Independent Auditors
Report
To the Board of Directors of
Fisher Scientific International Inc.:
We have audited the accompanying balance sheet of Fisher Scientific
International Inc. and subsidiaries (the "Company")
as of December 31, 2000 and 1999, and the related statements
of operations, cash flows, and changes in stockholders' equity
(deficit) and comprehensive income (loss) for each of the three
years in the period ended December 31, 2000. These financial
statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management.
Our responsibility is to express an opinion on these financial
statements based on our audits.
We conducted our audits in accordance with auditing
standards generally accepted in the United States of
America. Those standards require that we plan and perform
the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about
whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement.
An audit includes examining, on a test basis,
evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the
financial statements. An audit also includes assessing the
accounting principles used and significant estimates made
by management, as well as evaluating the overall financial
statement presentation. We believe that our audits provide
a reasonable basis for our opinion.
In our opinion, the financial statements present fairly, in
all material respects, the financial position of Fisher
Scientific International Inc. and subsidiaries as of
December 31, 2000 and 1999, and the results of their
operations and their cash flows for each of the three years
in the period ended December 31, 2000 in conformity
with accounting principles generally accepted in the
United States of America.
New York, New York
February 2, 2001
(February 14, 2001 as to Note 22)
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