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Item 7.01.
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Regulation FD.
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To date, Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (the “Company”) has experienced disruption of procedures in countries whose healthcare systems are impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak, including China, Korea, Italy, and Taiwan. Some placements of new systems have also been delayed in these countries. As of the date of this Form 8-K, these early countries impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak do not represent a material portion of our current procedure volume. However, the growth in infections in Europe and the United States, which represent a larger portion of our procedure volume, combined with the recent guidance by the Surgeon General and American College of Surgeons advising the deferral of elective procedures in areas with a concentration of COVID-19 infections may further disrupt our business. As a result, we anticipate that the procedure volume and system placement disruption will expand as the COVID-19 outbreak intensifies globally.
In addition, restrictions on our ability to travel and access to our customers, as well as temporary closures of our facilities or the facilities of our suppliers and their contract manufacturers could negatively impact our sales and operating results. The impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on local economies and the global stock markets could also lead to curtailed or delayed capital spending by hospitals. The total impact of these disruptions could have a material impact on our financial results. At this date, we cannot predict the specific extent, or duration, of the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on our financial results. We will provide additional information during our next earnings call in April.
Our long-term fundamentals remain strong, and our first priority—now and always—is the health and safety of patients, our employees, customers, providers, and the communities in which we operate.
Forward-Looking Statement
This Form 8-K contains forward-looking statements, including statements regarding the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on the Company’s results of operations. These forward-looking statements are necessarily estimates reflecting the best judgment of the Company’s management and involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those suggested by the forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements should, therefore, be considered in light of various important factors, including, but not limited to, the following: the risk that the COVID-19 outbreak could lead to material delays and cancellations of procedures, curtailed or delayed capital spending by hospitals and disruption to our supply chain, or cause diversion of management and other resources in responding to the COVID-19 outbreak, all of which could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s results of operations, and other risk factors under the heading “Risk Factors” in the Company’s report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, as updated by the Company’s other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Statements using words such as “estimates,” “projects,” “believes,” “anticipates,” “plans,” “expects,” “intends,” “may,” “will,” “could,” “should,” “would,” “targeted,” and similar words and expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this Form 8-K. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or release any revisions to these forward-looking statements, except as required by law.