Vascular Solutions Subsidy Uncertain

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) -- A Minnesota medical-device firm's push for $800,000 in state subsidies toward a major expansion is in limbo after the company and its chief executive were indicted by a federal grand jury.

The Vascular Solutions' bid for a Minnesota Job Creation Fund award was set for a hearing Friday at the Department of Employment and Economic Development. Agency spokesman Monte Hanson told The Associated Press on Tuesday that last week's criminal indictment has prompted a reexamination of the subsidy package, and officials were weighing whether they'd even hold the hearing.

The Maple Grove-based company and CEO Howard Root face charges they conspired to sell a varicose-vein treatment device for unapproved medical uses. A Vascular Solutions spokesman says its expansion plans are unchanged by an indictment the company plans to fight.

(© Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)