(Bloomberg) -- Bluebird Bio Inc. announced plans to cut about a quarter of its workforce as the biotech confronts a difficult environment for companies that make gene therapies, costly one-time treatments for hard-to-treat conditions.
The move is part of a restructuring that’s expected to allow the company to focus on launching its products and reduce cash operating expenses by 20% by the third quarter of next year, according to a statement from the Somerville, Massachusetts-based company. Bluebird has about 375 employees, according to a filing earlier this month.
While nearly 20 gene therapies have US approval to treat a variety of disorders including sickle cell disease and hemophilia, treatment costs that range into the millions of dollars and other factors have slowed uptake. Bluebird has struggled to turn gene therapy into a successful business, and has said there’s “substantial doubt” about its ability to continue as a going concern.
Bluebird shares rose 1.9% in trading before US markets opened. They lost 84% of their value over the past 12 months.
“We are taking decisive action designed to optimize our cost structure and position the company to attract the additional capital required to unlock the significant commercial opportunity before us,” Chief Executive Officer Andrew Obenshain said in the statement.
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