comes first, provided there are no significant changes to the design or intended use. In 2023, the European Commission extended the transitional period to 2027 for certain high risk class devices and 2028 for lower risk class medical devices. The MDR has required significant investment and will continue to require ongoing investment over the next couple of years to transition all products. The CE mark continues to be a prerequisite for successful registration in many other global geographies. In addition, other EU countries continue to impose significant local registration requirements despite the implementation of MDR.

We are also required to comply with the regulations of every other country where we commercialize products before we can launch or maintain new products on the market, including NMPA regulations in China, Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) and PMDA regulations in Japan, and regulations in many countries in the Middle East and Southeast Asia that previously did not have, or had minimal, medical device regulations.

The FDA and other worldwide regulatory agencies and competent authorities actively monitor compliance to local laws and regulations through review and inspection of design and manufacturing practices, record-keeping, reporting of adverse events, labeling and promotional practices. The FDA can ban certain medical devices, detain or seize adulterated or misbranded medical devices, order recall or market withdrawal of these devices and require notification of health professionals and others with regard to medical devices that present unreasonable risks of substantial harm to the public health. The FDA may also enjoin and restrain a company for certain violations of the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and the Safe Medical Devices Act, pertaining to medical devices, or initiate action for criminal prosecution of such violations. Regulatory agencies and authorities in the countries where we do business can halt production in or distribution within their respective country or otherwise take action in accordance with local laws and regulations.

Complying with requirements imposed on our products and business is an ongoing process as we introduce additional products and/or product modifications and seek to comply with changing legal and regulatory requirements. The time required to obtain authorization to market and sell products varies by country. The ability to comply with global post-market requirements requires extensive and ongoing resources. An enforcement or adverse action by a regulator could limit our ability to obtain regulatory authorizations or impact our ability to develop, market, distribute, or otherwise make our products available, depending on the nature of the action.

Our quality system is designed to enable us to satisfy various international quality system regulations, including those of the FDA with respect to products sold in the U.S. The International Standards Organization (ISO) established the ISO 13485 quality system standard, which includes requirements for an implemented quality system that applies to component quality, supplier control, product design and manufacturing operations. All of our medical device manufacturing facilities and key distribution sites are certified under the ISO 13485 quality system standard.

Health Care Policies and Reimbursement

Political, economic, technological and regulatory influences around the world continue to subject the health care industry to potential fundamental changes that could substantially affect our results of operations. We maintain a global Government Affairs presence, headquartered in Washington, D.C., to actively monitor and advocate on myriad legislative matters and public policies that may potentially impact us and the patients we serve, both domestically and in international markets.

Our products are purchased principally by hospitals, physicians and other health care providers around the world that typically bill various third-party payers, including government programs (e.g., Medicare and Medicaid in the U.S.) and private insurance payers, for the items and services provided to their patients. Government and private sector initiatives related to limiting the growth of health care costs (including price regulation), coverage and payment policies, comparative effectiveness reviews of therapies, technology assessments, price transparency and health care delivery and payment structure reforms, are continuing in many countries where we do business. We believe that these changes are causing the marketplace to place increased emphasis on the delivery of treatments that can reduce costs, improve efficiencies and/or increase patient access. Although we believe our

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products and technologies generate favorable clinical outcomes, value and cost efficiency, while also being less invasive than alternatives, the resources necessary to demonstrate value to our customers, patients, payers and other stakeholders are significant and new therapies may take significantly longer periods of time to gain widespread adoption.

Implementation of cost containment initiatives and health care reforms in significant markets such as the U.S., China, Australia, and other markets may limit the price of, or the level at which reimbursement is provided for, our products or procedures using our products, which in turn may make it less likely that a hospital or physician will select our products to treat patients.

Environmental Regulation and Management

We are subject to various environmental laws, directives and regulations both in the U.S. and abroad. Our operations involve the use of substances regulated under environmental laws, primarily in manufacturing and sterilization processes. We are focused on continuous improvement in environmental metrics with a goal of reducing pollution, minimizing depletion of natural resources and reducing our overall environmental footprint. We have obtained ISO14001:2015, Environmental Management Standard certification for 18 of our key locations and ISO50001:2018, Energy Management Standard certification for 14 of our key locations. Specifically, we are working to optimize energy and resource usage, ultimately reducing greenhouse gas emissions and waste.

Human Capital

At Boston Scientific, our work is guided by core values and behaviors that define our culture and empower our employees, including Caring, Diversity, Global Collaboration, High Performance, Meaningful Innovation and Winning Spirit. As of December 31, 2025, we had approximately 59,000 employees, of which approximately 60 percent were outside the U.S. We believe the collective talent of our employees and our shared corporate culture, values and behaviors give us a competitive advantage.

Attracting, developing and retaining talented employees are key parts of our strategy and are critical to our success. We strive to do this by fostering a diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace, providing competitive pay and benefits and flexible work conditions, offering ongoing employee growth and development opportunities and cultivating a culture that prioritizes employee health, safety and well-being.

Workforce Development

We do our best work to advance health care when we have a diverse range of perspectives and experience on our team. Innovation thrives in a culture of engagement and inclusion.

We continue to focus on improving workforce development through intentional actions to drive meaningful change. We listen to our employees and use that feedback to complement and expand our existing programs to emphasize initiatives aimed at developing our pipeline of talent and fostering an inclusive workplace for all. Additionally, our Executive Committee and our Board of Directors oversee our policies and strategies related to diversity and inclusion, employee engagement, talent recruitment and development, pay equity and company culture.

In addition, our ten Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) are at the heart of our inclusion strategy. ERGs are voluntary, company sponsored employee groups open to all employees that foster and celebrate our diverse workforce and inclusive work environment. They provide forums for us to learn from one another, celebrate our uniqueness and develop inclusive leadership skills. We support each ERG by designating global and local executive sponsors and providing financial resources. Our ERG chapters around the world collaborate across the business at all levels and are powerful drivers of change in the Company.

Additionally, our approach to supplier selection involves building inclusive practices throughout the Boston Scientific supplier network. We are committed to the sustained support of a broad spectrum of businesses that share our dedication to improving the quality of patient care.

Compensation and Benefits

We offer competitive pay and benefits that are flexible and affordable to meet the individual needs of our employees. In addition to cash-based salaries, our rewards portfolio includes cash bonus programs, sales incentives, stock awards, recognition awards, health insurance, paid time off and family leave, retirement savings plans, childcare and employee assistance programs that encourage overall well-being, including help with finances, inclusive family planning and support, elder/childcare, legal support and mental health resources.

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Equal pay for equal work is rooted in our values and foundational to fostering an inclusive environment. Pay equity is an important part of our long-standing global compensation planning practices. Sustaining pay equity requires constant measurement and attention, so we regularly conduct comprehensive audits, internal and external analyses and company-wide benchmarking of salaries to identify and mitigate disparities. We continue to educate, update policies and expand benefits to ensure our employee base represents the patients, health systems and communities we serve, and foster a culture of inclusion.

Employee Health, Safety and Well-Being

We take a global approach to prioritizing and monitoring employee health and safety and we strive to foster a safety-oriented culture in all of our offices and facilities. We maintain rigorous health and safety standard protocols across our businesses and regions that are designed to align with regulatory requirements and industry best practices. Our Employee Health & Safety Global and Regional Councils meet regularly to review our performance against health and safety goals for the global organization and to discuss trends and risks, as well as opportunities for improvement.

We recognize that employee well-being, safety, culture, engagement and recognition are all critical to a healthy work environment and productive workforce. We offer programs that acknowledge, respect and support an individual’s life and work choices. Our holistic programs are guided by overall workforce health, focusing on physical, financial and emotional well-being as well as a healthy work environment. We believe that investing in employee well-being leads to improved performance for the individual and the organization.

Employee Growth and Development

Developing our people professionally is one of the most important things we do. We have robust succession planning to ensure our future leaders are ready to assume roles as they become available. At every level of the Company, employees have access to training and tools they can use to advance their skills and expertise and create greater possibilities for their careers. We offer professional and technical courses, including on-the-job training, skills-based learning, mentoring opportunities and leadership development programs for all employees.

Employee Engagement

We seek ongoing feedback from our employees to better understand what we are doing well and, conversely, how we can improve their experience. In addition to encouraging ongoing communication and feedback between employees and their managers, we conduct periodic employee engagement surveys to ensure all employees have an opportunity to share their insights and we take appropriate action in response.

Corporate Responsibility

As a global health care company, we seek to meet patient needs while integrating responsible practices across our business. Our Corporate Responsibility efforts include sustainability, access to health care, employee well-being and community-focused initiatives aligned with our company values.

We work with employees, suppliers, and partners to support efforts related to health equity, educational opportunity, and environmental stewardship. Our Corporate Responsibility team coordinates with subject matter experts across the business to implement these practices and communicate progress.

We manage environmental impacts through enterprise-wide policies, processes and operational controls governing energy use, greenhouse gas emissions and waste management. Our approach includes cutting energy use, converting to renewable energy where feasible, and compensating through carbon offsets where appropriate.

Our community programs support employee engagement through volunteerism and giving, including an Employee Matching Gifts program. We collaborate with nonprofit organizations to support health education, workforce development and efforts to reduce health disparities. We also continue our Close the Gap initiative, which focuses on raising health care provider awareness about health disparities and addressing barriers to care for underserved communities. We also support Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education initiatives designed to engage underrepresented students through employee-led outreach.

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Available Information

Copies of our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K and amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the Exchange Act), are available free of charge on our website (www.bostonscientific.com) as soon as reasonably practicable after we electronically file the material with or furnish it to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Additionally, the SEC maintains an internet site (www.sec.gov) that contains reports, proxy and information statements, and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC. Information on our website or linked to our website is not incorporated by reference into this Annual Report.