by
Barbara Kram, Editor | December 02, 2009
This Medical Coaches/Siemens
Biograph PET/CT coach was
recently delivered to the
Cleveland Clinic in
September 2009
This report originally appeared in the November 2009 issue of DOTmed Business News
As an economical and flexible alternative to fixed imaging systems, mobile medical imaging services should grow in an economic downturn. But that has not been the case because at least two-thirds of this market is made up of interim systems provided to health care facilities in the process of upgrading their technology. Since capital investment by hospitals and imaging centers is at a near standstill, the lion's share of mobile services is also impacted.
The industry trend of declining reimbursements for medical imaging has trickled down to the medical coach business, which has experienced a decline in sales across many modalities, DOTmed sources report.
"Domestically we have seen a decrease in the Mobile MRI and Mobile PET/CT market over the last year," said Chad Smith, marketing director, Medical Coaches Inc., Oneonta, NY. The company is a specialized manufacturer of mobile units. "The decrease is a result of the Deficit Reduction Act (DRA) and other cuts in reimbursement rates coupled with the staggering downturn in the economy."
"The first thing we saw was shrinkage of providers who were not tied to a hospital. The DRA hit them and they were no longer able to get the reimbursements they were looking for, so you see a lot of that equipment showing up on the market," said Al Iglehart, director of product development for Genesis Medical Imaging and Genesis Mobile Partners, Huntley, Il.
"Business has been in a slump the past two years but we are seeing a slight upturn lately," reported Carl Frank, president, DBRS Medical Systems, Inc., Chino, Calif. His company provides mobile CT scanners to hospitals and clinics.
Despite a challenging few years, others have also reported an uptick in business activity very recently.
"In the last seven months, we have seen some momentum in RFPs for interim mobile units," said Michael Holzberg, managing partner, Remedy Medical Systems, Scottsdale, Ariz. Remedy Medical specializes in rental of mobile MR, CT and other modalities. "Some of that momentum is for better technology. Hospitals are not de-installing their technology and installing new, but rather, because they need new technology and can't afford to purchase it, they are going to a rental to fill that need."
Medical Coaches painting
process takes roughly five
days to complete. Each coach
is hand sanded, and not acid
etched, to ensure to finest
cohesion. The highest quality
PPG epoxy based paint is
used each time.
In fact, the overall picture in the U.S. shows signs of improvement lately. Selected modalities, applications and practice settings are faring better than others in the mobile world, as in the fixed equipment markets. Bright spots for mobile include nuclear medicine and ultrasound, rural health care settings, international markets and interim systems needed for long-range hospital construction projects, among other opportunities.
