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Air Methods, a helicopter ambulance business backed by a private-equity firm, received bankruptcy court approval for its restructuring plan to cut $1.7 billion of debt, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. Under the plan approved by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, Air Methods is expected to exit chapter 11 before the end of the year, according to a court filing yesterday. The Greenwood Village, Colo.-based company sought protection from creditors in October with a proposed restructuring agreement that would cut its debt load to roughly $550 million from $2.24 billion. Both secured lenders and unsecured bondholders will take a loss on their original investments. Creditors will also take some of the equity in the reorganized business. Air Methods provides more than 100,000 rides a year on its helicopters and airplanes. Private-equity firm American Securities bought it in 2017. The company was among a few healthcare providers that filed for bankruptcy this year, partly because of the fallout from the No Surprises Act that took effect last year to protect patients from surprise medical bills. Envision Healthcare and American Physician Partners were other companies that sought bankruptcy protection, citing the negative impact from the law.

Airline SAS AB is set to complete its U.S. chapter 11 process by June following expected regulatory approvals in Europe, according to Chief Executive Officer Anko van der Werff, Bloomberg News reported. That means the process is going according to plan, the CEO said in an interview on Thursday after posting fourth-quarter earnings that saw its adjusted pretax loss widen 30% year-on-year. The Scandinavian carrier filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in July 2022, and in October reached a $1.2 billion refinancing deal with a group of investors, including Air France-KLM and Castlelake. A bankruptcy court in New York signed off on the financing earlier this month. If SAS was an American company, it would likely have emerged from the chapter 11 process in February, van der Werff said by phone. “But we also have to go through a Swedish reorganization, which we’ll do straight after in February or March, and then we’ll have to wait for regulatory approval from the European Commission. So all in all, I expect it to take until June or so,” the CEO said. The €833 million ($915 million) in Danish and Swedish state aid from 2020 was approved by European Union state-aid watchdogs Wednesday, after an earlier approval was struck down by an EU court. The decision was expected by SAS, van der Werff said, adding that “everything is on track, really” in terms of the regulatory processes.

Drugmaker Mallinckrodt said yesterday that it has emerged from bankruptcy and reduced its total funded debt by about $1.9 billion, Reuters reported. Mallinckrodt, which won court approval for its bankruptcy plan last month, said it is moving ahead with ample liquidity to execute its strategic priorities. Pursuant to the bankruptcy plan, ownership of the company will now be handed over to its lenders and all its equity shares would cease to exist. Mallinckrodt, which makes branded and generic drugs, first filed for bankruptcy in 2020 to address its high debt load, litigation over its allegedly deceptive marketing of highly addictive generic opioids and drug pricing disputes. Despite the previous bankruptcy settlement that resolved those litigation threats and cut $1.5 billion in debt, the company quickly found itself in financial trouble again due to declining sales for its key branded drugs, including Acthar Gel. Mallinckrodt said on Tuesday it will continue operating its Specialty Generics under the oversight of an independent monitor and operate in compliance with other existing Acthar-related settlement conditions.